Robbie Keane might have been struggling for form since arriving back from Liverpool but I’m confident he’ll be back to his best next season. He didn’t play much football whilst there and coming straight back into the Spurs side playing every week has probably been more difficult for him to adjust to than we all thought it would.
Some sections of the press and fans seem to be getting on his back a bit and quite frankly I find that alarming. Even if his football hasn’t been quite up to scratch since his return, what he has given us in bite and determination has more than made up for that. No pointy shouty bloke in the early part of the season was largely to blame for our lack of points.
No matter what he says publicly, I’m sure the Liverpool experience will have knocked his confidence a bit. His demeanour on the pitch might not show it but there are probably niggling doubts in the back of his mind as to whether he did the right thing coming back. The appeal was safety and familiarity but it was never going to be a simple process going backwards.
The goal at Ainfield on Sunday will have laid some demons to rest for the Irishman and I’m confident that with a pre season under his belt, he’ll be back fresh and better than ever. The likelihood is that Harry will bring in another top class striker and I think Keane thrives on competition for places as he proved when keeping Defoe out the side in his previous tenure with us. He played some of his best football during that period and can do so again come August.
I thought we were giving him a chance? The majority of us who didn’t want his return haven’t booed him yet…
He’s getting thousands a week to play football. Come on.
Let`s be honest, he`s always been a second rate player, we had 2 good seasons out of him and that was because Berbatov was world class and he`d probably make me look a decent player if i played along side him. I didn`t agree with him coming back and was quite happy with the money we got for him from the scousers. i hope he proves me wrong but i believe Defoe/Pav should be our strikeforce next season
Since Mr Pointy-shouty man came back he has failed to deliver any sort of form.Unfortunatly for us because Mr Bobblehead made him capatain he will not get subbed.That immeidiatly handicapps the team.We might as well just start with ten men if he is going to be that bad..The veiw of many Spurs fans is that he has to earn the respect back from us after doing a runner when the scouse came calling..Dream move was it Robbie.
Knappers has done well in keeping us up but is he really a title challenging manager??? I dont think so…You can only give people so many chances and Keane has had loads this season..
Pav and Defoe to start up front for next season.Maybe just maybe we might get that leftt winger we’ve been crying out for too.How many seasons have we been saying that.
Peace orf
Before he went I thought he had a “big player” mentality and in fairness he did carry us in many games. To me that mentality is missing and has the look of a player who is having to try hard to make things happen. Hope he gets back to his best but the harsh reality is that failed at the top level and that might affect him for a long time.
I can’t believe the anti-Keane sentiment from so many fans. The guy has been a legend for us – to say he’s “always been a second rate player” is an absolute traversty. Let’s not forget he was pretty much the only reason we stayed in the EPL when he first joined the club, and formed part of the potent strikeforce that saw us finish 5th twice under Uncle Jol.
Ok, he may not have hit the heights that he hit while playing with Berbatov since his return, but then again his partner has been Darren Bent for the majority of those games, who doesn’t provide much in the way of service for him. As the author of this article also states, his influence on the players around him can also not be understated. Anyway, 5 goals in 14 games since January isn’t such a dreadful return – better than 1 in 3.
I honestly don’t see why everyone is so against this guy. He’s our captain, lets get behind him!
“I honestly don’t see why everyone is so against this guy. He’s our captain…” You’ve answered your own question.
lets get a better captain then, since defoe is better than Keane.
out better form has more to do with palacios than keanes introduction at half-season.
note the dramatic caplitulation at blackburn when palacios was sent off and keane remained. bottom dwellers blackburn scored 2 goals in the final 10 minutes to win the game.
Totally agree with the article and can’t believe some of the crap our fans come out with…
Premier League:
Keane: 10 goals, 7 assists
JD: 10 goals, 4 assists
Pav: 5 goals, 1 assist
In a season where Keane has moved around and spent the first half of the season on the scousers bench.
Clearly some of our fans are still crying over the fact he left for 6 months and can’t look at what he brings to the team in addition to the above.
