What are your feelings on Roy Keane?

Paxi

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As a player for United — he’s obviously a legend. I feel like he’s bit of a myth now. I seen him play from 2001-2005 for United and to be honest I cannot remember this guy who people say he is.

When he had fallen out with Sir Alex, I naturally took Sir Alex’s side and for a while I just took everything that came from his mouth as bitter. He probably is a bit bitter to be fair, but I also feel like he has a lot of bad rep from people. A lot of people say he gave no feck about United but I seriously do not believe that.

We’ve all heard that he’s an auld grumpy cnut and that people should just stay away from him. But then I personally know people who have met him on numerous occasions who insist that he’s a very quiet reserved man.

I’ve never met the guy obviously but I feel like we’re really missing someone like that at United. Apparently he scaled Cleverly’s fence to confront him at Villa, imagine what he’d do to our lot?

In any case, what do you guys and gals think of Keano as of 2019?
 

Classical Mechanic

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But then I personally know people who have met him on numerous occasions who insist that he’s a very quiet reserved man.
Well yeah but when he gets a bee in his bonnet he turns into an unreasonable baby.

Strange because he's sought help for many years for his demons but still seems quite unbalanced.
 

Paxi

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Well yeah but when he gets a bee in his bonnet he turns into an unreasonable baby.

Strange because he's sought help for many years for his demons but still seems quite unbalanced.
Is that a bad thing? He’s obviously not an angel but people make him out to be a loose canon. Seems to me like he’s no filter and he’d fight ya. Nothing really that I’ve not seen in my Sunday league dressing room to be honest.
Is that so bad?

Edit: yeah it’s a bit bad.
 

Classical Mechanic

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Is that a bad thing? He’s obviously not an angel but people make him out to be a loose canon. Seems to me like he’s no filter and he’d fight ya. Nothing really that I’ve not seen in my Sunday league dressing room to be honest.
Is that so bad?
His record in management bar one season at Sunderland hasn't been great. He tends to alienate the playing staff. There are plenty of anecdotes from his ex players to this effect. I don't think he has the emotional intelligence to manage players.

They always said that Fergie had a great talent for knowing which players needed the carrot and which players needed the stick. Does Roy?
 

john moran

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His record in management bar one season at Sunderland hasn't been great. He tends to alienate the playing staff. There are plenty of anecdotes from his ex players to this effect. I don't think he has the emotional intelligence to manage players.

They always said that Fergie had a great talent for knowing which players needed the carrot and which players needed the stick. Does Roy?
His record in management is not great but given the level of players he had to work with even Pep would struggle . Roys too honest , thats his biggest problem
 

Okey

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My feelings? Love. Absolute adoration. For the player, that is. Cantona brought me to United. Keano made the love an obsession. I like my geniuses flawed, obviously. The sheer devilry and commitment to United, alloyed with real world class quality. Yeah the man may be a complete basket case, but who cares? The player will always have a special place in my heart...
 

Paxi

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His record in management bar one season at Sunderland hasn't been great. He tends to alienate the playing staff. There are plenty of anecdotes from his ex players to this effect. I don't think he has the emotional intelligence to manage players.

They always said that Fergie had a great talent for knowing which players needed the carrot and which players needed the stick. Does Roy?
There is no doubt that he’s not a people’s person. He has no tact. From fellow professionals to media - he absolutely had no clue how to handle them.

Feel like Fergie absolutely stroked him when he sacked him. If I were to guess Keane made a power play on MUTV thinking Fergie wouldn’t have the balls to sack him, yet he did.

I’ve rewatched that 2-4 Arsenal - United game and thinking back on it, I never felt more confident, whenever he was walking out with that captains armband, even if he was way passed it then.
 

Paxi

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My feelings? Love. Absolute adoration. For the player, that is. Cantona brought me to United. Keano made the love an obsession. I like my geniuses flawed, obviously. The sheer devilry and commitment to United, alloyed with real world class quality. Yeah the man may be a complete basket case, but who cares? The player will always have a special place in my heart...
Yeah we’ve had a couple of those haven’t we? Is it a coincidence?
 

GDaly95

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I find it impossible to understand him. I think he's a complicated person. He may resent his own bitterness and desperately wish he could get past it, loosen up and enjoy life, maybe show more open support towards United and a bit more affection towards the great memories he made with us. Or he could just be the type of person who is happy when he's unhappy. Maybe he isn't even unhappy but he's not a naturally emotional or light-hearted person. Not really for me to try and analyse him anyway is it.

