Most Everton fans had written him off by the end of the 17/18 season. But, thanks to some new tactics and personnel, Michael Keane has quickly transformed into a very talented defender with bags of potential. This is his story, and how the 25 year-old could become one of the best defenders in the Premier League, and on the international stage.

Red Devil

Michael joined Manchester United’s youth academy at the age of 11, in 2004. There, he won Reserve Team Player of the Year with 60% of the vote (beating teammate Jesse Lingard by 36%) in 2012 thanks to his role in helping them secure the Manchester Senior Cup and the Lancashire Senior Cup. He signed his first professional contract on his 18th birthday on the 11th of January 2011. His first team debut came in late October that same year against Aldershot Town in the fourth round of the League Cup, coming on as a substitute in the 70th minute of United’s 4-0 victory.

Almost a year later, he made his first, and only, start for Manchester United, on the 26th September 2012 against Newcastle United in the League Cup, where he played his usual role of centre-back in a 2-1 win. He received praise from Darren Fletcher, who said:

He’s fantastic. Calm and assured on the ball, he’s the image of an ideal centre-half.

However, Keane would never feature for United again, instead spending the next 3 seasons on loan.

Loanee

In November 2012, Michael Keane and Jesse Lingard both joined Leicester City on loan until December, which was later extended to January 2nd. The duo featured 7 times in those 2 months, and Keane impressed so much that his deal was further extended until the end of the season.

On the 12th of February, the centre-half scored his first professional goal; a consolation in a 2-1 defeat to Huddersfield Town in the 4th round of the FA Cup. A month later, Keane scored his second, and last, goal in a Leicester shirt: heading home in the 90th minute to rescue a point in a 1-1 draw with Leeds United.

After his spell with the Foxes, Keane joined Derby County on loan, where he featured only 7 times.

In March 2014, the defender joined Blackburn Rovers on loan, and scored 3 goals in 13 appearances in his time at Ewood Park.

Then, in September 2014, he made the move that changed his career.

Claret

Michael Keane signed an initial loan deal with Burnley until January 2015. He would only play 10 games during this loan deal, but he impressed that much during those 10 games that Burnley, he would go on to sign a permanent deal that would see him play 100 games for the Clarets.

He was an instant success, scoring twice in the first month of the 14/15 season to propel his side towards the top of the Championship. He scored 5 goals throughout that season, and played a huge part in helping his side gain promotion to the Premier League.

It only took him a month to bag his first PL goal, a driven header against Watford on the 26th of September 2016. That same year, he was shortlisted for PFA Young Player of the Year and was named in the EA Sports FIFA Team of the Year. This was the season where he also received his first England cap, after replacing Glen Johnson in Gareth Southgate’s squad, and making 4 appearances in qualifying for the 2018 World Cup.

Toffee

In early June 2017, Michael Keane made a surprising move to Everton, after almost no press knowledge. The move was later revealed to be worth £25 million, with the possibility to rise to £30 million. He made his debut in August 2017.

Joining a squad of many fresh faces, there were always going to be problems with how the team would gel. Perhaps the fact that boss Ronald Koeman thrust him immediately into the first team played a factor, but Keane’s first season in a blue shirt was one to forget.

Everton crashed out in the group-stages of the Europa League, partly thanks to Koeman’s replacement Sam Allardyce coming in and immediately shaking things up. The Toffee’s conceded 16 goals in just 6 games, picking up only 4 points, with those coming against minnows Apollon Limassol. Although Keane did score against Hadjuk Split in the qualifying rounds, his performances in the full competition were poor, and he ended up being dropped in favour of an older Phil Jagielka.

In the league, things weren’t looking much brighter. Playing alongside calamitous partner Ashley Williams and out-of-position Cuco Martina, Michael Keane often found himself having to be in 3 places at once. His efforts to cover Williams were mostly useless, as Williams himself was needed on the right to cover the rookie Jonjoe Kenny, as Seamus Coleman was still suffering from his leg break.

A few mistakes from Keane and the fans were soon on his back. He said himself that this affected his performances as he ‘Didn’t feel good enough for the fans’.

The Toffee’s saw out the poor season, which including them hovering above the relegation zone for a period of 5 matches, in 8th place, which was not a disaster compared to their predicted finish of 12th at the start of the season.

Rejuvenation

With the arrival of Marco Silva, things were looking brighter for Keane. A ball-playing centre-back, he was instantly favoured to Ashley Williams, who was subsequently shipped out on loan to Stoke City.

Along with the additions of Kurt Zouma and Yerry Mina, there was now healthy competition for places, and also a reliable partner for Keane.

Ever since his days in the United academy, Michael Keane has enjoyed playing out from the back. He likes to beat players and then play a ball through to a winger or midfielder. His 78% passing accuracy, along with his 88% long ball accuracy, shows that he’s more than capable of doing this consistently.

He isn’t slow either, managing to keep up with most wingers he faces.

At 6″3, he dominates the air. A prime example of this is the Everton V Brighton game, where Keane won 96% of all aerial duels, and kept in-form striker Glenn Murray quiet.

But this begs the question: What more does he need to do to get an England call-up?

Firstly, he needs to improve his decision making. He doesn’t make many mistakes, but when he does, they tend to be due to him cutting the wrong passing lane, or marking the wrong man. However, this is something that can easily be amended.

His positioning is not perfect either, as he is sometimes caught out by high through balls due to a high line caused by over-eagerness. This is a rare occasion though, and he often makes interceptions due to his positioning.

The next step for him needs to be an England call-up. Once he has established himself as a regular started at international level, he can begin to craft himself into a world-class defender.

I truly believe that, by the end of next season, Michael Keane will be known as one of the best centre-backs in the Premier League.