Opinion: What made Roy Keane a United legend?

It’s a simple question, but one that has inspired a variety of nuanced responses as we mark the 31-year anniversary of his transfer from Nottingham Forest. 

That British record move on 19 July 1993 marked the start of an iconic Reds career that is still celebrated today, by supporters on the terraces and all around the world. And we all have different reasons for loving the Irishman. 

Here, four United writers attempt to sum up Keane’s greatness…

BEN ASHBY

I canvassed opinion among some fellow Reds – all veterans of the Alex Ferguson era, who saw Keane throughout the 1990s and 2000s – as to just what it was that made Roy such a great. The homages that came through were telling. ‘Uncompromising, massive will to win.’ ‘His intensity and drive brought up the standard of other players he played with.’ ‘Always put his skills at the service of the team, first and foremost.’ ‘His game intelligence is what always amazed me.’ ‘The drive and determination in every game, and ensuring others kept up the standards – which you only appreciate when it’s not there.’ ‘I shudder to think what he would be worth in the modern market.’ There’s plenty more where that came from. 

For me, perhaps most fundamental, his own footballing abilities aside – and bear in mind that, on the subject of Keane the pure player, Paul Scholes recently said ‘he had absolutely everything in abundance’ – the fact that Roy was able to add percentage points to each of his team-mates’ levels made a huge difference to the team’s output overall. How did he do it? Absolute insistence on the highest of standards – sweating of blood, sacrifice of body – at all times. And an almost chilling force of personality, plus colossal weight of respect among team-mates, to uphold those standards.

STEVE BARTRAM

A YouTube search for Roy Keane yields headlines promising the Irishman’s ANGRIEST MOMENTS in punditry or CRAZIEST TACKLES as a player. Actually, there’s much more to enjoy than rolling his eyes at Micah Richards in the studio or letting his studs convey points on the field. From the viewpoint of someone fortunate enough to enjoy the entirety of the 1990s and 2000s from the Stretford End, Roy Keane was a near-immaculate player, first and foremost. 

The true test of a footballer’s greatness, for many, is their theoretical ability to play the game in any generation, and Roy would have been at home in pre-war football, holding the fort for the United Trinity or calling the tune in Erik ten Hag’s current setup. His determination made him a force of nature but, to inspire those around him to the extent he did, he also had to be able to play to a dizzying standard. He was a footballing intellect of the highest order, a seer of the bigger picture, a reader of tactical patterns and an extremely astute user of the ball. That, blended with his character, made him one of the most influential players this club has ever had. 

ADAM MARSHALL

Roy Keane clearly took the job of Manchester United captain very seriously: standards were never allowed to drop. In training and on the pitch, he demanded the absolute maximum from those around him, almost leading by fear as much as by example. Such was the respect for the skipper that nobody wanted to let him down. It was a way of instilling Sir Alex’s unflinching desire into every game, and it was often said Roy was an extension of the manager on the field of play. 

After his knee injury, he remodelled his game, on the advice of Bryan Robson, and would use his vast footballing intelligence to dictate matters. Previously a box-to-box operator, he was able to further influence things from a deeper role and there is no doubting his enormous influence on those years of success, and particularly the insatiable attitude that followed each trophy win with a thirst for the next. If you put the effort in, you earned Keano’s respect: David Beckham is just one example of this. The biggest compliment I can pay him is he radiated the same aura and was just as outstanding a captain as Robson. Furthermore, Roy joked on The Overlap, being shown on Sky Sports, that people remember him for his aggression and not how brilliant he was. The fact is no United fan who watched and admired him during his stay at Old Trafford will ever forget his brilliance.

MARK FROGGATT

Every now and again my wife taunts me for how much I worship Roy Keane. What a sentence that is, by the way. But it’s embarrassingly common. It’s usually when I’m watching videos of him on YouTube - sorry Steve (see above) - while pretending to make the tea. “Why do you love that guy so much?” she’ll ask, both amused and bemused. And it’s a hard question for a grown man to answer. Pointing to his qualities as a tireless box-to-box midfielder and a fearless leader of men doesn’t really cut it. I need something more. So, I’ve boiled it down to this: Keane is not a footballer, he is an attitude. Perhaps even a philosophy. 

I was born in 1989 so he was omnipresent throughout my childhood and, aged nine, 1998/99 was the first season where I was all in, following and watching every single game. What a slice of luck, too. Keane was back from injury, shaven-headed, ready to begin the second chapter of his United career and it was a joy. But what I remember most is how he handled disappointment: shrugging off the yellow card in Turin to conjure his greatest performance and, at Camp Nou, looking embarrassed when  presented with the Champions League trophy as a suspended player. A year earlier, he was recovering from a career-threatening cruciate injury and was perfectly entitled to revel in the Treble, but he didn’t. He felt he hadn’t earned it. His standards were higher. He was already targeting 1999/2000. I was so struck by that at the time and, to this day, there’s so much to learn from it. Keep going, keep moving, keep working. That’s why Roy Keane is a legend.

Now, back to YouTube...