The abrupt end to Roy Keane's 12-year career with Manchester United was very much in keeping with the player's penchant for stirring controversy at every level of club and international football. His headstrong and principled stances have always catapulted him into areas way beyond the football pitches he graced with an indomitable spirit and outstanding ability throughout his tenure at Old Trafford.
Although the precise details of his departure from Manchester United are still unclear it seems unlikely that one of the club's greatest players severed his links by mutual consent as a club statement said yesterday. In recent weeks, Keane's future at Old Trafford has been the subject of endless speculation, particularly after his reported video outburst over the ineptitude of team-mates.
While that level of criticism struck a chord with Manchester United supporters, it seems certain it was one step too far for manager Alex Ferguson and the Glazer family, the new US owners of Manchester United. For a club so accustomed to success, the last few years have proved difficult and frustrating as supporters and players have watched the emergence of Chelsea as the new dominant power in English football.
In their heyday, Keane and Ferguson would have relished the challenge of unseating their rivals on the pitch but the manager and club captain have both been in decline in recent years and have grown apart. Keane's searing honesty has been as much his trademark as his football ability but his growing disaffection with fellow Manchester Utd players was in danger of undermining Ferguson and the club. In that situation, there was only going to be one winner. However, Ferguson's victory yesterday may prove to be as much hollow as short-lived. If Keane's powers have declined in recent years, Ferguson has visibly lost his iron grip on club affairs and is likely to follow the player out of Old Trafford.
For Republic of Ireland supporters yesterday's developments will have evoked unwelcome memories of Keane's walkout from Saipan in the build-up to the 2002 World Cup finals. It polarised those with only the remotest interest in soccer. Uncompromising and unrelenting in his desire to succeed, it would be a travesty if Keane was to be remembered principally for controversy. At his peak he was one of the greatest players in world football who served his country and club with distinction. His parting will be forgotten in time but his scale of achievement guarantees that he will be remembered as one of the greatest players ever to pull on one of the most recognised football jerseys in the world.