“You don’t play at that level, with the injuries he’s had, unless you’re a fighter.”
Roy Keane has been speaking about Seamus Coleman, who broke a long-standing record on Sunday.
Coleman took ownership of Tim Howard’s record of having played the most Premier League games for the Toffees with his start for Everton against Aston Villa on Sunday.
Everton’s meeting with Villa marked Coleman’s 355th top-flight appearance for his club, having begun his Goodison Park career under David Moyes back in 2009.
Famously, the Donegal man arrived at the club for what now seems like one of the bargains of modern times, having cost just €60,000 from Sligo Rovers.
Coleman made his Everton debut that season, away to Benfica in the Europa League before making the first of his 355 Premier League appearances against Bolton a few days later.
“I had a few rows with Seamus” – Roy Keane explains why he has so much respect for Coleman
In playing his 355th game this Sunday, Coleman also surpassed the total amassed by his county man Shay Given, Newcastle United’s record appearance holder – with 354 Premier League appearances under his belt.
Aged 21 at the time of his move to Everton, Coleman was called into the Republic of Ireland squad for the first time the following year by Giovanni Trappatoni, and he remains one of Ireland’s longest-serving players now, with 68 caps.
Many of those caps came at a time when Roy Keane was Ireland’s assistant manager (2013-2018) and speaking on Sky Sports on Sunday, the Cork man explained why he has so much respect for Coleman.
“I had a few rows with Seamus, I know you’ll find that hard to believe, in the Irish dressing room but what I like about players is that, if I have a go at them, and tell them they should be doing something.
“Seamus had a go back at me once, he obviously regretted it, but I like that,” Keane said with a laugh.
“I know the way people talk about characters and he’s a great lad and so on, but that doesn’t mean to say he’s not a winner and he’s not up for the challenge.
“You don’t play at that level, with the injuries he’s had, unless you’re a fighter.”
"Seamus had a go at me once, he obviously regretted"
Roy Keane on the rows he had with Seamus Coleman 😅 pic.twitter.com/LNmjs3tk84
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) January 14, 2024
Coleman has scored 22 goals, and racked up 24 assists in his Premier League career at Everton, having played under nine different managers.
The 35-year-old would have broken the Everton record sooner were it not for a knee injury that sidelined for much of this season.
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