A slightly awkward but heartwarming interview between Ruud van Nistelrooy and Martin Keown was conducted in advance of the Premier League match between Leicester City and Arsenal on Saturday. The interview was conducted in order to settle their differences.
During the buildup to the game that will take place this weekend, the manager of Leicester, Van Nistelrooy, has stated that he has never met Keown after football, and it is likely that this is for a good reason.
An infamous brawl broke out at Old Trafford in 2003 when Keown, who was playing for Arsenal at the time, celebrated in front of Manchester United’s number 10 after the Dutchman missed a late penalty. Keown was the incident that sparked the brawl.
As a consequence of this, the Gunners were able to maintain their perfect start to the season in what would turn out to be their ultimate year of dominance.
In point of fact, their rivalry dates back to the 2001–2002 season, when Van Nistelrooy stepped on Keown’s foot during a game, which put Keown’s chances of playing for England in the World Cup that summer in jeopardy.
After a period of more than twenty years, the two individuals got back together when the Dutchman gave an interview to TNT Sports in advance of the match between Arsenal and Leicester at the King Power Stadium.
During the time that Van Nistelrooy was making his way over to the media area, Keown was acting as a pundit alongside Joe Cole, who had previously played for Chelsea and West Ham. This is evident from the video that can be found below.
A few moments later, Keown delivered a line that had been crafted over the course of many years. After saying, “Apologies for all the shenanigans that went on back in the day,” he then proceeded to play down the incident that had occurred to Van Nistelrooy.
“What happens on the pitch stays on the pitch,” said the former forward who played for both Manchester United and Real Madrid. “No, it was good, they were good rivalries, weren’t they?”
After that, Keown responded, “Oh, those were the good old days. In light of the fact that you enjoyed stamping on me, I am relieved that you are standing there rather than next to me.
It was obvious that Van Nistelrooy was amused by the interaction, and he responded by saying, “I would like to block you out as well, and then fall over.”
In addition, the manager of Leicester added, “Back in 2003, I was gutted to miss the penalty.” These words were spoken in reference to the missed penalty. It was the most important thing. My team’s victory in the game was my responsibility, but I failed to deliver on that responsibility.
He continued by saying, “Aside from that, I wasn’t really bothered by what happened because I was only focused on trying to assist United in winning trophies.”
In 2004, during the same match, there was another penalty moment, and that is what I consider to be the most important aspect of the competition. “Of course, the competition has always been fantastic.
Once again, you stepped up, and this time you were successful. It was very important to me, as evidenced by the fact that I was so emotional during the celebration that followed the second one.
Keown insisted that he did not have any regrets regarding the now-famous incident that occurred at Old Trafford in the year 2022.
“I didn’t feel I could trust Van Nistelrooy going into that game at Old Trafford in September 2003,” he told the British newspaper The Mail.
When he was even slightly touched in the box, he would immediately collapse. Several years later, Ray Parlour stated that I was the one who initiated the Battle of Old Trafford. It wasn’t me! According to my interpretation, it all started when Van Nistelrooy pretended to be hurt, as if Patrick Vieira had kicked him.
Keown continued by saying, “Van Nistelrooy became an instantaneous figure of hatred among Arsenal’s players instantly.” The fact that we were playing at Old Trafford, which was considered to be one of the most intimidating stadiums in the world of football at the time, gave us the impression that he had been successful in cheating.
Not only did I feel that justice had been done, but so did the other members of my team. When we look back, it’s possible that we could have modulated our response more. On the other hand, although it occurred in the heat of the moment, I do not regret anything that I did. Right now, I have absolutely no ill will toward Van Nistelrooy in any way, shape, or form. Exactly what took place took place.
