Man Utd laughed to the bank at Roy Keane’s expense - it involves Ipswich Town | OneFootball

Man United got the better of Roy Keane in the transfer market in 2009 - it cost Ipswich Town

Manchester United were glad to earn £1.5 million from the sale of Lee Martin to Ipswich Town in the summer of 2009.

The forward had come through the ranks of the Premier League side’s academy system, but had been unable to make any kind of impact in Alex Ferguson’s senior squad.

He spent time on loan with the likes of Royal Antwerp, Rangers, Stoke City, Sheffield United and Nottingham Forest during stint at Old Trafford.

Martin gained experience in the Championship with these temporary exits from the Manchester outfit, making 44 appearances across four different clubs at that level, along with playing once in the Premier League on the final day of the 2008/09 season.

His start in a 1-0 win away to Hull City came after the Premier League title was secured, and Ferguson’s side were preparing for the upcoming Champions League final against Barcelona.

But it proved to be the end of his career with the top flight team, and Man United will be pleased to have earned a reported £1.5 million from his move to Portman Road given how little he played for them.

Ipswich Town didn’t see Lee Martin’s potential

Roy Keane oversaw his first summer transfer window for Ipswich when Martin arrived from his old club.

The Irishman was appointed in April 2009, and their aim was to improve on the ninth place finish they earned in the Championship.

Their sights were set on a return to the Premier League, and it was hoped that bringing in someone of Martin’s potential could bridge that gap to the play-off places.

Other permanent signings included Grant Leadbitter, Tamas Priskin, Carlos Edwards and Damien Delaney, indicating that their ambitions were to climb the table under Keane.

But their gamble on Martin in particular didn’t work out, especially during the 2009/10 campaign in which he managed just 15 league appearances, including nine starts, and he managed only one goal.

Another disappointing half-season led to him going on loan to Charlton Athletic, and it wasn’t until Keane’s dismissal at Portman Road that he started to improve his performances.

The winger improved in the subsequent couple of years, registering five goals and 12 assists from his 68 final games.

But the Tractor Boys struggled to 13th, 15th and 14th in his three seasons at Portman Road, failing to compete for promotion before Keane departed in January 2011.

Lee Martin signing let Man United get one over on Roy Keane

The £1.5 million deal was a decent financial outlay for Ipswich at the time, and it was a big risk to bring in someone for such a fee that wasn’t a guarantee of success.

Keane and Man United’s relationship famously imploded, with the former midfielder being sacked due to comments he made to MUTV in an in-house interview regarding his teammates in 2005.

But by 2009, he would’ve been hoping that the deal for Martin could’ve helped out his side and that didn’t come to pass.

The Premier League side managed to get one over Keane, much to the frustration of Ipswich.

Martin’s time at Portman Road came to an end in 2013 when he made the move to Millwall.

After two seasons at the Den, the club suffered relegation to League One, with the now 39-year-old only playing a bit-part role in the side.

That resulted in him taking the step down to League Two to Northampton Town, but it wasn’t until Martin signed for Gillingham in 2016 that he found himself earning regular game time again.

To the forward’s credit, he continues to perform at a non-league level, and he is still competing, but his career never reached the heights that he would’ve hoped for and Ipswich will ultimately feel disappointed with the deal to sign him from Man United back in 2009.