Keane, the new Ipswich manager, questioned whether Steve Bruce and Mark Hughes should be regarded as "good managers" or successful because they have yet to win a trophy.

But Allardyce, whose Blackburn team come up against Bruce's Wigan side on Sunday, said Keane himself had a long way to go to be seen alongside either of his former United team-mates in terms of club management.

Allardyce told PA Sport: "I find that statement to be quite bizarre to be perfectly honest.

"What Sparky and Brucey have done with the resources they have had shows they are both top managers and very, very capable managers.

"I think that Roy's a long distance away from a Steve Bruce and a Mark Hughes by his lack of experience in the job.

"So I find that quite a bizarre statement and I wouldn't agree with that at all."

Allardyce said that for clubs such as Wigan, being successful did not mean just winning trophies.

He added: "Being successful means being more consistent in their results and finishing higher up the table than they have ever done before.

"What Brucey has done in a short time at Wigan and getting them safe in the Premier League as early as he has done has been a tremendous achievement."

Allardyce is good friends with Bruce but is expecting no favours at Ewood Park on Sunday, and is hoping that a short break for the players at Gleneagles will have eased some of the pressure of the relegation fight from their shoulders.

The break was paid for out of the players' fines fund, and Allardyce said golf and bonding could be more important at this stage of the season that lengthy hours on the training pitch.

He added: "Having a bit of relaxation has been the most important thing to take away the pressures of this transparent bubble we all live in.

"If you start worrying about it too much it can be bad for preparation for the game.

"We know it's going to be a tough game. There are lots of managers in the Premier League that I know extremely well but Brucey's one I know better than most but friendship goes out of the window for those 90 minutes.

"Certainly I would love to be in his position playing this game but whatever happens we will have a drink after and see where we go from there."

Rovers will again be short of strikers for Sunday's game with Roque Santa Cruz and Jason Roberts both still on the injury list.

There are now doubts over whether Santa Cruz (knee) and Roberts (metatarsal) will play again this season - or in Santa Cruz's case ever again for Blackburn given that he looks certain to be sold in the summer - but Allardyce at least has no fresh injury concerns.

Allardyce, meanwhile, has also told his former assistant Sammy Lee there was no need to become involved in his dispute with Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez.

The Blackburn boss and Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson have accused Benitez of contempt for his rivals after his hand gestures during Liverpool's 4-0 win over Rovers.

Lee, now Benitez's assistant, had said Allardyce did not mention his unhappiness to him after the game.

But Allardyce said today: "I think there was no need for Sammy to get involved.

"It was a situation that was going on between me and Rafa Benitez.

"If anyone should have spoken, it should have been Rafa Benitez and not Sammy Lee.

"My situation was that, as I repeat, there was the situation to speak to him in his room and he wasn't there."