As a player, a complete hero. As an Irish United fan, growing up with him in our team.. I really wish I knew how lucky I was. I was 10 when he left.
 

Sparky_Hughes

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One of our all time greats on the pitch, and a complete leader. I used to really get irritated by him as a person, but the older I get the more I can relate!
 

Cockney Phil

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Keano is entertaining. Some of Keano’s comments are accurate, some reflect what the fans are already saying and he’s often inflammatory. Compared with the polite self serving dross we usually get from the average pundit, I prefer a bit of feisty discussion.

In the context of footy - I have been lucky to have watched six great captains and they all led by example - Law, Charlton, Buchan, Robbo, Eric and Keano. Off the pitch I expect Law to be devious, Charlton to be deferential, Buchan to be reserved, Robbo to mumble, Eric to be poetic and Keano to be crazy - their characters reflected their styles of footy. Why would we expect any different off the pitch?

Over the same period the number of footballers who actually made sense off the pitch has been pretty thin - maybe Cruyff, Beckenbauer, Greaves, and Moore. On the whole managers make better pundits, and in my opinion Clough was one of the best critics and as feisty as Keano.

I hope the fans sing for ‘Keano’ in the Legends game because if not for him and his commitment to the club there wouldn’t have been a treble or a Legends spin off.
 

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As a player and captain? My favourite ever.

Whatever he does and says now I kind of look at as a different person. Some things I agree with (although perhaps they could be said in a more constructive way), other things I don't agree with at all.
 

11101

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Best captain we've ever had and one of the best players. As a person he's clearly pretty angry and opinionated which is why he falls out with so many people.
 

KM

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As an United player, he was my first United hero. Absolutely adore him and love him.

As a pundit, it's clear to see that he's still an United fan, but comes out with weird opinions which I always disagree with but I find it strange when people let his opinions tarnish his United legacy(and not just his, but Scholes and Gaz too).
 

Treble

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Incredible player and leader on the pitch, from mediocre to poor manager and pundit.
 

arnie_ni

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From when i watched and can remember players, 96 97, id personally have him as first on the teamsheet in a United team, and neck and neck with Henry from a pl team.
 

Ole’s Wheel

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Legend.

Straight shooter.

Calls it how he sees it.

No BS.

Rubs people the wrong way out of blunt honesty.
 

Paxi

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The disdain he has for Sir Alex is quite something. They must have had a major fall out. Anything media reported must have only been a tip of the iceberg.
 

Judge Red

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He’s a hero and a legend. I understand his flaws but he wouldn’t have been the leader he was without them. No filter.

And above all else, he probably doesn’t give a toss about such plaudits.
 

AdamAdams

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Robson was my favourite player / captain as a kid. Keane wasn't far behind, especially when you look at what we achieved whilst he was playing.
Thought Martin O'Neil had pulled a master stroke getting him as a number 2 but they've not really set the world alight. Always fancied him as a No 2. Thought Giggs might get him as a No.2 if he ever gets the United job but the feud with Fergie might put pay to that.
 

Will Singh

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A true United legend and played with pure passion, as a pandit he says some stuf which is controversial but deep down I always feel like he has a lot of love for United which is enough for me to still have a special place in my heart.

When we signed him I was running up and down my road like a maniac, same for Cantona and Cole....

LEGEND:devil:
 

Paxi

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He was a bit mental wasn’t he? Seldom do we find people so driven. What’s interesting is how he praises Ronaldo for being an ultimate professional. (In hindsight it’s not)
 

Bastian

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Favourite United player and character. Enjoy his outbursts today, like I did back then. He was the heartbeat.
 

Thaumaste

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My feelings? Love. Absolute adoration. For the player, that is. Cantona brought me to United. Keano made the love an obsession. I like my geniuses flawed, obviously. The sheer devilry and commitment to United, alloyed with real world class quality. Yeah the man may be a complete basket case, but who cares? The player will always have a special place in my heart...
This really sums up my feelings pretty well too. I was shocked when Cantona quit, but it was such a Cantona way to go out that I just respected him more. I cried when Keane left both because I loved him and because it felt wrong. Post-playing, I just really don't care what former players say and do. We're all twats in our own way, and everything anyone says in public is bound to find some detractors, so whether Keane comes across as a guy I'd want to have a drink with or not, it changes absolutely nothing about the awe and respect I feel for the Keane that embodies so much of what Manchester United means to me.
 

fastwalker

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Roy Keane will always be a United legend. It is not by accident that he was central to the most sustained period of success in the club's history. Keane epitomised what it means to be a United player (passion, commitment, loyalty, high standards) and was rightly recognised as player of the year by his fellow pros as well as football writers in 2000.

