Man Utd legend Roy Keane rules out Patrick Vieira and Steven Gerrard when naming toughest ever opponent
MANCHESTER UNITED legend Roy Keane has revealed the toughest opponent he ever played against during his glittering career.
Keane, 53, came up against some of the greatest players of the modern era.
The iconic midfielder’s intense clashes with Arsenal hero Patrick Vieira are the stuff of legend.
The Republic of Ireland great also got to face Liverpool icon Steven Gerrard when he was coming up in the Premier League.
But the popular pundit ultimately went for Ballon d’Or winner Zinedine Zidane.
Keane told ITV: “I’d probably say… Not gonna say Vieira, not Gerrard…
“Truthfully, Zidane would probably be the toughest opponent. Big, strong boy.
“Technically brilliant, very aggressive, scored on the big occassions.
“So Zidane would have been the toughest I’ve played against.”
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Keane and Zidane, 52, collided in the middle of the park five times in the Champions League when the former played for Man Utd and the latter competed for Juventus as well as Real Madrid.
The Irishman won two of those encounters, including the 3-2 win at Juve in 1999 during United’s Treble run in what was one of his greatest individual performances.
Zidane emerged victorious from another two with a score of 1-0 with the Bianconeri away in 1996 and 3-1 with Real at the Santiago Bernabeu in 2003.