On Sunday June 26th Robbie Keane took to the pitch in Lyon. Not to play, but to applaud the tens of thousands of Irish fans who had made the journey to France to watch the Boys in Green. This gesture was less of a thank you and more of a goodbye.
Keane has today announced that he will retire after Ireland's friendly International against Oman next week.
The Dublin native wrote his name into Irish sporting folklore long ago. Yet even as recently as during Ireland's Euro 16 qualifiers many disagreed with the decision of Martin O'Neill to continue to include a 36 year old in the first team plans when we should have been looking towards bringing new players through. The constant argument for Keane's cause was "Who else would you start instead?", which is hardly a convincing way to defend Ireland's record goal scorer.
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Keane supporters have always claimed the Tallaght man is one of the most under appreciated strikers in World football. It is true to an extent. Here we have a man who is 13th in the All Time Premier League goal scoring charts. One of a few dozen to have scored multiple Premier League hat tricks and has scored goals wherever he has gone. A current record of 314 goals in 713 club appearances is not to be sniffed at. Numbers which Keane is still adding to, his most recent season in MLS with LA Galaxy yielded 25 goals in 28 games, showing that he didn't go to America to rest on his laurels and collect a sizeable pay packet.
The constant travelling back and forth across the Atlantic did not impact his Irish career as much as many thought it would have. Since swapping football for soccer in 2012 Keane made 31 appearances for his country and despite playing more of an impact bit part role in recent years he still managed 14 goals in that time. As of now Robbie Keane is the leading International goalscorer that is still active, and he proved that he could do it on the biggest stage with the highest pressure; 81 tournament qualifiers were greeted with 41 goals. Let's not forget his 3 goals in 4 games at the 2002 World Cup.
Keane was never under appreciated but perhaps taken for granted. Like a pair of Genuine Levi's; when you first acquired them they were exciting, everyone noticed them. Every time they were taken out, they worked. They always covered your arse.
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The problem with relying on something that can always be relied upon is that it becomes very easy to get comfortable.
Ireland and it's people came to expect Robbie Keane to consistently cover their arse. And mostly, he did. His record of 67 goals in 145 games shows just how reliable Keane was. As our main goal threat and, later as Captain, Keane bore the brunt of the team's poor performances. Criticism was thrown his way for his constant flailing of arms and pointing to where he wanted the ball to be played only to gestate in frustration at another failed opportunity. For the latter part of his career Keane played in a very ordinary Ireland team, yet he consistently helped the team to be more than they could be through his dogged attitude and ability to persevere.
If Keane was to appear on the scene again tomorrow, reborn as a 17 year old. The likes of Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola would be praising his incredible footballing brain, his anticipation in the box and his pressing of the defence.
Keane lived and breathed football, the last of what Eamonn Dunphy would describe as a street footballer. He was what every kid wanted to be. A regular boy from a working class background that became a national treasure and played for some of the biggest clubs in the world. The running joke of Keane describing every club as "a dream" to play for wasn't just a throwaway soundbite. If you were a true football fan like a 10 year old Robbie Keane was then playing for any club you saw on TV, be it Celtic, Spurs or Liverpool would be a dream come true.
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Robbie Keane has given the last 18 years of his life to the Ireland jersey. Travelling from Japan to Kazakhstan and every place in between. 50 friendlies both home and away show that Robbie Keane is a man that would happily play in Phoenix Park on a Sunday Morning in front of a man and his dog as long as he could do it in the green jersey.
As I said I don't think we ever underappreciated Robbie Keane, but we did take him for granted. Now however we can all take a moment to thank the man who for almost every day of his life lived the life that many of us dream. A man whose whole career was "a dream come true."
Thank you Robbie Keane, thank you for the memories.
I will leave you with my favourite Robbie Keane memory, his last minute goal against Germany in the 2002 World Cup. I watched this game in the Step Inn pub in Stepaside, Dublin as a 13 year old. When the pub jumped in unison to celebrate it took minutes before my feet hit the floor.
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Enjoy and share your favourite Robbie Keane moments below.
Words By: @JosephGleeson
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