Former Manchester City man Alfie Haaland has opened up about his horror clash with Roy Keane which is often seen as one of the worst in Premier League history.
When Erling Haaland, son of Alfie, moved to City in 2022 Keane's horrendous tackle on his father resurfaced in the media.
The former Manchester United captain is now a regular pundit on Sky Sports and The Overlap and has often been asked about the incident.
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It occurred in the April 2001 Manchester Derby, four years after the pair clashed in an encounter between United and Leeds whom Haaland then played for.
The tackle resulted in a three match ban for Keane and a 5,000 fine. The Irishman was later handed a further £150,000 fine for admitting in his autobiography that he intended to hit Haaland hard.
"I'd waited long enough. I f***** hit him hard. The ball was there (I think). Take that you c***," Keane said, as reported in GiveMeSport.
The report also references an interview that has emerged in which Haaland reflected on the clash that led to the end of his career.
Alfie spoke about the scuffle in '97 that led to Keane's tackle four years later.
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"He tried to tackle me and I got the free kick. He was lying on the ground and I just told him to ‘get up’ as you normally do with players - nothing more than that.
"I wasn’t trying to intend anything against him, but obviously he took that very hard," he said.
He added that it wasn't a coincidence that after the horror tackle in 2001, he never played 90 minutes again.
"Is that a coincidence, or isn’t it? If you’re in the ground and someone hits you in the right leg, you can still twist your other leg. It can get injured and that’s probably what happened.
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"I haven’t played a full 90 minutes after that incident, that’s the hard fact. And people can judge whatever they want. Obviously, I found out afterwards that it was with intent and he was seeking revenge and all these things.
"I think that’s a bit sad. Sad for football and it was not good for me either at the time."
The Norwegian didn't take Keane to court over the incident and insisted it was the fact the Irishman wanted to take revenge that hurt the most.
Featured Image Credit: Premier League/InstagramTopics: Roy Keane, Erling Haaland, Manchester City, Manchester United, Premier League