Following his contentious exit from the Premier League team, former Manchester United captain Roy Keane received offers from several of Europe’s premier teams.
In classic Roy Keane flair, he left Manchester United in 2005.
A breakdown in his relationship with Sir Alex Ferguson was one of the key reasons the Reds great left. The Irishman was notorious for his fiery temper, and it still shows during his punditry appearances. Keane’s departure stunned everyone, including the players and supporters, after serving as a pivotal figure for United under Ferguson for many years and even serving as his captain for the majority of that period.
The final straw was a typical Keane tirade against his team-mates after a 4-1 loss to Middlesbrough on the club’s internal TV channel. Keane claimed his teammates had been “asked questions and they are just not coming up with answers” and claimed those who play “badly” get rewarded. Only a few weeks later, Keane abruptly and amicably left United, despite the fact that many of Europe’s top teams were still interested in signing him.
At the time, Real Madrid even declared their desire to sign Keane. Roy Keane is on the club’s list of potential acquisitions, according to Antonio Garca Ferreras, director of communications at Real Madrid. But no decision has yet been made.
Contrary to rumours, the player has not yet passed a medical exam and won’t in the foreseeable future. It is true that the athlete was offered to the team around a month ago, and because of his traits, the technical staff is interested in him. In seven or eight days, they’re going to have a meeting to decide whether or not the club will make any signings when the transfer market opens.
The offer, though, came at the worst possible time for the former United captain. According to his autobiography, “The Second Half,” Keane was really using the restroom when Real Madrid director of football Emilio Butragueno called, despite the fact that he was expecting a call from the Spanish team after speaking with his agent, Michael Kennedy.
Michael Kennedy had informed him that Emilio Butragueno would be calling, so he carried his mobile phone everywhere with him, the author stated.
And, what’s your luck, he called me as I was using the restroom. ‘Look Roy, we’ll be pleased to have you,’ he said. The purchase merely needed to be approved by the club’s board.
Keane, however, wasn’t too pleased on the proposition. “I took a negative approach,” he continued. “The weather and the training might have given me another two years to play,” he said.
“More than anything else, my decision was made by my fear of the unknown. I ought to have valued Real’s offer more. The challenge in front of me was the most alluring, yet I declined it.
In retrospect, I should have told myself to move to Spain, stay there for a year and a half, and study the language and culture there.
“But playing for a club is useless; what matters is having a significant impact. Real Madrid may have only required someone to fulfill a task, such as sitting in the park’s center during a few matches. But I desired to enter and influence a team.
In the end, Keane chose to sign with Celtic, but he admits that his primary reason was to disprove the managerial predictions of Gordon Strachan.
According to what he said, “When a club is interested in you, the manager usually sells it to you by saying, ‘Listen, we’d love to have you here.
“However, I visited with Celtic manager Gordon Strachan in London, and Gordon assured me that he wasn’t really concerned about whether or not I would sign with the team. We can survive without you.
So I told myself, ‘F*** him, I’m signing,’ and I did. To disprove Gordon, I believe, was one of the motivations behind my signing up with them.
Keane would go on to play for Celtic for just 10 games, recording one goal and one assist, but he obviously regrets turning down Real Madrid.
