The legendary Red Devils coach: The road to success

Chapter 258: Becoming famous in one season

"The sudden success is not accidental, especially for Keane who has been practicing hard all the time."

--Inscription

Keane had just joined Forest in the summer of 1990. He didn't know what his future would hold, but he knew he had to train hard and strive to improve.

How did Keane, a 19-year-old rising star, win his chance?

Keane later recalled that he felt like his first week at Forest was like hell. In the first few days, he didn't even see the football. He just ran every day, then did endurance training, followed by strength training, and also had quick recovery training in between. Keane didn't know how he got through it, he could only grit his teeth and persevere, even though he wore out two pairs of sneakers. Keane had always thought that he had good endurance and strength, but it was in Forest that he realized the difference between professional and semi-professional teams.

Keane was determined to gain a foothold in Forest, and he was not afraid of hard work. In the season that just ended, Forest won the League Cup and the first team had a strong lineup. Many outstanding players gathered together. Stuart Pearce, Des Walker and Steve Hodge were all the main players of the England national team, Sheringham was outstanding, and Nigel Clough was also selected for the national team immediately. These guys were Keane's competitors and his goals to catch up with.

Keane made arduous efforts that others would not know, and his training intensity moved the Forest coaching staff. He tried his best for every goal and gave his all for every game. Keane always maintained a fighting state and a positive attitude, daring to do everything others dared not do, not afraid of bleeding and injury, not afraid of the danger of breaking a leg, and everything was subject to the coach's orders.

Clough liked Keane's attitude very much and was determined to personally guide the young man to grow faster. On August 8, when Keane celebrated his 10th birthday, Clough gave Keane a pair of football shoes that he personally ordered to encourage the young man to strive for greater progress. After the start of the season, Clough went against all odds and constantly gave Keane the opportunity to start.

Keane was full of gratitude for this, and his respect even surpassed Ferguson at one point. It was Clough's insight that gave Keane the opportunity to debut in England's top football and keep improving.

Keane cherished the opportunity to join the Forest team. He became a professional player at the age of 19. He had experienced despair before, which made him pay more attention to this opportunity. Keane always remembered that he was an Irish boy from a Mayfield working-class family. Life is never smooth, but will always give you disappointment and blows.

In the summer of 1990, Keane participated in the pre-season warm-up matches with the Forest team. In the Netherlands, they faced the under-21 reserve teams of Sporting Lisbon, Barcelona, ​​PSV Eindhoven and Haarlem. In these games, Keane played well, scored several key goals, and was very strong in defense, and finally helped the team win the warm-up match. After returning to Nottingham, Keane started in the warm-up match against the local amateur team Arnold. The other players of the Forest team did not take this game seriously. Many of them were careless and dealt with it casually. Arnold was merciless and led 3-1 soon after the start. Keane began to show the style of a midfield leader. He kept motivating his teammates and made hard tackles to try to wake up these guys. Finally, under the influence of Keane's attitude, the Forest team began to take it seriously and played better and better. Keane then scored two goals in a row to help the team equalize.

Keane was very dissatisfied with the complainers and the unqualified players in the team. These people looked down on Aziz Jamil, a Scottish national team hero, league champion and European Cup champion, and even Brian Clough, but they never got a chance to play in the starting lineup and were beaten badly by amateur teams like Arnold in the warm-up matches.

"Never hang out with trash." Keane was determined to become a real professional player.

When the curtain of the 1990-91 season opened, Forest played the first League game of the season against QPR. In this game, Forest drew 1:1 at home and Keane was not included in the match list. A few days later, the first team went to Anfield to challenge Liverpool. In the morning training, Keane was notified to go to Anfield and was reminded to bring his shoes. At that time, Keane did not think too much, just thought that the team wanted him to see the world and help others with bags, shoes, etc.

Anfield was spectacular and the atmosphere was lively. Liverpool had the most luxurious lineup in England at the time: Ian Rush, Peter Beardsley, John Barnes, Ray Hendon and Ronnie Whelan... This was the game Brian Clough longed for. Other teams might have surrendered without a fight before the game started, but Clough loved to accept such a challenge.

When the Forest team's main players were preparing in the locker room, Keane began to help the staff organize their jerseys and shoes, and then a shout woke him up.

"Irish, what are you doing?"

"I'm...helping," Keane replied.

"Go get your No. 7 jersey and put it on, now. You're going to play today."

"I'm sorry, what did you say?"

"You need to play, hurry up!"

Keane was shocked. This was too sudden. He was at Anfield, facing the best team in England, and he was a starter. He even had to introduce himself to the old players of the team, because they didn't know the name of this "Irishman"!

Liverpool won easily 2-0 in the end. This was the difference in strength. When Keane called home that night and told his parents about his debut at Anfield, they were extremely surprised. His father asked, "How was the performance, son?"

Keane answered honestly: "It was OK, but unfortunately we lost 0:2."

"You are good enough! Keep going, son, and you will be more and more successful in the future!"

