They wouldn't know a professional reflex if it was projected in neon from the statue of the Angel of the North, which is such a welcoming symbol on the A1 for the followers of serious football teams who head to St James' Park with sure-fire hopes of fresh plundering. Let's not be too dismissive of some of the fine qualities of Keegan.
He was a wonderful player. He made himself into one with a dedication and a spirit that still shame so many of the most gifted members of today's generation of performers and for the first phase of his five-year reign as Newcastle manager he produced a stirring cocktail of football that reminded the fans of his warrior impact in the black-and-white stripes.
But that was more than a decade ago — and it was promise not fulfilment, it was foreplay not coitus, it was a dream not reality. Why, so many years on and after the trauma of his departures from Tyneside, England and Manchester City, would Keegan again commend himself to the Newcastle directors at the age of 56? Because the men who run the club continue to fight one long, losing battle with the demand to look around them and learn a few basic lessons about how you make a winning football club.
You don't do as the fabulously wealthy businessman Mike Ashley has done with his call to the past. You don't deck yourself out as a fan and feed on their fantasies. You talk to a few men who know the business, who could have explained to him why — after Keegan's emotional meltdown and decision to leave the job in which he had promised so much but failed to meet some fundamental challenges of organisation and discipline — football men of the quality of Ruud Gullit, Kenny Dalglish, Sir Bobby Robson and Graeme Souness were all obliged to leave with the brand of loser.
They weren't losers. In one way they were like the fans. They were victims of a corporate incompetence. What Keegan did achieve — and no amount of sneering here can obscure it — was a thrilling vision of what could happen if Newcastle were truly set alight. Of course there were flames enough when Keegan reigned. But they burnt out so quickly even a point lead in the Premiership was allowed to splutter away. Fate determined that the fairytale ending would elude him in his last bow at Die Rothosen , however, as Nottingham Forest triumphed in the final.
Keegan had played his last game for Hamburg and proceeded to captain England at the European Championship in under Ron Greenwood. His next destination, then, was Southampton, who had only returned to the First Division two years previously, further reflecting the magnitude of what was a gargantuan signing for the club.
Much of this was owed to McMenemy, who played the long game and laid on the charm offensive to lure the European Footballer of the Year to The Dell. McMenemy recalls that after moving into a new house in , he was being helped by a friend, Norman Woodford, to perfect the interior design of his home.
Woodford suggested to the Saints boss that a light should be fitted above the staircase on the landing, and proceeded to show McMenemy a picture of exactly what he was referring to.
Woodford informed him that this particular light was only manufactured and sold in Germany — more specifically, in Hamburg. McMenemy had read in newspapers since the turn of the year that Keegan was pondering his future in the Bundesliga, with the likes of Barcelona and Real Madrid ready to swoop.
He was also aware that Liverpool would have the first refusal if they were interested in re-signing their former player because of a clause included in the agreement to sell him to Hamburg. He was told, in no uncertain terms, that Keegan would not be returning to Liverpool, who had Kenny Dalglish and David Johnson firing. Ian Rush would also join the club in from Chester, rendering a move for another forward unnecessary.
Although it would become clear that the Saints manager had ulterior motives, he entered conversations with Keegan without even mentioning the small matter of football. The first phone call between the pair would amount to the player agreeing to bring McMenemy the light that Woodford had showed him from Hamburg, and nothing else.
It was a simple favour and one that did not put the forward out too much, as he was scheduled to return to England for international duty in early February. The year-old conceded that he was looking to leave Hamburg, to which the Southampton manager brought up the rumours regarding a tug of war over his signature between Barcelona and Real Madrid in the summer.
It was not the most glamorous of prospects for the striker, nor was it one that promised silverware each season, but he was hesitant to rule out moving to the south coast over the phone. McMenemy was optimistic. Askham knew just the place and called upon a friend who lived in Kensington to host them. McMenemy made a point of opening the front door for Keegan on the day of the meeting, with the homeowner unbeknownst to the ground-breaking conversations that were occurring only in the other room.
It was apparent that he was attempting to woo Keegan, outlining the benefits of a move to Southampton, with the prospect of playing alongside Channon and Ball emerging as a selling point. He insisted that he was in charge of a good club with a good team, but the forward already appeared to be convinced. Then came the words that McMenemy had been desperate, but hardly expecting, to hear.
