W  Keane played at international level for much of his career, representing the Replublic of Ireland over a period of 14 years, most of which he spent as captain. He played in every Republic of Ireland game at the 1994 Fifa World Cup, although he was sent home from the 2002 World Cup after a dispute with national coach Mick  regarding training facilities for the team. Regarded as one of the best defensive midfielders of his generation, in 2004 Keane was named by Pele in the Fifa 100 list of the world's greatest living players. In 2007, The Times placed him at number 11 in their list of the 50 "hardest" footballers in history .