Keane reveals regrets over not leaving United after offers from European giants

James Cox

Despite the bitter end to his time at Manchester United, Roy Keane remains a legend at the club and his name is still chanted every week.

However, the Corkman could have left Old Trafford before his 2005 departure.

It is well-documented that the former Ireland captain had offers from Bayern Munich and Juventus at different stages in his career.

Speaking with his former teammate Gary Neville on podcast The Overlap, Keane was asked how close he came to joining Bundesliga giants Bayern.

“Yeah, very close, yeah,” replied Keane. “Wish I bloody had! I wish I’d gone abroad, yeah.”

On Juventus, Keane said: "I agreed a deal yeah, obviously my contract was up a couple of times when I did my cruciate and then came back and I had opportunities to go on a free.

“And a part of me is jealous when I see other lads now going abroad because it’s a great experience for a family and maybe, but again, I was really happy at United and content.

“If I knew how it was going to end and look back now with loyalty and all that type of talk with Ferguson, I probably should’ve definitely gone abroad and experienced a different league.”

Keane left United after an explosive fallout with manager Alex Ferguson. The pair clashed over an unaired interview Keane did with club channel MUTV, in which he criticised underperforming teammates.

After leaving, Keane has a brief spell with Celtic before retiring.

During his time at United, he won seven Premier League titles and the Champions League, among other honours.