Askham was on hand to provide Keegan with a blank contract and, after one face-to-face meeting, Southampton had agreed terms with the two-time European Footballer of the Year. One insecurity was eating away at Keegan, however, as he sat before his new manager: he had forgotten to bring the light over from Germany.
The manager would proceed to attend at Wembley as England defeated Ireland 2—0. McMenemy kept his cards close to his chest remarkably well, and it would have required a great deal of restraint not to wax lyrical about the signing he had pulled off. Read The double renaissance of Jimmy Case. He did, however, nearly let slip that Keegan was a Southampton player on the evening before his unveiling.
McMenemy had given his players the Monday off following their exploits at the weekend against Brighton, but Channon and Ball were instructed to attend at the Potters Heron hotel. On Saturday Keegan made all the right self-deprecatory noises in the interviews. He is a master of the soundbite and it is a pity that his tactical know-how in handling reporters' questions was not matched by an ability to organise the England team.
Presumably this precludes returning to TV as a soccer pundit. Surely he can never sit in judgment on England again having admitted that he did not know enough when he was in charge. Tony Banks, the former Sports Minister who led England's failed bid for the World Cup, blamed "half-arsed journalists" and the "self-appointed experts" in the crowd who had jeered Keegan. But the manager admitted he had not been up to the job: "I just don't feel I can find that little bit extra you need at this level to find a winning formula.
I just feel I have given it my best shot. I don't want to outstay my welcome. Keegan later admitted that he had not enjoyed his time as England manager: "I found it soulless. I found it hard to fill in the time. I found myself going and training the blind team, the deaf team, working with the ladies team. It's a very difficult job. When it came to replacing Keegan, there was a dearth of English candidates.
Peter Taylor took over the job as caretaker for a single defeat to Italy, but was never really in contention. In a typical bout of doublespeak, Harry Redknapp distanced himself from the position: "I cannot think of a worse job. Whoever takes it, three or four months down the line will be getting abused. The simple truth is, no matter what side you pick, we don't seem to look good enough. I cannot think of a worse job.
Terry Venables wasn't optimistic about his chances: "It's well documented that the FA didn't want to go back before Kevin took the job, which meant going back to me, so I think that rules me out. Writing in the Guardian, Ron Atkinson decried Roy Hodgson's chances : "I don't want to decry Roy because he has worked very hard to get where he is, but we are talking about the England national job here. Someone who has been as successful as him in Switzerland is Christian Gross, but would anybody be touting him as Kevin Keegan 's successor?
Howard Wilkinson was given this assessment by one Guardian writer: "Motivational skills: None, unless you are a believer in gobbledegook. Tactical awareness: Great if you like the ball hoofed higher than a sponsor's blimp. Temperament: Drone, drone, drone think William Hague.
Verdict: Would be totally outclassed. When the merits of foreign coaches were condsidered, the Guardian leader warned applicants to be wary of the Sun. To judge from the views which have poured into websites, most fans believe there are only two options for filling the vacancy.
First: Terry Venables second: someone else. Someone else, this time, might not be English. Stuffy old cricket dared to do it, engaging the Zimbabwean Duncan Fletcher, and last season's performance suggests it may have paid off.
Yet any foreign import who takes the job will need to be a stupendous success, since otherwise the sort of obloquy which came the way of Graham Taylor, Glenn Hoddle and others will break out all over again, but this time with added xenophobia.
Even the Sun, contenders should be aware, knows the French for "turnip". In the end, Sven Goran-Eriksson took the job and became the first foreigner to manage England.
Contrary to the reasoning of David Lacey, Keegan is now a pundit. Earlier this year, the interview in which Keegan said he would "love it" if Newcastle beat Manchester United to the Premier League title was voted the most memorable quote in Premier League history.
From the Vault: Kevin Keegan resigns in a Wembley toilet. Twelve years ago this week Kevin Keegan stood down as England manager, saying he 'wasn't up to the job'.
Read the report and share your memories of the Keegan era below. David Davies tells the story of what happened after the match in his diary, FA Confidential : The old Wembley closed down in humiliation.
0コメント