Keane Retires.

[redrus]

Roy Keane has announced his retirement from football. I know a lot of people didn't like him but, I think a lot of you would also be lying if you said you wouldn't have had him in your team.

Below are a few tributes, I'd prefer it if people didn't slag him off but, I've probably set my-self up for it.....

KEANE TO RETIRE

Tuesday 13th June 2006

Tributes pour in. Extensive quotes here.

Keane himself:

"Having received medical advice from my surgeon and the Celtic club doctor, I feel my only option is to retire.

"I would like to send the manager, the staff, players and supporters my very best wishes for the future."

Fergie:

"Roy's obsession with winning and the demands he put on others made him the most influential player in the dressing room.

"He became a great captain through that and, to my mind, he is the best player I have had in all of my time here. Over the years when they start picking the best teams of all time, he will be in there.

"His display in Turin in 1999 was selfless, just wonderful. It was a tragedy that he wasn't able to play in the final in Barcelona."

Pallister:

"I think he is the closest thing to Bryan Robson I've ever seen, you would probably have to put them on a par.

"They were both terrific players for United and if you want to go into a battle they're the type of people you want alongside you.

"He made the game seem so easy, his passing, the energy levels he had and even after his cruciate injury he still inspired his team and his team-mates.

"He amazed everybody. He was a fantastic player, a leader, an inspiration. When things were going tough he was the one the players and the fans looked to to spark things into life.

"None more so than at Juventus in the European Cup when he scored that header that inspired them on to win the trophy. Of course he missed out on the final itself and that is probably one of his biggest regrets but the fans and the players alike will remember him for the player he was on the pitch."

Paul Parker:

"He was one of the best captains Manchester United have ever had, alongside, or maybe ahead, of Bryan Robson.

"When he came to United he was loud and said what he thought - he didn't care what he said to anybody but when you could play the way he could, the players put up with the other side to him."

Gordon Strap-on:

"Roy Keane is one of the greatest ever players to grace the game of football. It was fantastic we were able to bring him to Celtic and it has been a privilege to work with him.

"While we would have very much liked Roy to continue for the remaining year of his contract, everyone at the club fully understands and respects the decision he has made."

Celtic's chief executive Peter Lawwell:

"While we are disappointed, it is important Roy's health comes first and we fully respect the decision which he has made. Despite losing Roy, our supporters can rest assured that we are working hard to strengthen the squad for next season to face the domestic and Champions League challenges which lie ahead."

The Irish taoiseach Bertie Ahern:

"Today is a sad day for his legion of Irish fans, his immense footballing genius is unlikely to ever be forgotten.

"Roy Keane is one of the most decorated Irish players of all time. Over the past decade, he has been arguably the greatest midfield player in world football and has established a reputation as one of the true legends of world football."

The Guardian's David Lacey:

A footballer's true worth is measured in part by the difficulty with which he is replaced and for this reason alone Roy Keane will always be numbered among Manchester United's greatest players. His retirement from the game, following a brief appendix to his career at Celtic, finds United the poorer for his absence.

While recurring injury problems indicated that Keane would have to give up playing sooner rather than later, Sir Alex Ferguson's failed attempts to find the Irishman's successor in midfield have underlined the immense contribution Keane made to Manchester United's growing domination of the English game through the 1990s and beyond.

On the pitch he was Ferguson's alter ego, bringing to the team all the rage for perfection and impatience that the manager demanded. Keane's 12 years at Old Trafford ended abruptly last November following a row with Ferguson over critical comments about the team the United captain had made on the club's television channel, the interview being pulled by MUTV for being too inflammatory.

He had never been one to hold back where what he considered sub-standard performances were concerned but this was clearly a rave too far. In fact Keane had already announced his intention to leave Old Trafford this summer, having been sidelined by a foot injury at Liverpool last September suffered in a tackle with Steven Gerrard.

At least the storminess of Keane's departure was in keeping with much of his playing career. He could enjoy a perfectly clean and disciplined game yet remain a brooding, intimidating presence on the field. Channelled properly this gave United's football an invaluable influence, although when Keane flipped the outcome for an opponent could be painful and nasty.

Ferguson was aware of this. Recalling in his autobiography the incident during the 1995 FA Cup semi-final against Crystal Palace at Villa Park, when Keane was sent off after stamping on Gareth Southgate, the United manager observed: "His Irish fire was fundamental to his immense value as a footballer but his tendency to go beyond the bounds of acceptability would have to be curbed."

Generally Keane was able to preserve a proper balance between what was and what was not acceptable. But the vengeful tackle on Alf Inge Haaland in a Manchester derby and the subsequent admission in his autobiography that the foul was premeditated, which brought him a five-match ban and a record £150,000 fine, left a lingering sour taste.

