Tim Howard has hailed the elite mentality of Manchester United legend Roy Keane after claiming that his former club teammate “never showed” fear.
Roy Keane was a huge personality for Manchester United, both on the pitch and off it, during his illustrious playing career at Old Trafford.
The 52-year-old Irish hardman excelled as club captain and was a commanding box-to-box midfielder, with Keane often taking a no-nonsense approach in his career.
Keane was a formidable opponent to come up against and the former United skipper’s tough-as-nails reputation was revered in the footballing world.
The Sky Sports pundit, who retired from football in 2006, is widely regarded as one of the best captains and midfielders of all time after a legendary playing career.
Keane was a key figure for Sir Alex Ferguson’s United teams of the past and the Irishman hoovered up the major silverware during his spell at Old Trafford.
Tim Howard shared the pitch with club legend Keane after he was snapped up by United from MetroStars (now known as New York Red Bulls) in 2003.
The 44-year-old former United player was also at Old Trafford when Ferguson ruthlessly axed Keane from the Premier League club in 2005.
Howard talks up Keane’s mentality
Tim Howard has now opened up about his experience with Roy Keane and shared his two cents on the Manchester United legend’s mentality.
The former United and Everton star, who previously raved about one Red Devils legend, claimed Keane “never blinked in the face of adversity.”
Howard praised the Sky Sports pundit’s role as a leader and how he felt that Keane “never showed” fear among his teammates if “he ever felt” it in the first place.
Speaking in his column for The Daily Mail, he said: “Roy Keane never [sic] he never blinked in the face of adversity. If he ever felt any fear, he never showed it.
“The biggest games were the ones he relished, those moments brought the best out of him.”
Howard on importance of a leader
Keane was skipper when Howard first arrived at Old Trafford and the former United midfielder is widely considered one of the best captains of the Premier League era.
Howard stressed the importance of having a positive role model as a leader and how strong leadership in a team can be transformative for the people around them.
“And when you have a good leader, who always shows up, who never lets you down, you are deathly afraid to let them down,” he continued.
“So you keep your standards high because they’ve shown you what it takes.
“Are you playing for pride? Yes. Are you playing for yourself? Yes. Are you playing not to not lose, out of fear? Sure.
“But you’re also playing not to let your leader down.”