'The Savior' arrives
Keegan's energy and enthusiasm should fire England up
Posted: Wednesday February 17, 1999 05:04 PM
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Keegan (right) has had a history of success on the field and on the touchlines. Alex Livesey/Allsport |
LONDON (AP) -- They say the two "e's" in Keegan stand for energy and enthusiasm.
After the post World Cup slump under Glenn Hoddle, that's just what England needs if it is to reach the finals of the 2000 European Championship and restore lost pride by winning the next four games under interim coach Kevin Keegan.
A standout striker for Liverpool and Hamburg, Keegan became one of soccer's biggest names in the 1970s. He then dropped out of the game, only to reemerge as a popular and successful manager of Newcastle.
Keegan's appointment as England coach until June to cover the Euro qualifying games against Poland, Sweden and Bulgaria and a friendly against Hungary will be welcomed by the fans as well as the media because he always has a positive approach.
He was a committed and eye-catching player and his Newcastle lineup was full of ball-playing stars with the emphasis on goalscoring rather than goal-saving.
Playing for Liverpool, Keegan helped the club win three league championships and, in 1977, the first of its four European Champions Cups. He moved to Hamburg, led the club to the Bundesliga title in '78 and was voted European Player of the Year two seasons in a row.
As a manager, Keegan paid a then world record 15 million pounds (US$25 million) for England captain Alan Shearer in 1996 and bought international stars such as Colombian striker Faustino Asprilla and Fench forward David Ginola.
His best two league wins were 5-0 over Manchester United and 7-1 over Tottenham. Keegan led the Magpies to promotion to the Premier League in his first season, and the club finished second in the Premier League behind Manchester United three seasons later.
But critics point out that Keegan's team wasn't very good at defending. Newcastle blew a 12-point lead over its rivals when Manchester United took the title in 1996 and, even with World Cup players like Belgium's Philippe Albert on the team, the defense often looked suspect.
Another negative point is that Keegan's enthusiasm sometimes boils over.
During the 1974 FA Charity Shield at Wembley between the league titlist, Liverpool, and FA Cup holder Leeds, he was sent off along with Leeds' fiery midfielder Billy Bremner for fighting.
Both players ripped off their shirts in protest as they left the field and were suspended for a month by the Football Association.
During the 1995-96 season when Newcastle was overtaken by Manchester United, Keegan blew his top during a live television interview, riled by comments made by United manager Alex Ferguson.
His outburst -- "I would love it, I would just love it" if Newcastle beat United -- has become part of English soccer lore.
As a player, Keegan was a small, fast and busy striker who created his own goals as well as feeding off co-strikers such as Liverpool's John Toshack. Because of his speed and athleticism, defenders found the player known as "Mighty Mouse" very tough to keep under control.
Keegan's curly hairstyle became famous in the '70s and was copied by fans who gave him pop-star adulation. A big hit with the business world, Keegan gained huge commercial deals to become a millionaire at age 29.
While at Hamburg, Keegan turned down offers to join Real Madrid and the New York Cosmos. Instead he returned to English soccer with modest Southampton in 1980.
Keegan played the last of his 63 games for England at the 1982 World Cup in Spain. He retired from the game at age 32 two years later after a short spell with Newcastle.
One of the most famous personalities in sport, Keegan dropped out of the spotlight altogether.
He moved to Spain, left soccer behind and played golf instead, occasionally visiting England to see his racehorses in action. On one return to southern England in 1991, he was resting in his Range Rover in a country lane when he was attacked by robbers wielding baseball bats and left dazed and bleeding.
In 1992, Keegan was tempted back to soccer by Newcastle owner Sir John Hall and handed millions to rebuild a struggling team which was close to relegation to division two.
He completely turned things around and the team was promoted to the top flight as division one champion. Three years later, Newcastle was runner-up in the Premier League. By then, Newcastle fans referred to him as "The Savior."
Keegan was even touted as England coach back then, but he effectively scotched that idea by signing a 10-year contract with Newcastle as the club's director of football.
But Newcastle and Keegan parted company in early 1997. The club became part of a public company which was to be floated on the stock exchange, and Keegan was worried that much of his influence would be taken away by businessmen who would have a big say in the buying and selling of players.
Keegan was out of the game for eight months before Fulham owner Mohammed Al Fayed hired him to mastermind the club's climb towards the big time.
With Keegan as "operations officer" to oversee the running of the team, Fulham missed out on promotion last season but has risen to the top of division two and looks on course for a climb to division one.
Fulham also scored two of the upsets of this season's FA Cup, knocking out Premier League clubs Southampton and high-flying Aston Villa before losing 1-0 at league leader Manchester United on Sunday.
Now Keegan faces a bigger challenge with England, even if it only for four months.
Lying third in its qualifying group behind Poland and Sweden, England is in danger of missing the 2000 European Championship finals. Only the group winner is sure to qualify, and next up for England is a March 27 game at home to the Poles.
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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