I’M KEANE ON HOWARD’S WAY
Everton defender is desperate to bring back the glory days of Kendall’s Goodison years
MICHAEL KEANE has been working his way through many TV shows during the lockdown like the rest of the country.
It has been a pretty standard list for those stuck indoors – The Last Dance, Ozark and Gangs of London. But one documentary has particularly inspired him – as it should. Howard’s Way looks back at Everton’s glory years in the 1980s when they rose to become the best team in the land under managerial legend Howard Kendall. They won two league titles, the FA Cup and the European Cup Winners’ Cup in the club’s most successful period.
Everton fans can only dream of returning to such success but, for Keane, soaking up those memories has only inspired him to end their 25-year wait for silverware. “From the start when Z Cars comes on you get goosebumps, then you are learning about the history and what that team was like,” said the centre-back., 27.
“It makes you want to emulate that with our current team. There is no reason why we can’t. We have a top manager now. “We will be hopeful in the next year or two years or however long it takes that we will bring more trophies to the club.” That world-class manager is Carlo Ancelotti (below) and the early signs under the Italian have been positive since he replaced Marco Silva in December.
Keane said: “Just before he came we were like the fans when he was first linked. It was a bit of a shock. You are really excited and hopeful someone of that calibre will become your manager.
“He has won it all, he’s worked with some of the players to have ever played.”
But while Everton have been on the up, it has not been all positive for Keane. The former Manchester United and Burnley defender has had to contend with being out of the team more than he has been in it under Ancelotti.
The Italian has preferred Yerry Mina and Mason Holgate in the centre of his back four but just before football was halted, Keane got his chance.
“Every time you’re on the pitch you have to best show you’re worthy of it,” said the England international. “It gives you motivation to perform when you’re in and out of the team, it makes you keen to impress.”
Keane may have struggled with being left out a few years ago. He opened up on the mental health ordeal he went through as he battled injury in his early days at Goodison Park in 2017 after a £25million move from Burnley. But dealing with that and the sacking of two managers has left him more capable of dealing with the ups and downs of the game.
“I feel like I’m mentally tougher now than I was when I first joined because of the experiences I’ve been through,” said Keane.
“It’s all a learning curve. You have to take the positives from everything that’s happened. I feel my best is yet to come.”
And there is still a chance we can get to see some of it this season.
While many on the red half of Merseyside would believe the Blues were desperate for the season to be declared null and void, Keane said: “We have to chase Europe and try to get as high up in the table as possible. That has been in our sights since before lockdown. There will be no dead games.”
■ HOWARD’S WAY tells the story of Howard Kendall’s trophywinning team in the 1980s. All proceeds from the film go to The People’s Place, Everton in the Community’s mental health facility.