KEY POINTS:
As a child, unwrapping a Christmas present to find it was a chemistry set and not the Millennium Falcon left you feeling a little like most football journos must feel at a Roy Keane press conference.
Keane-the-player had a petulant thuggishness coupled with an iron will to win; Keane-the-manager is mild-mannered, articulate and even charming.
How disappointing.
Those hoping for a Hulk-like outburst are disarmed by Dr David Banner.
But you can bet that he has instilled the passion and drive of Keane-the-player into his Sunderland team with the force of industrial pneumatics.
And while he may not have assembled a squad to strike fear into the hearts of Premier League foes, Sunderland are the least likely of the new boys to yo-yo straight back down.
A record nine million pounds spent on goalkeeper Craig Gordon might just be one of the most astute buys of the summer as a safety net for a defence which will fight hard but will be breached.
Sunderland's (and Keane's) progress will be one of the most interesting sub-plots of the season so it's a fitting start that we get to see them open the season against Tottenham on Saturday night/Sunday morning.
Saturday night.
THAT'S TOMORROW NIGHT.
Back in the faux-nostalgia land of childhood Christmases, and it was almost impossible to sleep the night before receiving your unwanted chemistry sets.
The tingle of anticipation was as acute and mysterious as a Leroy Lita muscle injury.
One more sleep to go.