Roy Keane has admitted that Celtic did not see the best of him and that he felt like “a fraud”. The Manchester United legend finished his career at Parkhead playing for the club he supported as a boy but failed to meet expectations during his six-month spell in Glasgow.
Keane, famed for his forthright views on other players and teams, was characteristically blunt in assessing his time as a Celtic player. The Ipswich manager was explaining why he prefers his players to live close to the ground and used his time in Glasgow to prove his point.
“I’m talking from experience,” he said.
“I felt like a fraud at Celtic. I made a big mistake there in terms of commuting yet I was asking myself why I kept getting injured.”
“But it’s difficult when you are getting a flight at six o’clock in the morning then hiring a car at Edinburgh airport to drive to Glasgow. I didn’t do that every day – I’m not that selfish – but I tore my hamstring twice in my time at Celtic.”
Keane’s time at the club started with an embarrassing defeat to Clyde in the Scottish Cup but ended with an SPL winners medal. However, injuries forced the player to seek medical advice and he announced his retirement from playing. The combative midfielder did not feel he could continue playing if he could not put in top performances on a regular basis.
“To me it doesn’t matter if you’re on £100,000 a week or £5,000, you’ve still got to do things properly,” he added.
“I didn’t want to keep picking up wages if I couldn’t give 100 per cent.”