Eamon Dunphy - Keane's biographer:

"He will be remembered as a great footballer and a very charismatic, candid and intelligent man - quite a unique figure.

"He has taken his coaching qualifications and he would be a great coach and manager. He has all the qualities for the job. He was Sir Alex Ferguson's enforcer on the field at Manchester United, his leader.

"He had turbulent periods in his life. He's an extremely candid man and that can land you in bother from time to time.

"But when the smoke of the controversies fade away, a great career of a great Irish footballer will be remembered."

A true modern day warrier and legend, even Alan Shearer had the good grace to praise him extensively on last nights BBC WC coverage.

redrus

[redrus]

KEANE TO COACH?

Keano:

"People automatically think I will but I'm not 100% sure.

"Especially having been in football for the past 15-16 years, I think it'd be nice to get away from it, to get off the rollercoaster for a while."

The Indie:

Following his last appearance at Old Trafford and, as it has transpired, his final performance as a professional footballer on 9 May, Roy Keane said that there were three career paths open to him once he retired from football: a move into management or coaching; spending time with the family; and becoming a fully fledged football fan with a season ticket for Manchester United. Option two is the early favourite today.

Keane will not be short of offers to take his abrasive tongue and vast experience into management this summer, and commence the process that many believe will eventually see him become a successor to Sir Alex Ferguson at Old Trafford. He has already commenced his coaching badges and made no secret of his desire to remain in the game. As he said in the aftermath of his testimonial last month, however, "I am very relaxed about the future", and the indications are that he will not rush to accept the first job offer that comes along.

redrus

[ben01]

GOOD RIDDANCE

[redrus]

GOOD RIDDANCE

Wahey..................... Bum bum, symbal's clash.........

redrus

[ben01]

GOOD RIDDANCE

Wahey..................... Bum bum, symbal's clash.........

redrus

someone had to start the ball rolling.......he oughta keep his mouth shut

[redrus]

GOOD RIDDANCE

Wahey..................... Bum bum, symbal's clash.........

redrus

someone had to start the ball rolling.......he oughta keep his mouth shut

I agree, you should now you've had your say...........

redrus

[ben01]

GOOD RIDDANCE

Wahey..................... Bum bum, symbal's clash.........

redrus

someone had to start the ball rolling.......he oughta keep his mouth shut

I agree, you should now you've had your say...........

redrus

please step up, and tell all your wealth of knowledge ( yours, not from the media )

[redrus]

Sorry, its surely far too vast for another small minded ABU such as yourself.

If the above is the stregnth of yours anyway.

redrus

Edited June 14, 2006 by redrus

[taxexile]

Keane himself:

"Having received medical advice from my surgeon and the Celtic club doctor, I feel my only option is to retire.

Fergie:

"Roy's obsession with winning and the demands he put on others made him the most influential player in the dressing room.

"

Pallister:

"I think he is the closest thing to Bryan Robson I've ever seen, you would probably have to put them on a par.

Alfe Inger Haarland:

"That Irish bastard is a total <deleted> , I hope his injured knee ligaments turn him into a bedridden cripple."

[redrus]

Bloody heck, I was expecting worse than that from one of the Elland Roaders...........

redrus

[taxexile]

i read his book and ive seen him play enough times.

a fantastic player , obsessed with training and tactics and never giving up.

but also a violent and nasty character.

he would have been a good japanese warrior or roman gladiator too.

naturally i hated his guts.

[redrus]

i read his book and ive seen him play enough times.

a fantastic player , obsessed with training and tactics and never giving up.

but also a violent and nasty character.

he would have been a good japanese warrior or roman gladiator too.

naturally i hated his guts.

Tax, I'm a United fan now living in Harrogate. I appreciate those words coming from a Leeds fan, I know lots of em round ere. They would all agree with you.

He did have a nasty streak but, so does Thierry Henry, a strange side that rarely comes out. Its there though in even one of, apparently, the most mild mannered of men.

You'll know David Batty aswell, another nutter sometimes, a total gentleman away from the game. There are many more.

Yes Keano had a messed up streak but, if your manager (whoever's reading this) had bought him and, you watched him all those years in which he brought so much success, would you not have stood by him every step of the way....? with a smile on your face and the thought in your head saying he was -insert your club- through and through, no others, ours.......!

redrus

[mrbojangles]

Alfe Inger Haarland:

"That Irish bastard is a total <deleted> , I hope his injured knee ligaments turn him into a bedridden cripple."

