It's been just over a week since the release of Roy Keane's much publicised second autobiography, ‘the Second Half’. In the week leading up to its release snippets of Keane's book were sensationalised in the national media and on the internet. As you would expect, the British mainstream media have taken snippets from Roy Keane's new autobiography and completely sensationalised them. It has probably helped sell more books AND more newspapers. I for one am not an avid reader but felt I needed to buy this one.
Keane has almost become a caricature of himself in the media throughout his career as a footballer, a manager, a pundit, and now an assistant. He has always been outspoken. In the media, snippets of Keane's new book have him come across as bitter and arrogant. This is what I expected. But he comes across as a true professional. Like a lot of successful sportsmen Keane has an unfaltering determination and a winning mentality.
The media have taken sentences and paragraphs from ‘The Second Half’ and published them out of context and sensationalised them to sell more papers. The one line however that stuck in my mind from the entire book was when Keane says "I think that was one of my strengths; I think I had a kindness about me". We think of Keane as many things but you could ask a thousand people to describe Roy Keane and I’m sure the word “kindness” would not feature in any character description. He was talking of his time as manager of Sunderland when dealing with players’ personal issues or if they’d gotten themselves into trouble away from football. As his time as manager of Sunderland he talks about many occasions where he handled situations in a calm manner, when many other managers would have ripped a player to shreds. He talks of his inexperience. His naivety. He reflects over his experiences like an aging politician coming to the end of their term in office. He shows a methodical side to his approach to management.
There are people he singles out for criticism but it is usual a criticism of a person professionally rather than personally. Most of the people he talks about are people he admires and highly respects as sports people and as human beings. People like Stuart Pearce, Bryan Robson, Eric Cantona, Diego Forlan, Stern John, Dean Whitehead. The list is endless.
Keane is unapologetic in his book but he talks of regrets. He talks of things he wishes he'd done differently but also shows a human side to his personality. We read of a side of Keane that we from the outside rarely, if ever have seen before. We think of Keane as an angry, scary, committed, passionate Irishman. We rarely see a smile. But, put a camera in front of him and it's almost like he plays up to the caricature he has created for himself. He is very self-aware. He compares the difference of uncontrolled rage with the anger he has under control
"I'd been advised before to count to ten. That was never going to work for me. 'Just a second, I'm angry - one -two. -' "
Keane is damning in his views of United’s players last season and questions their commitment to David Moyes:
"I look at the current players, and they should have been doing a lot better. It might be argued that it was up to the manager to motivate them. But not liking a manager, for whatever reason, can never be a reason for not going out and doing your best"
What everybody expected from this new book was explosive outbursts about the breakdown in his relationship with Sir Alex Ferguson. They never really materialised. If anything it was his encounters with Carlos Queiroz that were the more shocking. He still can see the qualities that Sir Alex had as a manager and never really launches into Fergie. Perhaps this was Keane’s backhanded way of saying I’m not stooping to the level he believes Ferguson stooped to in criticising former players. Perhaps I’m trying to find something that isn’t there but he always addresses his former manager as Alex Ferguson rather than Sir Alex Ferguson. He spoke in the media of his loss of respect towards his former gaffer after criticising former players that have enabled him to have “stands named after him”. Perhaps this was Keane’s way of saying I don’t buy into all this personal recognition.
Perhaps I’m biased in my opinion of Keane. He remains one of my footballing heroes. Perhaps many will read Keane's words and dismiss them as him painting a glowing picture of himself. Me, I like to think of him as a footballing great. And all footballing greats seem somewhat flawed. It is part of their appeal. It is what makes this book one of the most talked about, most highly anticipated sports biographies ever. But I read it is a deeper insight into the man behind the public persona that has followed him throughout his career.
As I have said my opinion of Roy Keane will always be biased. I think Keane is one of those people in life that it is almost impossible not to have a biased opinion on; Good or bad. I have teamed up with my friend Jason Mckeown, A writer for Bradford City blog Width of a Post, to give his view of the book:
It doesn’t matter who you support, or even if you love or hate him, Roy Keane is one of those people you can’t ignore. He is a deeply fascinating character; especially during an era of bland identikit-footballers who have had their personality sucked out of them through hours and hours of media training. You may not always agree with what he has to say – at times you even laugh at his outbursts – but Roy Keane will always make you think.
So I couldn’t wait to read his new book. It was 11 years ago since I bought his original autobiography and it remains one of the best books I have ever read – triggering a personal love affair with football autobiographies, even though very few that I have subsequently bought can match Keane’s first volume.
Yet whereas ‘Keane’ covered his rise from humble beginnings in Ireland to becoming the driving force of Manchester United, there is something quite sad reading through ‘The Second Half’, which goes through his rather bumpy fall. This is undoubtedly a darker book where the honesty of Keane shines through. By the time he’s sacked from managing Ipswich Town – which always looked a bad fit – you can’t help but feel sorry for him and the way things have turned out. I never thought I would ever feel sorry for Roy Keane.
