Roy Keane - A Great Footballer
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There
have been so many superlatives used to describe Roy Keane's ability
and performances on the football pitch it is difficult to come up
with an original commentary on his brilliance. Sometimes his commitment
and will to win, almost at any cost, overshadowed the man's footballing
ability. His style of play was very understated in some ways but there
is no doubt that his ability to consistently pick and play the right
pass, at the right time, with the right weight, to the right player
was unmatched by any of his peers. Before the ravages of his injuries
caught up with him his stamina, athleticism, his soccer skills, and
one of the sharpest football brains, made him the most complete midfield
player of his generation. No other player |
had the combination of footballing attributes
that Roy Keane had.
Certainly none of his peers achieved the same levels of relentless consistency
that he managed throughout his career.The following is a range of views
expressed by a wide variety of players, mangers and football pundits on
Keane's soccer prowess:
Steve Bruce on Roy Keane
| I'm not sure whom
he [Sir Alex Ferguson] regards as his best-ever signing at Old Trafford
but there can't have been one better than Keano. |
Sir Alex Ferguson talking to Sky Sports
in 2004
| "He is my best
player. It's not just the quality of his game, it is also his influence
and great determination. There are a lot of parts to making a great
player - he has fulfilled them all." |
Sir Alex Ferguson - February 2005
| "When you are
talking about Manchester United 30 or 500 years from now, Roy Keane
will be regarded as one of the greatest players ever at this club" |
Former Manchester United striker Ruud van
Nistelrooy
| "Roy will always
be remembered as the greatest player who's played for the club. His
leadership and quality of play and his character will always be within
us, because I worked with him and trained with him for four and a
half years and he was the best player I ever played with ..." |
David Beckham talking to PA Sport on Keane's
departure from Manchester United
| “He is a player
who will lead from the front and get a team going. He is also a player
who will tell you when you have done something wrong and something
right. You know where you stand with him, he'll tell you in his own
special way. I think he had one of the biggest impacts on a club anyone
could have. The players responded to him in every game. I am shocked
he has left because I thought he would be there for a few more years,
but he has made his decision and everyone will respect that. People
now have to look at what he has done with Manchester United because
in the last 12 years he has won everything there is to win in club
football. He has done it, gaining respect from so many players that
he has played with and against.” |
Former midfield adversary and ex-Arsenal
player Patrick Viera in December 2008 when asked name the best player
he ever played against
| "For me, being
in England for nine years, I would have said Roy Keane. (He) is really
tough, really strong, but he was fair. "What I like about him
is the fact that he would not talk, he would take the kick, he would
not say anything, then, on the next one, he would give it to you and
he would expect, of course, that you say nothing. "He's not the
kind of player who talks a lot. So he'll take the kick, he will give
back, but I like him - he's quite fair." |
Former Manchester United and England legend
Bobby Charlton compared Roy Keane to Duncan Edwards who had been tragically
killed in the Munich air disaster. Bobby Charlton believed that Duncan
Edwards was even better than the great Pele.
| "...as a player
and a competitor [Keane is] the nearest I've seen in my lifetime to
Duncan Edwards" |
Former Arsenal and French international
footballer Thierry Henry had this to say about Roy Keane.
| "...he is a
super footballer. He scores, he influences his team and the crowd.
He'll be respected for ever. He is a football legend with the Republic
of Ireland and Manchester United." |
Former Liverpool great and BBC soccer pundit
Alan Hansen described Roy Keane as follows:
| "[Keane] was
in a class of his own in his peak...the best player the Premiership
has seen." |
This what Sir Alex Ferguson had to say
in his autobiography about Roy Keane's performance in the 1999 second
leg of the Champions League semi-final in Turin.
| "I did not
think I could have a higher opinion of any footballer than I already
had of the Irishman but he rose even further in my estimation at the
Stadio Delle Alpi. The minute he was booked and out of the final,
he seemed to redouble his efforts to get the team there. It was the
most emphatic display of selflessness I have seen on a football field.
Pounding over every blade of grass, competing as if he would rather
die of exhaustion than lose, he inspired all around him. I felt it
was an honour to be associated with such a player." |
Andy Gray made the following comments following
the 0-3 win by Manchester United over Juventus on 25 February 2003.
|
"I came away from Turin that
night convinced that I would never see a better performance from
an English club on foreign soil - or a more motivated display from
a captain. But I was wrong.
The performance in the Stadio Delle Alpi on Tuesday night was even
more devastating than the one in 1999. And to complete a double
over one of Europe's best sides was quite incredible. OK, United
rode their luck a bit at times, but you always need a little bit
of good fortune when you take on Juventus in Turin. Keane, in a
different way to 1999, gave another master class in leadership.
His example seemed to rub off on the other players and they all
looked relaxed and confident playing on one of the biggest stages
in world football."
|
Former Manchester United collleague and
Dutch international Jaap Stam had this to say in his autobiography about
Keane.
| "Keane is an
incredible player, a real one-off whose name would be the first on
the team-sheet of any side. It's not just the fact that he wins every
tackle, or the way he can drive a team on with his powerful running,
and snappy passing; with Roy there's something more, a desperation
to win that drags the whole team with him" |
Roy Keane & Cork
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