Keane then got the chance to start at home, and Forest won the game 3-1. When Keane was replaced by Clough with 10 minutes left in the game, all the spectators stood up and applauded him, which made Keane feel like a dream.

Keane was highly regarded by Clough. He made rapid progress and his strength improved quickly. With his tenacious and fierce style, he established a firm foothold in the team.

After one season at Forest, Keane was selected for the Irish national team and became a member of the 1992 European Cup.

In the second season, Keane made great progress in terms of awareness, technique and physical growth. He became a key player for Forest, helping the team finish eighth in the league, reach the League Cup final, beat Southampton and win the FA Members' Cup.

Another thing Keane gained this season was learning from captain Pierce how to be a team leader. As Keane said in his autobiography, "The more I get to know Pierce, the more I admire his leadership ability."

Pierce has always been the captain of the Forest team. His position in the team is like Robson's in the Red Devils. Pierce set an example for the players. He never asked others to do what he could not do. He won respect and trust with his outstanding performance. Keane believed that Pierce was a leader. Whether in training or in the game, Pierce always set a good example for himself. He was very contagious. When others began to slack off, Pierce would urge them to fight back instead of simply scolding them.

It was from Pierce that Keane slowly learned how to be the captain of the team.

Not only that, Keane also began to learn from Clough's football philosophy. Clough's insights into the game were very insightful and unique, which made people admire him. He might rarely be seen on the training ground, but once he played, he would immediately make the Forest team different. Keane's most profound impression was that Clough could keenly grasp the details of the game and could point out the key impact of some details without any dispute. This was much more powerful than some slogans that were only bluffing, such as "roll up your sleeves", "have the right attitude", "be proud of your jersey", "grab the ball and kick it into the opponent's goal!", which only showed that the coach was incompetent.

Keane agreed that Brian Clough had a special ability to get to the heart of a problem, get to the heart of it and come up with the best solution. Once the coaching staff were doing a small Charles Atlas course specifically for weight loss, but Clough directly scolded assistant coach O'Kane, "What the f*ck are these? Take them away... take the ball out."

Keane's only worry was that the old man was getting further and further away from the training ground, and that alcoholism was causing Clough to lose proper control of the team.

In August 1992, the Premier League officially kicked off.

Forest won the first game 1-0 against Liverpool. But the team then had a series of nightmares. Shelingham left in September, they lost a full 9 games, and by October they were at the bottom of the Premier League.

Forest was in crisis. Pierce had broken up with Clough, the dressing room was falling apart, and Clough even left the club for a time due to alcohol poisoning. Keane was still fighting, but he was obviously alone. The media was very critical, and the reports on Forest were almost all about the same theme: "Roy Keane, the man of the match, couldn't help the team win..."

Forest fans knew that Keane was the only one who was willing to do anything to save the team. Clough said in his memoir Walking On Water: "Roy Keane shone like a beacon in that bleak season... The confidence of the young players had dropped, but Roy Keane was the only one who kept doing what he should do."

Keane said in an interview: "If I can, I will stay away from the public eye as much as possible. I don't want to be a player like Gazza. I am focusing on the next game of Nottingham Forest, not Milan or Chelsea. I just hope to play every game well and win every game."

Keane worked hard to play well in every game. He was undoubtedly the best player in the team. In the eyes of the fans, he was the best player in at least three positions. In the central midfield, Keane completely covered the area between the two penalty areas; in the central defender position, Keane also performed outstandingly. In the five games in October, Nottingham Forest only conceded two goals. Keane seemed insurmountable. When the Forest team lacked a striker, Keane advanced like a tank and destroyed the city. Nigel Clough scored 10 goals, and Keane scored 5 for the team. Considering that Clough scored 13 penalties, if this was given to Keane, it would be 8 goals.

Keane's outstanding performance in different positions shocked all football critics. He can be said to be the strongest defender, the best midfielder, and the sharpest striker in the Forest team.

Forest captain Pearce praised Keane: "No matter where he plays, he is the best player. We have been struggling all season, but he is like the best student. Any problem is easy for him. Except goalkeeper, he can play any position."

"I know other clubs have noticed him," said Brian Clough. "They would be blind not to take notice of Roy Keane."

Dalglish proposed to bring Keane to Blackburn in the middle of the season, and Arsenal and Milan also wanted to sign him. Aston Villa coach Atkinson was eager to recruit talents, "Roy Keane can help us win everything. If he joins, he will lift the championship trophy with us."

Keane rejected all temptations. In the FA Cup match against Southampton, Keane scored a crucial goal. He kissed the team badge to celebrate after scoring, expressing his loyalty.

Nottingham Forest were eventually relegated and despite Keane's best efforts his efforts were not enough to pull the team out of the abyss of defeat.

Forest's relegation could not overshadow Keane's brilliance. The fans voted him the best player in the team and everyone in the dressing room wanted him to stay.

After the end of this season, Keane finally chose to leave. Nottingham Forest was naturally very reluctant to let him go, but they finally sent their blessings.