But in all seriousness.........good riddance the dirty barsteward He'll now probably join the "Prawn Sandwich brigade" himself

Even as a bitter though, i will admit he was good and feared

[redrus]

Alfe Inger Haarland:

"That Irish bastard is a total <deleted> , I hope his injured knee ligaments turn him into a bedridden cripple."

Even as a bitter though, i will admit he was good and feared

From you fella, that is positively beaming.........

redrus

[bendix]

An inspirational player. A great captain. A talent on the field.

It's a shame for him and for all his fans that that legacy will always be tainted by the Haaland incident.

I'm sorry. I'd like to be more positive, but any player capable of bearing a grudge for years (and remember that it was his own attempt at fouling Haaland two years earlier that got Keane injured in the game at Elland Road), launching that premeditated attack on him, and then boasting about it in a book is beyong the pale and deserves no respect.

[Totster]

I wonder if Eric will play at the testimonial...

totster

[taxexile]

roy keane.

clothing available from man. u. supporters club

"I'd waited long enough , I hit him hard , take that you <deleted> and dont ever stand over me again sneering about face injuries."

alfe inge haaland never played another game of football due to the injuries received.

his footballing skills

more footballing skills

saying sorry

Edited June 15, 2006 by taxexile

[redrus]

I wonder if Eric will play at the testimonial...

totster

Its already been Tots lad, versus Celtic. Eric didn't play but sent a cool message.

redrus

[Totster]

I wonder if Eric will play at the testimonial...

totster

Its already been Tots lad, versus Celtic. Eric didn't play but sent a cool message.

redrus

Eh... what... ? How did I miss that ... ?

totster

[jjp]

"I'd waited long enough , I hit him hard , take that you <deleted> and dont ever stand over me again sneering about face injuries."

alfe inge haaland never played another game of football due to the injuries received.

Agreed naughty. Tax get you facts right. Haaland retired with an injury to his other leg, not the one Keane accidently kicked him on.

Redrus, one word mate 'Legend"

dar na nar nar Keano

[redrus]

Denis Walsh, Sunday Times:

For a career that had been one of the greatest noises in the history of Irish sport, the conclusion was almost soundless. Set against the booming symphony of a World Cup, Roy Keane’s final medical bulletin was a faraway whisper. Reaction was practised and predictable because in reality all of the heartfelt goodbyes had already been said.

Finishing with Ireland, leaving Manchester United, shuffling to the side, no longer able to summon the empowering athleticism of his pomp, no longer able to occupy and command the very centre of football matches: that was when it ended. This week was just tedious paperwork.

Behind it all he probably couldn’t stomach another season in the nursing-home phase of his career, being tended to by younger legs, fetching and carrying for him. And yet the value placed on him in his declining years eloquently defined his worth; above and apart from his physical attributes Keane was all about presence, influence, aura, attitude, things that couldn’t be measured by the Opta index but were felt by everybody in his orbit.

At the beginning of last season Sir Alex Ferguson adjusted United’s formation to facilitate Keane’s athletic decay and maybe delay his mortality as an elite player. He didn’t believe it was an impossible accommodation or a fruitless punt. The spirit of Keane on a football pitch was what Ferguson was desperately trying to preserve because that was the essence of him as a footballer.

He wasn’t known for killer passes, for long, flighted, cross-field deliveries, for trickery. He didn’t do dribbles, he surged. He didn’t idle through matches, waiting for his time to make a game-breaking play: he wouldn’t, he couldn’t. Others enjoyed spells in matches or moments of brilliance: Keane needed a rolling engagement with the play for his influence to count.

His game was a giant tableau of essential things: tackles, covering runs, endless availability and simple passes. Look at his performances, frame by frame. Keane scarcely made a pass that was outside the range or vision of anybody else on the field. So how come it mattered so much when he did it? Because he had perfected it. This was his art. He would make those passes more accurately, more often than anybody else and in this way he affected games, incrementally, irresistibly. If it was easy, everybody would be at it.

Keane gave teams shape and security. He was the north star from which his teammates took their bearings. None of that is glamorous but he was the antithesis of glamour.

As a person he is more complex than we will ever know. There was a time when we would have referred to his "demons" — sometimes in mitigation, sometimes in condemnation — offering the phrase as a pathetic mask for our ignorance of what he was really like.

Like other gifted people, he was indulged to excess. At times his treatment of Mick McCarthy was unacceptable; for sure, when Keane enters management, no player will ever treat him like that. Self-righteousness, in anybody, is repugnant and in him it was tolerated without question; his abuse of referees was appalling and all of it was forgiven in the name of his talent.

But his greatness is beyond question. This week a giant left the arena.

redrus

[taxexile]

Denis Walsh, Sunday Times:

Lunchtime 0'Booze ,

pseuds corner ,

private eye.