No wonder he feels such utter disdain for the current crop of players at United. He can evidently see right through them and knows that the things that they stand for are not the things that the club stands for. I am glad that the likes of Neville and Keane have the courage and confidence to be so withering and brutal in their comments about the current state of the club. If your friends cannot tell you the truth, who else will?

As has come.to light in recent years, the cardinal sin of Roy Keane is the that he challenged the authority of SAF. That was a mistake, but knowing how much he cared about the club, I can forgive him even for that. Although I do believe that Sir Alex was right to show him.the door. You cannot have a disruptive influence in the dressing room, no matter how well intentioned their actions may be.
 

POF

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The most influential player in the history of the Premier League. I've never seen another player who positively influenced his teammates as much as Keane.

He was one of the main reasons why "you'll never win anything with kids" was proven as false and the driving force behind the winning culture at the club.

It's really sad to see how his relationship with Fergie ended up because of all players who played under Fergie, he was the one that best represented Fergie's values on the pitch.
 

SER19

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Club legend, best captain we ever had, the player you could take at his peak and immediately elevate our team more than any other, massively underrated in his all round game which included a great passing range and good finishing, ordinary coach, probably wrong temperament to succeed as a manager, pretty honest, succumbs to pundit pitfalls like clichés or irritating people at times, and like many, people take this far too personally and seriously.

Was right about 02 world Cup but fell into a trap.

They're my immediate thoughts and feelings
 

GlasgowCeltic

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The best Utd midfielder of the past 50 years. His injuries were the difference between Utd winning the league and not.
 

SteveJ

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Post-playing, I just really don't care what former players say and do. We're all twats in our own way, and everything anyone says in public is bound to find some detractors, so whether Keane comes across as a guy I'd want to have a drink with or not, it changes absolutely nothing about the awe and respect I feel for the Keane that embodies so much of what Manchester United means to me.
I don't have a lot of time for Keane (post-playing) but the view expressed above is, I think, far more intelligent & mature than my opinion.
 

arthurka

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His record in management bar one season at Sunderland hasn't been great. He tends to alienate the playing staff. There are plenty of anecdotes from his ex players to this effect. I don't think he has the emotional intelligence to manage players.

They always said that Fergie had a great talent for knowing which players needed the carrot and which players needed the stick. Does Roy?
I know a player who played under him at Ipswich, its fair to say he isnt everybody's cup of tea. Would even go so far to say he was the worst manager he ever had.

Our Keano is just that, a bit of nutter. But when he was here he was our nutter.
 

Red_Aaron

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At his best he embodied everything I love about united, ferocious desire, exquisite skill, tireless energy, never say die. He's quite possibly the most impressive player I've seen in our shirt, was a privilege to watch him play for us.

Off the pitch I imagine he's a bit of a knob but why would I care what he's like off the pitch?

Absolute legend
 

ravi2

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Roy Keane is my favorite mufc player ever. He made everyone around him better and when he was on the pitch we always had a chance. He was a true leader.
 

Champagne Football

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Teddy Sheringham said yesterday Keane and Gazza were the 2 best players he ever played with.

Keane is not gonna learn too much working under Martin O'Neil apart from a little man management skills.

I feel he needs to work under coach with an attacking philosophy for a year or two to develop tactically. Like an Eddie Howe/Graham Potter/Roberto Martinez etc
 

fezzerUTD

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Straight talker says it how he sees it. Our best captain during the glory years, real leader, didn't take any nonsense.
 

harms

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Another fantastic footballer who isn’t really suited to any non-playing role in football. Reminds me of Souness, although he’s not yet at his level of delusion.

Love him to bits for what he had done at United and this part will never change regardless of his current career. Well, unless he wins a league title as a Liverpool manager.
 

The holy trinity 68

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He was an incredible player, imagine having him in his prime playing for us now.

For me he is SAF’s greatest ever CM. Robson was past his prime when SAF took over and Scholes prime as a CM was shorter. His drive, hunger and determination was basically SAF but on the pitch, he was a great ball winner and passer as well.

I think his actual footballing ability is understated because of his tough mentality. He was much more than just a strong willed player.

I also met him once and he was quiet and a nice guy.
 

JPRouve

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I love him and have time for him even when he says things that I completely disagree with. I also feel that he is a world class bullshitter and absolutely not a straight-talker.
 

VeevaVee

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I like him a lot. As with all pundits/ex-players, I don't always always have to agree with them to like them.