The fall out with Sir Alex Ferguson and departure from Manchester United have dominated the pre-book publicity. I found the extracts that appeared in the paper crude and stark; but in the context of reading the full account of what happened to force his exit, he comes across much better. That said, for all the issues with Carlos Queiroz and the infamous MUTV interview, it seems apparent that he was really forced out due to his fading powers. Keane describes how often he was injured during his final two years at Old Trafford and, indeed, had to retire from Celtic through injury after playing just 13 games.
You can see why a ruthless Sir Alex decided Keane was no longer the force he was and why his captain’s disruptive personality meant he had to get rid, even if it was evidently a brutal call. Yet the way Keane labours on about fall outs and which players backed him suggests that he lacks the self-awareness of why his time was really over at Old Trafford. Perhaps, now he has got these attacks on Sir Alex off his chest, he can find some closure.
For me, Sir Alex’s reputation is tarnished somewhat by Keane’s hints about the much-discussed fallout over a racehorse and how it paved the way for the Glazers to come in. The only surprise is that Keane isn’t more forceful with this criticism of his former manager over what is evidently a major moment in the club’s history. He could have caused some serious damage to Sir Alex’s credibility here.
The best section of the book, for me, was his time at Sunderland. You get a clear feel of how much he loved managing the club and – having personally lived in Sunderland in the past – I can see why the Black Cats were such a good fit to Keane’s character. He evidently didn’t cope well when results started to go against him and he came under scrutiny for it, but his regret over leaving is clear. If he could turn the clock back, you suspect Keane wishes he was still in charge of Sunderland.
Ultimately, it is pleasing that the book has a happy ending of sorts; with the move to the assistant manager roles that he currently holds with Ireland and Aston Villa. It is curious why he never got a job post-Ipswich, but this seems a sensible way of working his way back towards becoming a number one again one day. When describing his Sunderland and Ipswich days, Keane comes across as less tolerant of decent players who might take shortcuts or not give their all, but had a lot of time for those with less skill but who worked hard. For me, he needs to either be managing a top club with the very best players (highly unlikely) or try the lower two divisions, where hard work and endeavour is often more important than skill.
I really enjoyed ‘The Second Half’. I couldn’t put it down. I still probably prefer his first book given it is more upbeat, but I’m grateful that Keane has seen fit to share this more difficult period of his life with us, in such an honest and engaging style.
And the fact he is still part of the sport, and on his way back up again, paves the way for him one day writing a third book. I already can’t wait to read it!
By Simon Glen & Jason McKeown
FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER @sglen2001
Keane has almost become a caricature of himself in the media throughout his career as a footballer, a manager, a pundit, and now an assistant. He has always been outspoken. In the media, snippets of Keane's new book have him come across as bitter and arrogant. This is what I expected. But he comes across as a true professional. Like a lot of successful sportsmen Keane has an unfaltering determination and a winning mentality.
The media have taken sentences and paragraphs from ‘The Second Half’ and published them out of context and sensationalised them to sell more papers. The one line however that stuck in my mind from the entire book was when Keane says "I think that was one of my strengths; I think I had a kindness about me". We think of Keane as many things but you could ask a thousand people to describe Roy Keane and I’m sure the word “kindness” would not feature in any character description. He was talking of his time as manager of Sunderland when dealing with players’ personal issues or if they’d gotten themselves into trouble away from football. As his time as manager of Sunderland he talks about many occasions where he handled situations in a calm manner, when many other managers would have ripped a player to shreds. He talks of his inexperience. His naivety. He reflects over his experiences like an aging politician coming to the end of their term in office. He shows a methodical side to his approach to management.
There are people he singles out for criticism but it is usual a criticism of a person professionally rather than personally. Most of the people he talks about are people he admires and highly respects as sports people and as human beings. People like Stuart Pearce, Bryan Robson, Eric Cantona, Diego Forlan, Stern John, Dean Whitehead. The list is endless.
Keane is unapologetic in his book but he talks of regrets. He talks of things he wishes he'd done differently but also shows a human side to his personality. We read of a side of Keane that we from the outside rarely, if ever have seen before. We think of Keane as an angry, scary, committed, passionate Irishman. We rarely see a smile. But, put a camera in front of him and it's almost like he plays up to the caricature he has created for himself. He is very self-aware. He compares the difference of uncontrolled rage with the anger he has under control
"I'd been advised before to count to ten. That was never going to work for me. 'Just a second, I'm angry - one -two. -' "
Keane is damning in his views of United’s players last season and questions their commitment to David Moyes:
"I look at the current players, and they should have been doing a lot better. It might be argued that it was up to the manager to motivate them. But not liking a manager, for whatever reason, can never be a reason for not going out and doing your best"
What everybody expected from this new book was explosive outbursts about the breakdown in his relationship with Sir Alex Ferguson. They never really materialised. If anything it was his encounters with Carlos Queiroz that were the more shocking. He still can see the qualities that Sir Alex had as a manager and never really launches into Fergie. Perhaps this was Keane’s backhanded way of saying I’m not stooping to the level he believes Ferguson stooped to in criticising former players. Perhaps I’m trying to find something that isn’t there but he always addresses his former manager as Alex Ferguson rather than Sir Alex Ferguson. He spoke in the media of his loss of respect towards his former gaffer after criticising former players that have enabled him to have “stands named after him”. Perhaps this was Keane’s way of saying I don’t buy into all this personal recognition.
