Roy Keane's move to Manchester United proved to be shrewd business for the Red Devils after he signed for them on this day in 1993 - but only after the Red Devils stole him at the eleventh hour from Blackburn Rovers.
The then young Irishman had made his name under Brian Clough at Nottingham Forest, but was always destined to leave after the club's relegation in 1993. His performances at the City Ground had even attracted Real Madrid 's attention and Kenny Dalglish, then boss at Blackburn, thought he'd won the race.
The Ewood Park outfit were being funded by the millions of Jack Walker as they eyed the Premier League crown. Keane would've been a coup and Dalglish was confident of signing him, only to be thwarted by compatriot and rival Sir Alex Ferguson.
Alan Shearer has revealed to BBC Sport : “Kenny and Sir Alex, there is huge respect there between them. They are two giants of football but Kenny used to take the p*** out of Sir Alex all the time and try and wind him up. Sir Alex would try and do the same. When I first signed for Blackburn, not long after I’d signed, I was out in a restaurant with Kenny and his family.
"Kenny went out on his phone and I thought ‘He must be doing a bit of business’. He came back in with a huge grin on his face, and said ‘I think we’ve done a deal to get Roy Keane to Blackburn.’ About two hours later, after celebrating with a couple of glasses of red wine, he’d gone back outside and he came in with a face like f****** thunder.
“He said ‘We’ve lost him. He’s gone, Fergie’s got him.’ He was seething. So it could have been oh so different.” Keane moved for a then British-record fee of £3.75m and would win the Premier League- FA Cup double with United in his first season, making 54 appearances in a dominant United dominant side.
12 months later, though, and he found himself watching on as Blackburn and Dalglish celebrated Premier League success on the final day despite losing to Liverpool at Anfield. United were unable to get the result they needed on that occasion, but would go on to dominate in the years to come, winning five of the next six titles.
Ferguson's capture of Keane came down to Blackburn's administrative staff calling time on their shift. The Irishman and Dalglish had shaken hands on an agreement and said they would sort the paperwork on Monday, as all the Rovers employees had clocked off. Ferguson found out via the tabloids and tracked down Keane as he looked to steal a march.
Player and manager met for a chat and Keane said in his autobiography: “From that moment, I was never going to sign for any other club.” Ferguson made it known that his United team would dominate domestically with Keane at its heart and spoke openly about European glory - all of which would come to fruition.
