Through Gritted Teeth #20: Roy Keane
June 17, 2011 § 3 Comments
by Alex Hess
Let’s get one thing straight from the outset: I hated Roy Keane while he was a player. Hated him. He was a genuinely detestable human being. He was the snarling, fouling, talismanic captain of the club I despised, and perfectly encapsulated all the reasons I loathed them: the relentless, ludicrous dedication to winning, the play-by-my-own-rules attitude, the scorn and disdain for anything and everything non-United. He relentlessly abused referees, he deliberately injured opponents. And yet, in retrospect, I can’t help but respect him. Even worse — as sacrilegious as it may be for a Liverpool fan — I find myself quite admiring Keane The Player. Of course, it’s far easier to take up such a position a good few years after his retirement, with sufficient time elapsed for my traumatic childhood memories of United’s Keane-driven treble-winning side to have somewhat faded, but there nonetheless exists in my mind a genuine, grudging, approval for his efforts in United red. « Read the rest of this entry »
