Former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Jamie O’Hara has revealed how Robbie Keane one “sparked out” Dutch teammate Edgar Davids during a training ground bust-up.
The 33-year-old current player-manager of Billericay Town spent six years in the Spurs first-team after coming through their academy, with his 34 league appearances coinciding with Keane’s two stints at White Hart Lane.
The pair were both at Spurs when Davids arrived from Inter Milan in 2005 in what was largely viewed as a coup for the north London side, with having won six league titles across his spells with Ajax and Juventus, but his first experiences with Keane showed little respect for his reputation.
O’Hara recalls how Davids went about trying to assert his authority on the dressing room upon his arrival, which did not go down too well with Republic of Ireland international Keane.
“I tell you who had a bit about him – Robbie Keane,” O’Hara said on Talksport. “I remember a story with him and Edgar Davids and I hope he don’t mind me saying this.
“We were at training and Edgar Davids came in from Inter Milan and he thought he was the bee’s knees. He thought he was the guy and the main man and everything, but everyone realised Robbie Keane was the main guy at Tottenham at that time.
“I remember him giving it to Keano in training and they were having a barney, and I think he tried to step to Robbie Keane and say something – and Keano just sparked him, bosh!
“He just went, bang – one punch. Gone.
“Then Davids has just picked himself up and walked off – and that was it. He came in the next day like, “morning, Robbie…”
“He knew – no-one messed with Keano. He had that Irish thing about him that if he switched he would put you straight out.”
