- The midfielder vented his frustration with his podcast co-hosts 19 years later
- Former Man United manager Solskjaer revealed that he similarly mulls the miss
- Do true fans leave games early? Listen to the It’s All Kicking Off podcast
Roy Keane has admitted that he is still tortured by former team-mate Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s high-stakes miss against Bayer Leverkusen.
The ex-Manchester United manager proved the difference in the club’s Treble-cementing Champions League final in 1999 with his injury-time winner.
But just three years later, Solskjaer faltered as Sir Alex Ferguson’s side sought to bring home another European title.
Playing the second leg of their semi-final in Germany against Bayer Leverkusen, the forward had a gilt-edged chance to pull Man United ahead – only to send the ball over the crossbar and book the Bundesliga side’s place in the final against Real Madrid.
And 19 years on, Keane – who played alongside Solskjaer for nine years between 1996 and 2005 – remains stuck on the idea of what could have been.
‘I know you have to move on, but Bayer Leverkusen – I can still see Ole’s (Gunnar Solskjaer’s) chance in that game,’ Keane told his co-hosts on the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet.
‘I stood behind him, you’re asking a player who would you want to certainly hit the target – and Ole’s (hit it) over the bar.
‘I bring it up when I see him now, I still mention the chance he missed!’ Keane added.
‘Forget how brilliant he was – I went, “f*****g hit the target!”‘
Bayer Leverkusen would later go on to lose the final in Glasgow to the Spanish behemoth, who won their ninth European Cup at Hampden Park.
Keane’s frustration with the mishit has long been shared by the almost-goalscorer Solskjaer, who in 2021 called that moment the ‘only thing’ he would change about his Man United career.
‘I’d probably just do the same again,’ Solskjaer told his club’s website. ‘Except score a goal against Bayer Leverkusen in 2002!
‘That chance, about 10 minutes before full-time, that’s the moment in my career that I’ve thought about the most, that miss.’
The forward confirmed Keane’s confession that the midfield does bring it up when he sees his old team-mate.
‘He reminds me of that chance but I just reply that for me it’s a good chance, but for him there was absolutely no chance he would have scored that or any other,’ Solskjaer added.
‘But that bothers me, that chance.’
Roy Keane was speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet
Olivia Martin is a dedicated sports journalist based in the UK. With a passion for various athletic disciplines, she covers everything from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis.
