Keane Still Bitter Over United Exit

Two people who certainly will not be exchanging Christmas cards this year are Sir Alex Ferguson and Roy Keane. Sundays eye opening two page spread in a national news paper by Keane, had the ramblings of a bitter old man written all over it.

Keane is still evidently licking his wounds from 2005 when by mutual consent Keane and Manchester United decided to part company. A scathing negative rant about United’s 2005 crop of players on their in house TV channel MUTV was what ended Keane’s United career.

Keane has repeatedly criticised United and how the club is run in the press. He displays the views of a man who is finding retirement and two failed attempts at management with Sunderland and Ipswich, difficult to accept.

The only person to blame for Keane’s departure from Old Trafford is himself. Keane was told to try and remain positive when giving his thoughts on a match United had been well beaten in, what did Keane do? The complete opposite, he was ruthless in his assessment of the team,  he even questioned if the players who played were good enough to play for United.

The club and the manager were stunned and outraged by Keane’s comments, they acted swiftly to make sure the programme did not go out on air. Like any school pupil who is a disruption to the class, he was effectively expelled from the United School.

So it hardly come as a surprise when Keane, now working as a pundit for ITV Champions League games, was highly critical of United’s exit to Basle at the group stages.

Keane firmly set the cat amongst the pigeons with his assessment of United, comments that obviously touched a nerve with Sir Alex, who made a comment in reply to his sides dressing down by questioning Keane’s managerial record, which was a bit of a cheap shot on the United manager’s behalf.

Both Keane and Ferguson were correct, but it is the nature of the jibes that are being thrown back and forward that suggests that there is more to this than just Keane being bitter about leaving United on bad terms. What Keane should realise, is that he started the fall out back in 2005.

The friendship between Keane and Ferguson is strained beyond repair; both men are strong, stubborn characters, who will not back down. A recent snub by Keane to attend a dinner party to celebrate Ferguson being in charge of United for 25 years proves this. Keane claims he turned down the chance to attend because he would not have been able to stand up and clap Ferguson.

What Keane should realise is that United made him the player he was; no player is bigger than the club. Other players have left United on bad terms, Jaap Stam, Rudd van Nistelrooy and David Beckham, all of who made up with Ferguson years after their departure, so why can’t Keane?

If everybody held a grudge against Keane then he would not be welcome back into his home country the Republic of Ireland, following his decision to walk out on his nation’s national side during the 2002 world cup, following a disagreement with Mick McCarthy who was the manager at that time.

Something else that Keane said in his article was that Ferguson’s managerial record was down to players like him; well it works both ways Roy. Would Keane have been so decelerated as a player if he had gone elsewhere before signing for United? Old Trafford give Keane the platform he craved for him to become a legend and successful, Ferguson moulded him into the player he was.

Keane also said that United never stood by him? Is he being serious? Keane missed the whole of the 1997-98 season because of a cruciate ligament injury caused by an attempt to kick and injure Alf-Inge Haaland as the ball ran out of play.

United rehabilitated him and I assume Keane would have picked up his weekly wage during this time? He also said he would leave United in 1999 if they did not pay him what he thought he was worth, the club give in to his demands and quite rightly paid him the money he wanted.

Roy Keane is without a doubt a Manchester United legend, but he is seriously beginning to affect his own status at Old Trafford. Keane needs to realise that Ferguson is the leader at United and is a far more influential figure than Keane ever was, and ever will be.  

Whilst Keane gives his views on the game as a pundit, Ferguson will continue to manage the most successful English football team in history, and the empire that he created.

By Kevin Ashford @KevinAshford7