Ferencváros manager Robbie Keane has shared his emotions after watching youngster Alex Toth join Bournemouth. Speaking about the youngster’s rise, he compared Toth to himself at Wolves.
Blikk cover comments from Keane today. He admits it’s been mixed emotions for him after the 20-year-old’s move to Bournemouth was completed. Toth has joined the Cherries in a €12m deal.
The youngster is a product of Ferencváros’s youth system, playing for them at every level before joining the first team in 2024. He was handed his debut in the first team by Stanislav Cherchesov in 2024 at just 17-years-old but wasn’t a first-team regular until Keane’s arrival.
He saw something in the youngster and, 49 of his 60 appearances ended up coming under the Irishman. That makes the former Premier League striker a very proud man indeed.
“Losing Alex was difficult for me, very difficult,” he said.
“Now I’m getting a little emotional because a year ago in La Manga, where we just came back from, they told me that Alex was going to the second team. After two days I said: ‘No, he’s staying.’ Nobody saw it, but I saw it.”
Alex Toth reminds manager of himself
Keane, it seems, was quick to draw parallels to his own career. He was jus 17-years-old when his coach saw something in him at Wolves.
That was the start of a long career that saw him play for Wolves, Coventry, Inter Milan, Leeds, Tottenham, Liverpool, Celtic, West Ham, La Galaxy, Aston Villa and ATK before retiring in 2018.
Whether Toth has a similar career remains to be seen, but Keane wanted to give him that chance, nonetheless.
“I was 17 when I played for Wolverhampton Wanderers, and my coach saw something in me too,” he added.
“I saw something in Alex that I knew this kid deserved to stay. Because he did something in training: he did something with his appearance. I said: ‘No, no, don’t do that, only Luka Modric can do that.’
“He never did it again, so what does that say about him? He listens, he learns, he understands what I expect from a footballer.”
While he is pleased to see his protégé making a big move, and to a club like Bournemouth, known for developing talent in recent years, there is a hint of regret for Keane. And he’s willing to admit as much, despite the overwhelming sense of pride.
Keane emotional over transfer to Bournemouth
“My job is not about ego, to have trophies, but as a manager, to help people develop,” he concluded.
“Alex Toth got from here to here in a year. I did my job and I want to do it again. He sent me a photo yesterday, and that’s probably why I’m emotional, of himself on a private jet – the first time he’s ever sat like that – in a Bournemouth shirt.
“He sent me a long message, thanking me for changing his life. I called my wife and started crying, and I don’t usually cry. But I helped someone achieve their dream.”
Manager thinks a lot of Alex Toth
Robbie Keane has also been planning ahead to help Toth succeed at Bournemouth.
“I think Alex Toth is one of the nicest kids I’ve ever met in my life. He talks to my boys a lot on Instagram. Always humble, always brave. As soon as I found out he was going to Bournemouth, I called five people and asked them to please look after Alex.
“Of course, winning is my job, but it is even happier to see Ali and his family on the private plane. That is why I coach, I am also a father, I raise my children. Football is football, so it is true, but what happened to Alex in one year is a fantastic story.”
