Roy Keane wanted to ‘Punch me in the face’… Ex-Manchester United star opens up about his clash with the icon

EXCLUSIVE: Roy Keane almost came to blows with a fellow player during a heated Manchester United training session.

The Irishman, who was never one to usually back down, found himself doing so, purely because of how much he respected the attitude of his teammate, who at the time, was just breaking into the squad.

WOW: ‘Roy Keane was the best’… Premier League icon reveals what it was really like to play with the legend

Roy Keane and Giuseppe Rossi nearly had a fight during training

Blessed with technical brilliance, remarkable composure, and a natural eye for goal, Giuseppe Rossi caught the attention of Sir Alex Ferguson at a very young age, with the Scotsman signing the forward when he was just 17.

With a desire to play at the highest level bursting through his veins, the Italian hit the ground running during his training sessions with the first team, going above and beyond to prove a point, regardless of the status of his teammates.

On one occasion, he riled up Roy Keane, who admitted in his book that he came close to a physical confrontation with the athlete who’d eventually go on to become a revered competitor in his own right.

When asked about the situation during an exclusive interview with Sporf, via BetVictor Online Casino, Rossi confessed: “I don’t remember it, but I did read the story, and it was actually pretty crazy that I gave him a dirty look after he didn’t pass me the ball, as if to say, ‘Go f*** yourself’. In the book, he says he was about to come and punch me in the face, but he kind of stopped and said, ‘I respect this kid’. So, when I read that, I was like, ‘I did that at 17? For real? That was me’? I guess I did, I was very hyper-focused, and it was a blessing to have played with a guy like Roy Keane.”

Does Giuseppe Rossi regret leaving Manchester United?

In 2007, following three seasons at Manchester United, Rossi made the difficult decision to walk away from Old Trafford.

The gifted sportsman signed for Villarreal, where he flourished, earning the nickname ‘Pepito’ thanks to his knack of rendering La Liga defenders terrified every time the ball arrived at his feet.

Then, after proving himself as one of the best finishers in Spain, he moved to Fiorentina, where he further solidified his footballing legacy in Serie A.

Now, with his career on the pitch in the rearview mirror, he’s opened up about whether he wishes he’d have stayed in England or whether he’s glad he spread his wings.

Rossi exclaimed: “Do I have any regrets? No, because I was able to make a great name for myself at Villarreal, and I enjoyed my time there; it was one of the best times of my life. But there’s always that, ‘What if’? If I had stayed, maybe I wouldn’t have had as much playing time, so maybe I wouldn’t have grown as much as I did, but you’re still playing for Manchester United. I’m sure I still would’ve found some space, someway, somehow, but just not as much having those monsters in front of you like, Wayne Rooney, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Cristiano Ronaldo. I still believe it was the right choice for my career in order to grow.”

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