Roy Keane may be seen as a laid-back character these days during his punditry work for Sky Sports, ITV or Gary Neville's The Overlap, but the Irishman was far from it during his playing days. The Manchester United icon would never back down from a battle on the field, and even caused a few fights along the way.
However, the all-action midfielder has mellowed in his older age, and isn't against admitting to being inferior to others he faced. This would've never been the case in his younger years, as Keane was always willing to back himself against the best players his generation had to offer.
Many make a strong case for the retired Republic of Ireland international as the finest midfielder ever to grace the Premier League. There's certainly an argument to be made there, too. Keane lifted the trophy four times as captain (seven overall) of the division's most successful outfit.
Roy Keane Related
Roy Keane Named His 3 Greatest Players in Football History
Diego Maradona features in Roy Keane's top three greatest players in football history.
Roy Keane on 'Way Better' Premier League Legends
Former Manchester United teammate Paul Scholes features
While he has the CV of one of the best to have patrolled a Premier League engine room, Keane himself has described a trio of icons as 'better' than him. Speaking to the Irish Independent in 2020, the former Red Devils skipper stated:
"When you compare me to players – people talk about Scholes, Gerrard, Lampard – these guys were way better than me."
Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard are two of the greatest English midfielders of all time, with the former being perhaps the most well-rounded the Premier League has ever had. Meanwhile, Chelsea legend Lampard is the highest-scoring midfield player in the division's history, with his elite intelligence and movement setting him apart from others.
Roy Keane Related
Roy Keane Named the 5 Toughest Opponents he Faced in His Career
The former Manchester United midfielder named Zinedine Zidane as his toughest opponent on the Champions League stage.
When asked to clarify if Lampard was better than him, the midfielder-turned-pundit was firm in his answer, while reiterating that both Scholes and Gerrard were also superior players. He answered: "Yeah. Gerrard and Scholesy, too. I’m not saying they had the same influence in their teams as me and I couldn’t compete with the guys, but, yeah, they were better than me."
Roy Keane on Best Midfield Partner Paul Scholes
'I always enjoyed playing with him'
Paul Scholes and Roy Keane
Keane had the privilege of playing with some incredibly talented footballers during his time at Old Trafford. Despite lining up alongside midfielders such as Bryan Robson, David Beckham, Juan Sebastian Veron and a whole host of other world-class stars, Keane picked out Scholes as his preferred partner. Speaking on Sky Sports in 2019, he claimed (per Mail Sport):
"Me and Scholsey had a good relationship and I played with loads of players but if I had to pick anyone, it would be Scholes.
"Scholes would go forward, I would sit and vice versa. I always enjoyed playing with him and the same with Paul Ince."
Keane only played more games alongside Ryan Giggs (379) than the 'Ginger Prince' (322). They formed a great partnership in the middle of the park. It says a lot that Keane picked the Englishman as his best midfield teammate and also labelled him 'way better' as a footballer.
Statistics in this article are courtesy of Transfermarkt. Correct as of 21-06-25.