Ireland legend Roy Keane will celebrate turning 50-years-old today.
The Boys in Green and Manchester United great enjoyed a storied career and has continued in the spotlight after hanging up his boots as he jumped into management and punditry.
A colourful personality who's known to not hold back when it comes to his opinions, here's some of Keano's most famous quotes:
“That’s in Tottenham’s DNA, they will constantly disappoint you. The table doesn’t lie, ninth, that’s where they deserve to be.” - On Tottenham being ‘Spursy’ after a 0-0 draw at Bournemouth
“Just because you are paid £120,000-a-week and play well for 20 minutes against Tottenham, you think you are a superstar!” - Dig at Rio Ferdinand
“[Haaland] was an absolute pr*ck to play against. I’d waited long enough. I f******g hit him hard. The ball was there (I think). Take that you c***. And don’t ever stand over me sneering about fake injuries.” - On Alf-Inge Haaland and the infamous tackle
“I got Robbie’s mobile number and rang him. It went to his voicemail: ‘Hi, it’s Robbie — whazzup!’ Like the Budweiser ad. I never called him back. I thought: ‘I can’t be f****** signing that’.” - Rejecting Robbie Savage as a Sunderland signing
“Cloughie was dead right, absolutely. It was the best thing he ever did for me.” - On being punched by Brian Clough
“People say I’m a bit old school; I call it good school. No matter what’s going on at your club, you go out and give it your all. The idea that these players may be a little bit upset…and it’s not just at United,” - Current footballers’ weak mentality
“If it had come to a fight, Patrick [Vieira] could probably have killed me.” - Chances of beating Vieira in a fight
“You’re going to war. Hugging and kissing, don’t even look at them. You’re going to battle against them. - Getting touchy-feely with Liverpool players
“It’s hard to get excited about them. To me, they are going nowhere fast. If Liverpool were playing out in my back garden, I wouldn’t watch them. They’re just drifting. Drifting nowhere.” - On Liverpool’s progress in 2017
“The last song before the players went on to the pitch was ‘Dancing Queen’ by Abba. What really worried me was that none of the players – not one – said: ‘Get that s**t off.’ They were going out to play a match, men versus men, testosterone levels were high. You’ve got to hit people at pace. F*****g’ ‘Dancing Queen.’ It worried me. I didn’t have as many leaders as I thought.” - On Sunderland’s poor leadership
“I drove some f*****g miles in that car. Every little victory is vital.” - Using his Man United club car for three months after leaving
“The last time I was charged by the FA they had a murder lawyer in against me, so it’s going to be a hard case to win.” - Facing the FA’s misconduct charges
“He told us that we were a disgrace to the club and that we’d woken Bobby Charlton up, that Bobby had come out of his room and seen us. Peter took responsibility for the fight, which was good. I admired him for it. But Bobby could have tried to break it up.”
- Battling Peter Schmeichel at 4 am in a hotel
“I wouldn’t want to play for any of them because then I’d have to play for Liverpool or City, shoot me!”
- Asked if he’d like to have Klopp or Guardiola as a manager
“The amount of fights I’ve had in Cork would probably be another book. I mean, people go on about my problems off the field, but they don’t even know the half of it.” - Getting into trouble in his hometown of Cork as a youngster
“He’s got a fantastic CV and it seems like a good fit. Maybe not for me, he’s not my cup of tea. I’ve found him really irritating when I’ve coached against him.” - On Jose Mourinho
“I love playing for my country but my sanity is more important.” - Playing for the Irish national team
“There has been lots of things said about me over the years. I am happy to comment on people’s opinion in football I respect, but Tony Cascarino is a man I certainly do not respect, for a lot of reasons, and if I told you, you would be shocked. So the day I worry about Tony Cascarino will be a very sad day of my life.”
- On Tony Cascarino
“Yorkie has officially retired about 5 times… The man’s a clown. People are going on about the game and agents and directors of football and managers losing their jobs, but we should be worried about people like him… Clowns.
- On Dwight Yorke
“Unlike humans, dogs don’t talk shit.”
- On Triggs, his dog
