Patrick Vieira began FA Cup final week with a spiky reference to his opposite number at Manchester United, Roy Keane, and their confrontation in the tunnel at Highbury before the Premiership fixture on February 1.
Keane made a cutting remark about Vieira’s attitude towards his birthplace, Senegal, at Highbury and Vieira has now responded: ”For someone who leaves his team in the World Cup, I think he should keep this kind of remark to himself.” Vieira was referring to Keane’s controversial exit from the Republic of Ireland squad prior to the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea following Keane’s spectacular fallout with the manager Mick McCarthy.
The Irishman is unlikely to be enamoured by Vieira dragging up the events of Saipan, but Vieira was replying to views from Keane that appeared to question the sincerity of Vieira’s charity work in Senegal.
”I have nothing to prove to him,” Vieira said of Keane. ”He is not from Senegal, he is not from Africa, he will not understand. So it is better for him to look after himself and what he’s doing.”
At the same time, Vieira praised Keane as a footballer and captain and said he did not think Keane’s behaviour in the Highbury tunnel was outlandish. ”He [Keane] reacted the way I would react if somebody came to talk to one of the Arsenal players; that’s what I would expect. It did not surprise me at all, it was a captain’s, a leader’s reaction.
”I have big respect for him and all the Man United players, no doubt about it.”
Winning the FA Cup, Vieira said, would make up for an Arsenal season he described as ”disappointing, unlucky and inconsistent”.
”The potential and the quality are there and through the season some of the games we have played have been really fantastic. If there were two months of the season to go, that would be perfect because in the last few months we have found our best again. That’s the way it is.
”But, we are disappointed because of the potential to do much better and because the club is a winner. It’s been okay, but not satisfactory for a club like Arsenal.
”We played some good football, but we are a relatively young team and everybody will learn a lot from it and, of course, we will be stronger next season. But, this season has been frustrating.
”It was really important to retain the title because we have never won it back to back. That was our target.”
With two years left on his contract and with another summer of speculation regarding his future anticipated, Vieira said he expects to be at Arsenal for the club’s last season at Highbury and then at the opening of their new stadium next season. Vieira, 28, said, however, that it is imperative Arsenal retain the current squad — including Dennis Bergkamp, who is out of contract soon.
”What is really important is to try and keep everybody. We are losing Edu already and that’s a lot. I am hopeful Dennis will stay and, of course, the young players like Cesc [Fábregas], Robin [van Persie] and Jose [Antonio Reyes].
”There will always be interest in players like Jose, Robin and Cesc; that’s part of the game and the club will do everything to keep them. We’ll see, right now everybody is in contract. I think only Edu will leave.” — Â