Roy Keane leaves fellow Sky Sports pundits full-on belly laughing – ‘You got me'
Roy Keane had fellow pundits Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher howling with laughter thanks to a funny recollection involving Ruud Gullit.
The iconic Dutch star, best known for his time with European giants like AC Milan, PSV Eindhoven, and Chelsea, recently joined the Stick to Football podcast. During the episode, Keane recounted a comical exchange with Gullit during the 2022 World Cup.
"All the TV companies stay in the same hotel, and I bumped into Ruud at breakfast," the former Ireland skipper explained. "I obviously didn't know him.
"I remember being dead polite, and he spoke to me about injuries. He asked me what was the worst injury I had. I thought strange question, but he seemed really interested. So I told him, 'Oh, my cruciate - and I had a hip operation, that set me back a bit.'
"Then I said, 'What about you?', and he went, 'I used to always get side strains,'" recalled Keane, pointing to the side of his ribcage. "I went, 'Side strains?', and he went, 'Yeah, you know when you're lifting trophies.'"
That punchline set the room off. "You got me," Keane said, while Gullit grinned and nodded.
Recognised as one of the most gifted players in the game, Gullit - now 62 - earned accolades for his exceptional versatility and success across Europe. He took home the Ballon d'Or in 1987 after a headline-making transfer from PSV to AC Milan, then a record-breaking €7million (£6m).
At Milan, he dominated for seven years, winning multiple league titles and Champions League trophies, forming a devastating partnership with compatriots Marco van Basten and Frank Rijkaard - a trio whose combined brilliance helped the Netherlands secure the European Championship in 1988.
In 1995, Gullit joined Chelsea, helping shift the club's profile internationally and paving the way for the likes of Gianfranco Zola, Gianluca Vialli, and Marcel Desailly to follow in his footsteps. A year later, he became player-manager and led the team to the 1997 FA Cup, ending the Blues' 26-year trophy drought.
In Chelsea circles, Gullit is one of the most iconic and celebrated figures of the pre-Roman Abramovich era, revered for both his on-field elegance and for catapulting the club out of midtable mediocrity. So it was unexpected when owner Todd Boehly didn't recognise him during a recent meeting.
"I think football clubs these days are run for business rather than from the heart," Gullit said. "I met Todd Boehly, it was a meeting for all the clubs organised by [PSG chairman] Nasser [Al-Khelaifi].
"So I thought I'd introduce myself [to Boehly]. He asked me, 'What do you do?' I said, 'I played football, also for Chelsea.'
"He said, 'What did you do then for Chelsea? When were you there?' He didn't know! This is what it is. They don't know what the club is all about."
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