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03rd Oct 2021

“That’s his job… he’s supposed to run back!” – Keane doubles down on Walker comments

Patrick McCarry

He did not go as far as his comments from last November.

Near the end of last year, after Manchester City drew 1-1 with Liverpool, Roy Keane branded Kyle Walker “an idiot”.

The City and England defender gave away a penalty and Keane likened his performance to ‘a car crash’. Walker has since won another league title with City and reached the Euro 2020 final against Italy.

Ahead of another City vs. Liverpool league clash, Keane has not softened his stance much on the former Spurs defender. Keane and Micah Richards sparked off each other [again] on Sky Sports. When Walker’s pace was highlighted as a strength, Keane began:

“That’s his job, you know? You’re supposed to run back, that’s what defenders do.”

“Ah no,” Keane added before saying, “he has done brilliant there. He’s had a very good career. I’ve been critical of him in the past, I still think he makes too many mistakes and depends on his pace a lot to get him out of trouble.

“He’s had a very good career. That’s a nice snippet there because once again it was his pace that got him out of trouble.

“He’s had a very good career and I’m sure there’s plenty more to come from him, but I still think (he lacks) concentration and he makes too many mistakes.”

“You know when people says it’s his pace that gets him out of trouble,” Richards argued, “if you’re a number 10 and he uses his brain, he is playing to his attributes.

“If you look at Manchester City now, when someone tries to counterattack them he is always there. I’ve seen an improvement from when I was challenging him for the right back spot and when he was at Spurs he was a bit of a headless chicken.

“I understand what you’re saying about the mistakes and at times he has made a few, but I would put him up there with the top three right backs in world football right now.”

The panel were in good form ahead of the game, as host Dave Jones asked them for their best James Bond impressions.

Richards and Jamie Carragher gave it socks, but Keane was surely auditioning for a Bond villain…

“Are we going to start talking about football?”

Keane should just get that as a t-shirt.

 

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