He saw his opportunity and he ran with it.
Something modern day football is missing is a good old fashioned player rivalry and Patrick Vieira has just reminded us how great they are to watch.
The ex-Arsenal captain had a long-running feud with ex-Manchester United skipper Roy Keane while the two were at the top of their game.
The two met face-to-face again on the Stick to Football podcast to discuss their old clashes and accomplished careers, and the Frenchman didn’t waste an opportunity to get another jab in.
"I was terrified to say that!" 🤣
— The Overlap (@WeAreTheOverlap) June 10, 2024
This is savage from Vieira to Keane… pic.twitter.com/ZGCfXNoqEF
Patrick Vieira re-ignites Roy Keane rivalry with savage Saipan jibe
During the end of their conversation, host Gary Neville set up a Roy vs Patrick quiz where he would ask questions about their careers.
One question was about who had the most international caps, with everyone answering Vieira, who had 107 to Roy’s 67.
The answer seemed an obvious one, with Keane stating “you qualified for more tournaments you see.”
However, Vieira couldn’t resist poking fun at the Corkman’s most infamous moment in an Irish shirt, replying: “And I never walked out of one”, referring to his departure from the World Cup 2002 squad in Saipan.
The comment had Neville, Jamie Carragher and Ian Wright in stitches, and even Roy couldn’t resist a smirk.
“I had injuries – my cruciate. I didn’t play for two years after I fell out with the manager,” Keane added.
“I could have easily got well over a hundred [caps].”
Patrick Vieira recalls infamous tunnel bust-up with Roy Keane
During the show, Vieira also recalled his infamous tunnel bust-up with Keane back in 2005 and revealed that it was pre-planned to send a message.
“That was planned by me,” Vieira told Neville. “Because of the nine years I spent at Arsenal, I didn’t like you at all!
“In the warm-up, if I saw you going into the tunnel, I would run after you. I saw you running, and I just ran behind you and wanted to make you aware that today would be different and something that wasn’t going to happen.”
Keane then interjected with his memories of the incident: “I came out and I knew there were noises.
“I forgot my armband so that’s why I had to go back up the tunnel.
“When I came back out the second time, I knew that something had gone on, and I remember what you [Gary] told me previously.
“I was agitated. My annoyance was that he went after Gary – you go after one, you go after all of us.”
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