Alan Shearer responds to Roy Keane dig after Man United icon makes ‘nasty’ claim
Roy Keane and Alan Shearer have seemingly re-ignited their long-standing feud, with the Newcastle icon responding to a “sneaky” dig recently made by the former Manchester United captain
Alan Shearer has called out Roy Keane’s double standards after the Manchester United legend recently accused him of dirty tactics during his playing days.
Speaking on a recent instalment of The Overlap, Keane claimed that Shearer utilised “sneaky elbows” during his goal-laden Premier League tenure with the likes of Southampton, Blackburn Rovers and Newcastle United, while Gary Neville was compelled to agree with his stance.
Keane said: “Shearer was sneaky. Sneaky elbows,” before Neville added: “I thought Alan was just, to be fair, nasty I’ll be honest with you. He was nasty, Alan, he was horrible.”
When probed on whether he would have supported Shearer in his own team rather than playing against him, an incensed Keane replied: “No, I didn’t admire people who were nasty. Why are you saying that?I wouldn’t I don’t like nasty people. He was nasty, sneaky elbows, back of the head.”
In a bid to diffuse the situation, Ian Wright said: “No, I don’t think he’s nasty,” before Neville added fuel to the fire with: “I think he was horrible Alan, as a player. He knew how to dig you.”
When asked by Jill Scott if that makes a good player, Keane remained straight-faced as he said: “No. [Eric] Cantona, [Andy] Cole. All these strikers I played with weren’t sneaky. They were good honest pros, turned up every week and they weren’t sneaky.”
Shearer has since defended himself against Keane’s comments with a little help from long-time friend and colleague, Gary Lineker. Speaking on The Rest Is Football, Lineker brought up the topic by saying: “I saw Roy Keane had a swipe again at you, Alan.
“Sneaky, sneaky, he said, nasty, sneaky elbows and all this. It’s amazing what rival pods will do to get a bit of PR.”
Highlighting perceived double standards from Keane, considering the midfielder was known for his meaty tackles and aggressive nature on the pitch, former Newcastle striker Shearer replied: “Someone sent me that the other day, Micah [Richards] sent me and Wrighty, I mean really? Come on. I mean, sneaky and nasty, some of the tackles? Come on, really? Yeah, okay.”
Lineker then underlined his stance by adding: “Pot, kettle, black and all that kind of stuff,” before the duo moved on. Premier League icons Keane and Shearer endured a fierce rivalry against one another in the early 2000s while playing for United and Newcastle respectively.
Tensions bubbled over particularly during a clash between the two teams at St James’ Park in September 2001. In the final minutes of the match, which ended 4-3 in Newcastle’s favour, Keane threw the ball at Shearer after heading to the touchline to take a throw in, before the striker pushed him in response.
Keane then lost his temper with Shearer, taking a swing at him, receiving a straight red card from referee Steve Bennett as a result, before he was held back by team-mates as he furiously rushed towards the Newcastle man. Speaking previously about the incident, the now 54-year-old said: “I lost my temper, we were losing 4-3, I think, in the last minute.
“If you’re going to get sent off, the worst thing is, I pushed him. If you’re going to get sent off you might as well punch him properly because you’re going to get the same punishment. You might as well be hung for a sheep as a lamb. That’s what I was thinking afterwards. It was just a push. It was ridiculous.”
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