20 years on - Keane leaves Man Utd

Official confirmation of Roy Keane's departure from Manchester United in November 2005, with Sir Alex Ferguson quoted stating Keane was "a fantastic servant" and Keane himself referencing a "sad day".

November 18, 2005 will go down as one of the most amazing days in the 25 years I have spent covering the fortunes of Manchester United.

Just under three weeks earlier, United had been beaten 4-1 at Middlesbrough.

At the time, MUTV broadcast a 'plays the pundit' feature where a first-team player analysed the team's performance.

As it turned out, it was Roy Keane's turn even though he didn't actually play in the game.

No-one ever saw the footage because his assessment was so scathing, manager Sir Alex Ferguson and chief executive David Gill were notified and decided to shelve it.

Keane was unrepentant about his verdict and the fall-out was so extensive, Ferguson concluded he had to get rid of his captain.

I was at Carrington on the morning of 18 November and heard, via a media colleague who had been told from a source in Ireland, that Keane had been sacked.

We didn't think that much about it but we saw a United official who we spoke to frequently, scurrying around Carrington, and asked whether it was true, expecting to be told no.

Instead, they said they didn't have time to talk and would get back to us – in other words, it was right.

Sure enough, about half an hour later, the same person came back with the printed press release – no social media in those days – confirming Keane was out.

I kept the press release, which you can see pictured above.

It was definitely a 'remember where you were when you heard this' moment.

Do you remember the day? Where were you? How did you feel? Tell us here