An Arsenal has been found guilty of headbutting football pundit Roy Keane following a Premier League match.
Scott Law, 43, was convicted at Highbury Corner Magistrates’ of his charge of common assault despite pleading not guilty to attacking the former midfield icon at The Gunners’ Emirates Stadium on September 3 last year.
The altercation broke out when Mr Keane and fellow Sky Sports pundit Micah Richards were walking to do the final match analysis after Arsenal’s 3-1 victory over Manchester United, court heard.
The ex-Ireland international, who was working as a pundit for Sky Sports, was headbutted through doors at the Emirates Stadium by Law, of Waltham Abbey, Essex, the trial was told.
Law’s defence team alleged that CCTV footage from inside the stadium, shown in court, displayed former Manchester United player Mr Keane elbowing the defendant in the face.
Giving evidence to the court, former Manchester City defender Mr Richards denied accusations by Law’s defence barrister that he had claimed to see the headbutt because he was “Roy’s mate” and had become the ex-Ireland international’s “puppy” and “stooge”.
The ex-England international said he “grappled” with Law following the alleged incident.
Mr Richards said he was in “disbelief” at what he witnessed, and “felt sorry for Roy” who he described as a friend.
The pundit said “you wouldn’t get sent off” for actions in CCTV footage, shown in court, that Law’s defence team alleged showed Mr Keane elbowing the defendant in the face.
Following the match, footage was widely shared on social media of the former footballer stepping in to calm an apparent confrontation.
Law, who was sat beneath the Sky Sports studio during the match, said Mr Keane was “very animated” and “angry” throughout the game, adding he had “never really seen that behaviour from someone who was working in the Sky box”.
He told the court: “Mr Keane was puffing his cheeks out. He was right up against the glass. He was banging on the window.
“Mr Keane picked me out and started telling me to see him outside. He was pointing to doors in the box.”
Law said he went inside the stadium to go to the toilet and encountered Mr Keane who “collided into him”.
Prosecutor Simon Jones KC asked Law: “Are you seriously saying that Roy Keane ran into the top of your head?”
Law, who cried while being questioned, said: “I put my head down in a defensive manner to protect my face.”
Mr Jones said Law’s “ridiculous” defence had “changed dramatically” from a prepared statement he gave to police the day after the incident.
Asked about the apparent differences in this statement, Law replied: “I’d had no sleep – I was guilty by media.
“It was the worst night of my life.”
Law, a civil engineer, said he had been an Arsenal fan “from birth” and said his Emirates Stadium season ticket was his “prized possession”.
He told the court: “It’s the main part of my social circle. My wife organises her diary around Arsenal fixtures because she knows I’ll be there.”
Kevin Christie, from the Crown Prosecution Service, said: “This gratuitous and senseless act of violence was completely unacceptable.
“When anyone attends a football match, either to work or to support a team, they should be able to feel safe and secure in that environment.”
