Roy Keane has recalled how he ended up weeping in his car upon departing Manchester United – signalling the end of a remarkable 12-year spell at Old Trafford.. The ex-captain infamously exited the Premier League powerhouse back in November 2005, following an unapologetically forthright interview on MUTV lambasting his colleagues after a crushing 4-1 loss to Middlesbrough. Keane’s searing critique never made it to air due to its intensity and contributed to his falling out with Sir Alex Ferguson, precipitating his Manchester exit.. Despite his reputation as a tough-nut midfielder, the Irish legend confessed that leaving the club overwhelmed him emotionally. This candid admission came as he joined Gary Neville, Ian Wright, and Jill Scott on the Stick to Football podcast, courtesy of Sky Bet, where they were revealing moments they had cried during their careers, prompting Keane to share his story.. “When I left United, I did cry that morning. Cried in my car,” he admitted. The rawness of this moment isn’t new territory for Keane, as he previously touched upon it in a 2023 interview. “I think the only time I really cried was when I left United after I had a bit of a disagreement with a few people, but other than that you’re very much in that bubble,” Keane explained during a conversation with Tommy Tiernan.. “You’re in the zone. I always say I was in the zone. I used to say to people, and they didn’t quite understand it, I was going to war every week.” Keane has previously opened up about his relationship with Ferguson and his grievances over how he left the club two decades ago.. Roy Keane and Sir Alex Ferguson fell out in 2005 which led to the former’s Old Trafford departure (Image: Getty Images). “I don’t see how things could have been different with Sir Alex,” he commented on an earlier episode of the Stick to Football podcast. “It’s a silly thing to be thinking about that’s not going to happen.. “I get my anger is obviously a long time ago but the worst anger you can have is the justified anger where you feel – again I feel I hadn’t done anything wrong. I was 34, I had a broken foot, and my contract was coming up, it was an easy fix for United to go, ‘Your days are numbered, alright, cheers, thanks a lot’. I’ve seen players leave but I could have left in the summer.. “I had no hang-ups about leaving in the summer, or going, ‘Am I getting another sneaky deal here? Listen, I’m a big boy, I can deal with it’. It was all the way it was done; it wasn’t nice that’s the bit. Not that I had to leave United, no again, that’s life.”
