Roy Keane mocked Manchester United fans for cheering a 1-1 draw with Arsenal as he claimed his generation would have been booed for dropping points at Old Trafford.
Keane delivered a typical brutal takedown of his former club’s current plight despite the players walking off to warm applause and cheers by the home crowd.
“We used to get booed off for a draw,” he said on Sky Sports. “But there you go – how things have changed. Now they get cheered off. Amazing.”
There was fierce criticism for Arsenal too from United’s former captain, who all but wrote off the club’s chances of winning the league even next season with the potential addition of a new striker. This season’s runaway leaders Liverpool will now be believing Mikel Arteta’s men are “almost giving up” this year’s league title, Keane added.
Declan Rice’s excellent finish levelled the match but Arsenal were left frustrated, having dominated the opening 45 minutes and lacked cutting edge.
They had been punished in first-half stoppage time when United captain Bruno Fernandes curled a 25-yard free-kick past a badly positioned David Raya.
”Before the game, United would have been worried,” said Keane. “It’s a decent draw for them and it showed some battling qualities.”
Keane, Gary Neville, Jamie Redknapp and Paul Merson all criticised Arsenal’s failure to sign a forward in the past two windows. The former United midfielder said: “Liverpool will be looking at that today, and they won’t be thinking this team [Arsenal] are going to try, they’re going to put us under pressure. Liverpool will be looking at that thinking Arsenal have almost given up the title.”
"You're not winning league titles with ten draws"
Roy Keane says Arsenal haven't had the right mentality for the last few games. pic.twitter.com/oShNvPPuU3
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) March 9, 2025
Questioning Arsenal’s mentality, Keane added: “They knew United were there for the taking... I wasn’t happy with their mindset... United probably should have won it at the end [and Arsenal were playing] against a really poor United team.”
When asked whether the addition of a striker would help Arteta win his first league title, Keane said: “No”, later adding: “Where is the evidence they can do it?”
“I don’t think a striker is necessarily the difference,” Keane added.
