'Every time he sits in the away team’s dressing-room at Anfield, Roy Keane’s mind drifts back to when, as a 19-year-old who thought that he was there simply to lay out the kit, he was asked by Brian Clough to model Nottingham Forest’s new away strip in front of the first team. "Roy, you look fantastic," Clough told the embarrassed youngster. "Tell you what. Keep it on. You’re playing."
The rest is history, of course, but nearly 15 years later, having entered the twilight of his career, there is still nothing like a trip to Anfield to get Keane’s blood pumping. "Playing at Liverpool is what football is all about," the Manchester United captain said, reflecting on his impeccable display on Saturday. "This is what we’re in the game for, playing the likes of Liverpool and to face good players. I was dying to get out there today."
It showed. Keane was so desperate to get started, having been rested for United’s previous two games, that he charged out of the tunnel straight for the middle of the pitch, forgetting the pre-match rigmarole that the Barclays Premiership demands these days. Cue a red-faced Keane and laughter among team-mates and opposing supporters alike, but it was the only time he would put a foot wrong.
Wayne Rooney may have claimed yesterday’s headlines, courtesy of the only goal and a senseless celebration that drew an even more deplorable reaction from one home supporter, but it was Keane, along with Mikaël Silvestre, who bestrode the Anfield turf like a giant. There was nothing spectacular in his display, apart for a dipping, 25-yard shot that stuck the crossbar, but, as a lesson in how to control midfield, it was exemplary.
It also served as a reminder that Steven Gerrard, described by Sir Alex Ferguson as "the most influential player in England bar none", could learn a thing or two from the old master. Gerrard, drained of energy after playing 13 matches in 53 days since returning from injury in late November, was in Keane’s shadow throughout, powerless to prevent a defeat that will have reaffirmed his doubts about achieving his ambitions at Liverpool.'