Keane... a "loose cannon"
Today, we can lift the lid on the remarkable
dressing-room tantrums, confrontations and bust-ups that turned
Sunderland into a ticking timebomb.
SunSport can reveal the former Manchester United
star:
* Hurled foul-mouthed tirades at both senior and
young players
* Lashed out with his arms and legs as his temper
boiled over
* Blanked players for no apparent reason
* And launched into a bizarre kung-fu attack — on a
training chalkboard!
It was this last episode that graphically summed up the
madness of King Roy. At half-time during one game this season,
Keane asked one of his assistants to set up the tactics board while
he disappeared into the toilet. He returned to launch a kung-fu
kick at the object, sending it flying into the wall of the dressing
room. He then called three different players a ‘c***’ and took a
swipe at another one, only just missing his jaw.
The Black Cats men had got used to Keane losing his rag
but this was the final straw for many. There had been a number of
occasions when Keane’s post-match team talk would seemingly spell
the end of several players’ careers. He would say things like
‘There are four players in this room who will never play for the
club again’ only for a similar line-up to run out the following
week.
The reserve team were not immune to his fury either.
Keano went to watch one game and burst into the dressing room at
half time. He bawled this message: ‘I’ve come to see how many of
you can make it into the first team one day, well I’m telling you
now, none of you ever will.’
Players could find themselves blanked by Keane for
weeks on end without an explanation. Training routines would often
leave the stars scratching their heads.
One top boss refused to send Keane a player on loan
because he thought the whole situation under him at Sunderland was
too unstable. Quite simply, Keane was always too close to the edge
to take the team on to another level.
This will come as little surprise to those at Old
Trafford. It was a rant too far that saw Alex Ferguson part company
with him on November 18, 2005. A fortnight before, Keane had
slaughtered the players on United’s own TV station in an analysis
of a 4-1 defeat at Middlesbrough. It was too much for them to
broadcast.
Keane was called to Carrington to explain his actions
to the rest of the players but he not only repeated his attack, he
tore into manager Ferguson and assistant Carlos Queiroz as
well.
The Irishman was furious at his exit and an apparent
betrayal after 12 years of service. He accepted a testimonial the
following year so he could say farewell to the fans and 69,951
turned up.
Keane addressed the crowd but, when Fergie asked if he
could do the same in his honour, he told the Scot he could not, to
the manager’s astonishment.
And Keano’s 2002 World Cup dream was also shattered by
his own fragile temperament. Before going to the competition, he
told Fergie he believed the Republic of Ireland could win the
event.
In the end, he did not even kick a ball after a bust-up
with boss Mick McCarthy at their Saipan training camp. He felt the
facilities were not good enough and launched into
McCarthy.
A newspaper interview revealing his concerns about
Ireland’s preparations made matters worse. McCarthy called him to a
team meeting and Keane flipped again. He felt, having got Ireland
to the finals, he was the one now being persecuted.
Bring the subject up with Keane and a near demonic
expression comes over his face. He fell out with Niall Quinn, the
man he dubbed Mother Theresa who ended up being his chairman at
Sunderland.
Keane also lost it with Ferguson at a Portugal base in
the summer of 2005 leading to him being left at home when the club
went on their Far East tour a week later. On the pitch he was a
leader, a legend, but again when the mists came down he would let
himself down.
His horror tackle on Manchester City midfielder
Alf-Inge Haaland’s right knee came after a long-running feud with
the Norwegian. Yesterday, as Quinn answered questions over his
manager’s departure, Keane sought his usual sanctuary in the fields
around his Cheshire home.
Once again he found solace in Triggs, his famous golden
labrador who he took for a walk — there was a growing belief Keane
talked to his dog more than he did to his players.
On the day Keane parted company with Sunderland,
McCarthy was named Championship manager of the month with Wolves.
McCarthy lost his Ireland post in the wake of the Saipan row,
prompting Keane to say his old boss would get another job ‘if any
chairman was stupid enough to employ him’.
Well, Sunderland did and he got them promoted and he
looks like doing the same thing with Wolves. As for Keane, it looks
like Triggs will be getting plenty of exercise for some time to
come.