Anyone who thinks Keane isn’t our best striker and currently the best choice for captain (until Sgt. Wilson has been with us a bit longer!) is off their melon.
At least he played for us until we got the money that we wanted.
That mother-fucker Berbatov refused to play even when he was told that he could go as soon as we get our price accepted…
Keane left on good terms compared to that snake…
im sick of these so called fans giving robbie some stick. Ok hes not been on fire, ok he left last year but now hes back.
Next year he’ll be fine, or at least he will be without the idiot elemnet of our support getting on his back. I guess they are still upset he left, get over it people !!!!!!!
You’re right Anonymous, Keane has been instrumental to our rise up the table. Palacios may have strenghtened the midfield but to say his sending off at Blackburn & Keane remaining & us losing must certainly take the cake for one of the dumbest comments. We lost because of Palacios, not Keane.
Spurs supporters seem to have short memories, or most of them must still be babies. Robbie spent approximately 6 seasons before leaving. In that time, he had scored more 100 goals for Spurs. If any of you bother to check the stats, he is one of the most prolific strikers in the premier league history while at Spurs.
Redknapp knew exactly who he needed to lead Spurs out of relegation, & that is Keano. As you mentioned Anonymous, 5 goals in 14 games while playing behind the front line is pretty darn good!
I hate the bloke, I wish we had never signed him back.
He was average before Berby, granted when they were togeather they were frankly amazing but without him he has been found out… Liverpool quickly realised and most fans (the ones in the Park Lane where my Season Ticket is anyway) agree.
The fact he came back and was made captain was frankly a slap in the face of King Ledley…i makes me sick to see that git lead out our team with Ledley in tow.
People moan that JJ runs around like a headless chicken with no end product but Keane is miles worse. His finishing is ok, his pace is shocking, his passing is average, he cant header, his hold up play is average at best. The things he is best at are pointing and shouting…which granted we needed in the first half of the season but next year i would rather him shut his whiney mouth and do something more productive.
Dont even get me started on the ‘Liverpool fan as a kid’ nonsense…anyone who knows anything will know that was one of the most fabricated loads of tripe..
Fingers crossed next year Ledley will regain what is rightfully his, ‘Arry will learn to Keane is no better than a 3rd choice and we sign Dzeko to partner JD…if you havent seen him play he is frankly amazing…and only 23… youtube him
Keane decided to leave the Club. Levy – somehow – managed to get £20m out of the scouses. In my view, whether you were happy or not with that departure; he wanted to leave. I do not understand how you can take him back. Many will say due to Defoe’s injury his signing was a must. But, even if you can swallow that, why do you make a man that shat on us the Captain?? Is this not Tottenham Hotspur? Billy Nick would turn in his grave. I do not think his form since he returned is the issue. Harry should look to get £10-15m for him as soon as possible. To Villa for Barry would do me. If he tries to play JD with RK over the first eight games another season will have been ruined. If he continues to treat RK as somekind of untouchable JD will be gone in Jan 2010. What’s the bets he then buggers of to Celtic, his real boyhood team.
Keane is a Grafter, the geezer runs around looking for the ball for 90 mins…
Scores a few goals, not when being played left wing????????? What thats about I dont know…
But he will prove his worth next season, if we can get another Modric in the Summer, who knows what our srikers will do….
Anyone who says he’s not a good player is an idiot. He is a great player, always tries his hardest and scores many goals. Tottenham’s form since his arrival has been incredible. The nonsense that comes out of some fans mouths is ridiculous.
Give the fella a break – we all know if we were in a similar position and Spurs came calling for us we’d be signing the contract at the lane before the dust settles,
It’s been a year of upheaval for him and disapointment at not making it at hjis boyhood club, bound to affect you, also with rumblings in the crowd, with half of them not welcoming you back his mind is probably not 100% focused.
A summer off and time to recharge, focus and get back to the form that had ALL spurs fans singing his name.
Give the captaincy back to Ledders (so long as he stops falling out of clubs pissed up) let Keane focus on what he does best – terrorising defenders.
All this calling him ‘Pointy shouty bloke’ not even using his name, grow the f**k up.