Ian Hart: I woke up drunk when Keane said he was going to knock me down

Former Leeds United player Ian Hart recalled the fun things about his time as a player with Roy Keane in an interview with The Mirror.

Roy Keane and Ian Hart were Irish national team-mates and rivals in the Premier League (Leeds United and Manchester United) as Hart's Leeds United were trying to challenge Manchester United's Premier League dominance.

Leeds United are on the rise but need to win the battle against the Red Devils, and in Ireland, the pair have put their differences aside and often attend social events together. Hart recalled that once while drinking, Keane wanted to "roughly" knock him down.

"I spent three seasons at Levante and then I signed Sunderland for a year," Hart said in an interview with 442, "As a player, I respect Roy Keane, but as a manager he could have handled things in a different way. ”

"When we play for Ireland, we sometimes go for drinks together. One night we went back to the hotel – Leeds United were going to play Manchester United that Saturday. Keane turned around and said, 'Hart, you're a good guy. But when we play against you on the weekend, I'll beat you up! I woke up drunk and went to sleep. ”

"I admire Roy and I have a lot of respect for him." Hart spent nearly a decade at the Erland Road Stadium, making 288 appearances for Leeds United before leaving after relegation in 2004. The Irishman, who plays as left-back, is known by fans as a free-kick expert. He played in the Premier League during the same period as Keane's Manchester United team-mate David Beckham.

Hart said: "I looked at Roberto Carlos and thought he was really good, he played really well in free kicks. David Beckham is also an incredible player. ”

"People have never compared together, but I want to look at their statistics and mine and I estimate that I am more efficient than them. David Beckham probably played 200 more free kicks and scored 20 more than I did – I probably only played 70 and scored 15. ”

(Bear & Raspberry)