Gibraltar FA fires back at Roy Keane after he likens Croatia to the tiny nation on live TV

The Gibraltar Football Association took a wry swipe at Roy Keane after the former Manchester United captain compared Croatia’s capitulation against England to a Gibraltar performance, live on ITV.

England dismantled Croatia 7-0 in Rijeka on Saturday, inflicting the heaviest defeat in Croatian football history. Harry Kane and Bukayo Saka each scored twice, with Jude Bellingham, Anthony Gordon and Morgan Rogers also on the scoresheet as Thomas Tuchel’s side continued their recovery from a Nations League loss to Spain earlier in the international break.

Analysing the result in the ITV studio alongside Ian Wright, Keane was effusive about Bellingham’s display but used Gibraltar as a benchmark for poor opposition. “Before the game, we were thinking about Croatia,” Keane said. “They made them look like a Gibraltar-type of team. Outstanding in every aspect.”

He continued: “I think Bellingham can go on to be one of the greatest players of all time. His attitude with England recently, his desire to get into the box, his hunger out of possession — he’s a huge leader for them.”

The Gibraltar FA, whose official X account monitors these things closely, quote-tweeted the ITV Sport clip and replied with a dig that carried a very specific sting: “Do me a favour, Roy. If you’re going to mention Gibraltar, come visit us first. We’ll even let you stay the whole camp.”

The reference to “the whole camp” was a deliberate nod to the Saipan incident of 2002, when Keane famously left the Republic of Ireland’s World Cup training base in acrimonious circumstances before the tournament had even begun — one of the most notorious episodes in international football history.

Gibraltar, ranked 202nd in the world by FIFA, have historically been on the receiving end of heavy scorelines, but the association showed they are more than capable of punching back verbally. They currently sit in Nations League Group D with two points from their opening two matches, following draws with Malta and Andorra, and travel to Liechtenstein before a return fixture against Andorra next month.