Roy Keane once told forgotten Man Utd player he'd be 'playing for a pub team in a couple of years'

Roy Keane once told a forgotten Manchester United player that he would be playing for a pub team in a couple of years.

The Irishman enjoyed a successful 12-year stay at Old Trafford, winning seven Premier League titles, four FA Cups, four FA Community Shields, one Champions League and one Intercontinental Cup.

During his time as a United player, Keane shared the dressing room with some of the club’s best-ever players including the likes of Paul Scholes, Wayne Rooney, Gary Neville and Ryan Giggs.

Speaking in the latest episode of the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet, Keane revealed how he told one player that he’d be playing for a pub team in two years’ time.

He said: “We were sitting on the ledge where you do your leg swings before you go out to training.

“Michael Stewart was a young lad, Scottish international, he was there and I don't know what triggered Roy, but I could hear him saying, ‘You'll never make it, you. You'll be playing for a pub team in a couple years' time if you carry on the way you are’.

“I was right! He ended up playing for Hibernian and Heats. I was trying to motivate him.”

Keane also went on to speak about a row he had with Darren Fletcher over a mobile phone.

The Irishman said: “The team hadn’t won in a week, and I was trying to make a point to the players, don’t forget what it’s about – a lot of players at the time were going through a phase where they were on their phones in the dressing room. You’re trying to help a player and set an example, I’ve got loads of time for Fletch.”

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Speaking about the introduction of social media, Keane said: “The introduction of Twitter etc, that was the downside of the dressing room.

“You go back to when we played, sounds like it was a hundred years ago, and I had it before I left United, had a chat with some of the players, saying that there was no problem with players going on Twitter, but it was when players were coming in after training.”

He added: “I always thought it was important in a dressing room that lads would have some sort of conversation, but the phones were taking over.”

Roy Keane was speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet.