Keane's best Man Utd XI he played with as Scholes and Neville snubbed
Roy Keane is never shy when it comes to voicing his opinions on Manchester United - and the former Red Devils skipper is exactly the same when it comes to discussing his former teammates.
There is arguably nobody better than Keane to pass judgement on Erik ten Hag 's current crop; the midfielder won seven Premier League titles and the Champions League during his iconic playing career.
Keane played with some of the best players to ever grace the Premier League during his 12-year stint at Old Trafford, so when he was asked to name his dream XI by ITV back in 2013, he had plenty of blockbuster names to choose form.
There were some surprising omissions, though, with a number of notable homegrown stars missing. Here, Mirror Football takes a trip down memory lane to run the rule over Keane's dream team...
Peter Schmeichel
Schmeichel, like plenty of others in Keane's XI, played a major role in the iconic treble-winning side of 1999.
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The Denmark international was a colossus between the posts for United and won five domestic titles before moving on shortly after that dramatic night in Munich.
Keane had no hesitation about including Schmeichel in his team - even though they didn't always see eye to eye. He said: “Schmeichel, by far the best goalkeeper. Believe it or not we actually didn’t get on that well.”
Peter Schmeichel was named as the best goalkeeper Keane ever played with (Christian Liewig/TempSport/Corbis via Getty Images)Paul Parker
Expecting a certain Gary Neville? Not quite. Although Keane concedes the former England international and Red Devils icon is "unlucky" to miss the cut, it's Parker who gets the nod in the Irishman's dream team.
Parker spent five years at Old Trafford, winning two titles and the FA Cup during another purple patch for the Red Devils under the guidance of Sir Alex Ferguson.
And Keane feels Parker, in his prime, just edges out Neville, who came through the ranks and made over 600 appearances for United. Keane said: “I played with Parks in his prime. A top, top defender. Gary would be a little bit unlucky.”
Jaap Stam
Stam quickly established himself as one of Europe's finest centre-backs after joining United back in 1998. The Dutch destroyer won the treble in his first year at Old Trafford and would go on to win another two titles before leaving the club in 2001.
Ferguson would later go on to admit that selling the defender was a "mistake". And Keane was clearly in agreement after naming Stam in his team.
“Jaap was a quality centre-half, a very tough guy,” Keane said previously of Stam, who went on to manage in England in the Championship at Reading.
Gary Pallister
Gary Pallister (R) formed a formidable partnership with Steve Bruce (Popperfoto via Getty Images)Pallister partnered Steve Bruce at the back during the 90s during a spell of dominance for United, and the former Middlesbrough man gets the nod ahead of a horde of other defenders to partner Stam in Keane's team.
“I’d pick Pallister for his size,” Keane said before quipping: “Even after two minutes of a game he looked like he’d been playing for an hour.”
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Denis Irwin
One of the finest left-back's in Premier League history, Irwin's inclusion was a no-brainer for Keane, who also played alongside him for the Republic of Ireland national team.
Keane quoted Irwin's deadly set-piece ability, and his nous for defending, as two of the main reasons for his inclusion in the squad. The third? Those 56 Irish caps.
“He was good at set—pieces, could defend, used to train properly and he’s an Irishman,” Keane said of Irwin when naming his team.
David Beckham
David Beckham was the only member of the Class of 92 to make it into Keane's dream XI (Daily Mirror)Long before the David Beckham documentary had even been scribbled down as an idea in a notebook, the former England captain was given a starring role in Keane's team.
Intriguingly, Beckham is the only member of the Class of 92 to make the cut. He scored 85 times in nine seasons for United before being prised away by Real Madrid, but Keane saw more than enough of him before then to rank him among the best he's ever played with.
“I found it very hard to leave Becks out because of his work rate, the amount of goals he gets, the assists and his set piece delivery,” Keane told ITV.
Roy Keane
Well you've got to back yourself if you're picking a dream team, don't you?
A player with Keane's quality and pedigree would probably make it into most of his former colleague's Manchester United dream team, too.
Keane spent over 12 years at Old Trafford and was Ferguson's right-hand man on the pitch before a furious bust-up led to his exit.
Paul Ince
Alongside Keane in the middle? None other than Ince, another footballer who garnered something of a 'hardman' reputation in the 90s.
Ince was another pivotal figure in the team that dominated domestically pre-treble. The former England international gets the nod over Paul Scholes - even though the United academy graduate is widely considered to be one of the best players the club has ever produced.
“I played with Incey in his prime and people tend to forget how good he was,” Keane explained at the time. We won't argue with him (or Ince).
Cristiano Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo got the nod on the left-wing ahead of Ryan Giggs (The Daily Mirror)Ronaldo beats Manchester United royalty to a spot in Keane's dream team, with wing wizard Ryan Giggs missing out.
Harsh? Maybe. But then again, it's hard to actually argue with Keane's selection when you begin to delve into the extensive list of trophies, awards and accolades that Ronaldo has accumulated during his illustrious career.
The multi-time Ballon d'Or winner's attitude is what won Keane over. He said previously: “He was a young player when he came to United. But a great attitude. He’ll score you goals for fun.”
Ruud van Nistelrooy
Goals for fun? Van Nistelrooy is another play who fits that brief. The devastating Dutchman was probably the most lethal finisher in his era during the Premier League.
He scored 150 goals in just five years at Old Trafford before a clash with Ferguson led to his exit. He failed to hit the same heights at Real Madrid, though, after joining Beckham and co at the Bernabeu.
Keane said of Van Nistelrooy: “In terms of finishers Ruud was the guy for that. When I saw him go through one-on-one with a keeper I just knew it was a goal.”
Eric Cantona
Eric Cantona transformed Manchester United from contenders into champions (PA)Just in case Ronaldo and Van Nistelrooy weren't pulling their weight in attack, Keane had one more ace up his sleeve: The King.
Cantona will go down in Old Trafford folklore for the role he played after joining United from bitter rivals Leeds. He proved to be the catalyst for the club's next spell of domestic dominance, with Keane alluding to Cantona turned United from contenders into champions.
“Eric was a big character,” Keane said at the time. “When he came to United we’d threatened to win the league for many, many years. Eric was just that difference.”
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