"You Can't Beat an Original"

15 August 2024

2 mins 28s

When Barry came to visit.

The last time we saw Barry Keoghan on screen, he was tied to a chair with duct tape over his mouth. Sabrina Carpenter may have done a number on him, but the Irishman has bounced back to star in a bravura commercial for Adidas and Manchester United.

Scored by Underworld's 'Born Slippy', the ad centres around a visit to The Cliff, where the likes of Rasmus Hojlund, Kobbie Mainoo, and Alejandro Garnacho rub shoulders with Bryan Robson, Dennis Irwin, and Jaap Stam. It's also a family affair, as Keoghan shoots the breeze with cousin Frank [Stapleton].

The relaxed atmosphere is strengthened by a game of Sunday league football. One of the players is Angry Ginge, a Twitch streamer who tackles like Roy Keane and has disciplinary panel written all over him ("Get up, you bell"). Everyone enjoys the craic, but Keoghan holds it all together.

The Irishman wanted to be a footballer when he was younger, and there's a bittersweet edge to his performance that elevates 'You Can't Beat an Original' over many rival kit launches. Had he become a Red Devil, we would never have got that scene by the lake in 'The Banshees of Inisherin'.

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