Aidy said he was ahead of schedule, but they won't rush him back until next year. Aidy did also stress what a big player he's be for us ( I have on good authority btw that he only wanted to keep a handful of the present squad, of which he was one ).
I really think he'd do well in a formation like this, but who knows if Thorn will still be here. But he'd balance well alongside Sammy in a 442, I'd expect. He adds bite, and although he can be surprisingly very creative I see him more as a box-to-box midfielder/ballwinner than a playmaker-his touch and technique is a bit limited for that.
But thats ok-there are not that many guys about capable of fulfilling that box-to-box role these days, wheras in the '80's everyone had one. Which is why the Keane comparison got made. Note: this is different to the "Makelele" type sitting midfielder. He's a bit more of a snarling, hard-running, all-action rottweiler than that. They don't call him "Mad Dog" for nothing!