Give it a break, Roy Keane

Anyone who has been a fan of Manchester United in the 1990’s and the early 2000’s will surely rank Roy Keane as one of the most influential figures in the history of this historic club. He was after all, the most successful captain of arguably, one of the greatest club sides of that generation and his performances on the pitch were ones that can’t merely be described by words.

After all, it was he who, single-handedly took United into the Champions League final in 1999, even when it became apparent that he wouldn’t be able to play in it. He was the embodiment of the team spirit which was a feature of the United side of that time. No sane United fan, will ever forget that night in Turin, when he beat 11 men on his own in a performance that Sir Alex Ferguson described as “the most emphatic display of selflessness I have seen on a football field.”

The former United manager also went onto say that “it was an honour to be associated with such a player.” But if the past few years have been anything to go by, it seems that that isn’t the case any longer. Ever since his acrimonious departure back in 2005 after a row with Ferguson regarding the quality of players at the club, things haven’t been the same.

It all began with his now infamous bashing of his former team-mates on MUTV in a rant that will forever go down as the time that started it all. He took to criticizing several United players, and saved his best for Rio Ferdinand when he said: “Just because you are paid £120,000-a-week and play well for 20 minutes against Tottenham, you think you are a superstar.”

And although he was always known to be acerbic and for having an astringent wit, even by his own standards, that was explosive and the footage was subsequently pulled down by MUTV.

Ever since then, his feud with Ferguson seemed to have clouded his judgement over anything pertaining to Manchester United. It was particularly evident in his analysis of Nani’s red card against Real Madrid last season that resulted in United going out of the Champions League.

When the entire world and his wife were sure that that tackle didn’t warrant a red card, Roy Keane argued otherwise and said that the ref made “the right call”. He also went onto add that “Nani’s a quick boy to go down” and that it was “dangerous play”. It’s funny because the same can be said of some of Roy Keane’s approach to tackling as well.

Whilst it is true that everyone is entitled to their opinion, Keane’s opinions were seemingly made with some preconceptions in his mind. It has become fairly obvious that Keane’s relationship with Ferguson hasn’t really improved with the latter criticizing the former with regards to his managerial ability in his autobiography that was launched recently. He also went onto claim that Keane “absolutely overstepped the mark” when talking about the 2005 MUTV incident.

Since then, Keane has responded to that by saying that the former manager doesn’t know the meaning of loyalty. Speaking in an ITV4 documentary called Keane and Vieira: The Best of Enemies, the Irishman went onto talk about something that was missing the point of the entire documentary. He went onto say that, with regards to Ferguson, now a director at United: “Everything is about control and power. He’s still striving for it now even though he’s not manager. There’s massive ego involved in that.”

And whilst what he said isn’t wrong by any stretch of the imagination, it shows that his bitterness with the Scot still lingers. Unfortunately for Roy Keane, all of this is doing nothing but tarnish all the good work that was done by him as a player. He is still regarded as a club legend and if continues on in the same vein, that status, much like his relationship with Ferguson might be “non-existent” before long.

Whilst it is true that Roy Keane was always one that spoke from the heart and stood out amongst the many footballers who never really say what they mean to say, Keane is starting to tread on a very thin ice with the United supporters. And whilst most of his comments, although true, just carry a hint of a man who can’t seem to let go of the past. The bitterness of leaving Manchester United on not quite, his own terms is still in the back of his mind and that seems to show in his analysis.

To him, as a lifelong admirer of his tenacity and talent and supreme commitment to the game, all I have to say is this, just let it go. Give it a break, it doesn’t matter anymore. Just stop before you sink deeper into the mire. And like you always do, take one for the team and just let your tongue be.