Roy Keane has long been known as a football player who is tough, irritable, and always outspoken when he speaks. Keane does not hesitate to curse and criticize anyone he considers problematic. In fact, to the Manchester United (MU) players, who in fact are the club that raised him, Keane never hesitate to say what for him is right. Such a character has become a characteristic that has built Roy Keane’s image so far.
This tough nature continued until he stopped being a football player. Some time ago, when Roy Keane and Patrice Evra became the commentators of the match between Tottenham Hotspurs and United, in the English Premier League continued, Roy Keane’s tough character returned. Keane harshly criticized the performances of two MU stars, David De Gea and Harry Maguire. According to Keane, both of them did not show quality as the world’s top players. He was very surprised to see a player of Maguire’s caliber that Steven Bergwijn could easily pass.
He was so furious, Keane said, “Maguire and De Gea should hang themselves because it’s embarrassing. Don’t go home with the team on the bus. Take a taxi there to Manchester. I was disgusted by their appearance. “
Opposition like the one above is actually not the first time that Roy Keane has spoken to MU players. Long before criticizing De Gea and Maguire, Keane had often attacked other MU players whom he considered not working optimally. Keane once accused MU players of being weak and weepy. He has also mentioned Paul Pogba as an inconsistent player.
If traced back, Keane’s habit of swearing has been doing since before he retired and became a commentator like now. Sir Alex Ferguson in his autobiography entitled My Autobiography (2013), tells that when Keane was still playing for MU, he once commented harshly on several players who he considered did not work properly.
In one interview for MUTV, for example, Keane called Kieran Richardson a lazy defender. Keane was also sarcastic to Darren Fletcher by saying, “Why do the Scots like Darren Fletcher so much?” Even a player of Rio Ferdinand’s caliber was subject to criticism in the interview.
According to Sir Alex, the sharpest part of Roy Keane’s body was his tongue. Her tongue is as sharp as you can imagine. He can weaken the most confident person in the world in seconds with that sharpness. No wonder at MU Keane is said to be the most feared figure after Sir Alex Ferguson.
Roy Keane’s habit of cursing at other players is an example of the tough and irritable character of the Irish man who was born on August 10, 1971. Fergie-familiar greeting from Sir Alex Ferguson-also admits this. According to him, if Roy Keane thinks you’re not putting in the effort he expects, then he’ll take care of you right away. Many players were scolded for doing that and there was nowhere to hide from him.
Keane is a violent individual and tends to be intimidating. If angry, he can attack. Even so, for Fergie, Keane is a player with energy, courage and hot blood, with a keen instinct for football and his strategy. Keane became the most influential player in the United dressing room during his time with Fergie.
Gerard Pique is one of the players who has experienced intimidation directly from Keane. In an interview, Pique shared that when he was still in the MU uniform, at one point while he was in the changing room just before the match, his cell phone suddenly vibrated and made a sound. Keane, who heard the voice, looked for the source of the sound, but couldn’t find it.
Keane then shouted to everyone, “Whose cell phone is that?” No one answered. He asked again and still no one answered. He then cursed and Pique finally admitted it was his cellphone. Keane immediately exploded and scratched in front of everyone. She was so scared, according to Pique’s confession, that she almost peed in her pants at the time.
That’s Roy Keane. If there was something wrong in his eyes, he would just explode without hesitation. Even a fierce manager like Sir Alex dared to fight him if he really thought he had done something wrong in his eyes.
Roy Keane’s tough character carried over to the green field. Keane is the type of player who will hit anyone he thinks will threaten the defense. His position as a defensive midfielder made him free to do it all. Keane is well aware that this way of playing will have an impact on him, who inevitably has to clash with enemy players. This collision sometimes causes him to clash with enemies who do not accept the way he plays.
In life dictionary of Roy Keane, there is never a word of fear and trembling for something he considers his duty. He doesn’t hesitate to fight with anyone to keep the net from being conceded. His dispute with Arsenal legend Patrick Vieira is an example of the consequences of his tough and uncompromising play.
Roy Keane’s character who is tough, irritable, and uncompromising ultimately takes a toll that will always be remembered in his football career. In the 2001 Manchester derby, Keane brutally hit Alf-Inge Haaland in the knee until he collapsed and was pulled out with an injury. Keane admitted that he deliberately did it as a form of revenge for Haaland’s treatment four years earlier, in September 1997, to be precise, when United met Leeds United.
In that match, Haaland accused Keane of faking injury while they were both fighting over the ball. In fact, Roy Keane was injured and no longer played for the rest of the season. Because of that, Keane had a grudge, until finally he got revenge on Erling Haaland’s father in the Manchester derby.
Roy Keane knew very well that what he was doing would be fatal to Haaland’s career. But he was not at all sorry for his actions. In his autobiography Roy Keane: The Second Half (2014), Keane openly admits that he deliberately hit Haaland in the leg and has absolutely no regrets about doing so. “There are a number of regrets in my life. But the incident with Haaland does not belong to it,” said Roy Keane. For Keane what he did is worth what Haaland did to him four years earlier.
From this, it can be seen that behind his glories in guarding Manchester United’s midfield, Roy Keane has another side that made him who he is today. Harsh, grumpy and uncompromising, that is the identity that has shaped Roy Keane throughout his career in football. Without these three things, Roy Keane’s name would only be known as a defensive midfielder from the most successful team in England. No more.
Uniquely, these three Roy Keane characters were the ones who made him thrown from the MU squad. Sir Alex in his autobiography explains that one of the reasons why Roy Keane left United was because of Roy Keane’s excessive influence in the dressing room. This is dangerous for the development of young MU players who are newly promoted or recruited. Because with his tough character, Keane can destroy the mentality of young players who are in the process of developing. From there then why Roy Keane was finally released to Glasgow Celtic in 2005.
Despite all the controversy and behavior that most people consider badly, Roy Keane remains one of the best defensive midfielders ever on British soil. He will forever be a legend that is always remembered not only for MU fans, but by all football fans everywhere.
ASL