Perhaps I’m biased in my opinion of Keane. He remains one of my footballing heroes. Perhaps many will read Keane's words and dismiss them as him painting a glowing picture of himself. Me, I like to think of him as a footballing great. And all footballing greats seem somewhat flawed. It is part of their appeal. It is what makes this book one of the most talked about, most highly anticipated sports biographies ever. But I read it is a deeper insight into the man behind the public persona that has followed him throughout his career.
As I have said my opinion of Roy Keane will always be biased. I think Keane is one of those people in life that it is almost impossible not to have a biased opinion on; Good or bad. I have teamed up with my friend Jason Mckeown, A writer for Bradford City blog Width of a Post, to give his view of the book:
It doesn’t matter who you support, or even if you love or hate him, Roy Keane is one of those people you can’t ignore. He is a deeply fascinating character; especially during an era of bland identikit-footballers who have had their personality sucked out of them through hours and hours of media training. You may not always agree with what he has to say – at times you even laugh at his outbursts – but Roy Keane will always make you think.
So I couldn’t wait to read his new book. It was 11 years ago since I bought his original autobiography and it remains one of the best books I have ever read – triggering a personal love affair with football autobiographies, even though very few that I have subsequently bought can match Keane’s first volume.
Yet whereas ‘Keane’ covered his rise from humble beginnings in Ireland to becoming the driving force of Manchester United, there is something quite sad reading through ‘The Second Half’, which goes through his rather bumpy fall. This is undoubtedly a darker book where the honesty of Keane shines through. By the time he’s sacked from managing Ipswich Town – which always looked a bad fit – you can’t help but feel sorry for him and the way things have turned out. I never thought I would ever feel sorry for Roy Keane.
The fall out with Sir Alex Ferguson and departure from Manchester United have dominated the pre-book publicity. I found the extracts that appeared in the paper crude and stark; but in the context of reading the full account of what happened to force his exit, he comes across much better. That said, for all the issues with Carlos Queiroz and the infamous MUTV interview, it seems apparent that he was really forced out due to his fading powers. Keane describes how often he was injured during his final two years at Old Trafford and, indeed, had to retire from Celtic through injury after playing just 13 games.
You can see why a ruthless Sir Alex decided Keane was no longer the force he was and why his captain’s disruptive personality meant he had to get rid, even if it was evidently a brutal call. Yet the way Keane labours on about fall outs and which players backed him suggests that he lacks the self-awareness of why his time was really over at Old Trafford. Perhaps, now he has got these attacks on Sir Alex off his chest, he can find some closure.
For me, Sir Alex’s reputation is tarnished somewhat by Keane’s hints about the much-discussed fallout over a racehorse and how it paved the way for the Glazers to come in. The only surprise is that Keane isn’t more forceful with this criticism of his former manager over what is evidently a major moment in the club’s history. He could have caused some serious damage to Sir Alex’s credibility here.
The best section of the book, for me, was his time at Sunderland. You get a clear feel of how much he loved managing the club and – having personally lived in Sunderland in the past – I can see why the Black Cats were such a good fit to Keane’s character. He evidently didn’t cope well when results started to go against him and he came under scrutiny for it, but his regret over leaving is clear. If he could turn the clock back, you suspect Keane wishes he was still in charge of Sunderland.
Ultimately, it is pleasing that the book has a happy ending of sorts; with the move to the assistant manager roles that he currently holds with Ireland and Aston Villa. It is curious why he never got a job post-Ipswich, but this seems a sensible way of working his way back towards becoming a number one again one day. When describing his Sunderland and Ipswich days, Keane comes across as less tolerant of decent players who might take shortcuts or not give their all, but had a lot of time for those with less skill but who worked hard. For me, he needs to either be managing a top club with the very best players (highly unlikely) or try the lower two divisions, where hard work and endeavour is often more important than skill.
I really enjoyed ‘The Second Half’. I couldn’t put it down. I still probably prefer his first book given it is more upbeat, but I’m grateful that Keane has seen fit to share this more difficult period of his life with us, in such an honest and engaging style.
And the fact he is still part of the sport, and on his way back up again, paves the way for him one day writing a third book. I already can’t wait to read it!
By Simon Glen & Jason McKeown
FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER @sglen2001