Keegan, sentiment, reality.

[Karjala]

Hope we stay up and give him 3 years to show us what he can do.

 

We arent the most attractive proposition for the 'world class' managers who are available, so KK was as good as anybody who was realistically interested.

 

If he can get us up to that Top 6 again, and going into Cup competitions feeling we have a chance of winning, he'll have done a great job IMO.

[Guest Novocastrian]

 

None of the British managers who are currently the darlings of the press have achieved as much in management as Keegan.

 

Allardyce, Redknapp, Hughes etc none of them have qualified for the Champions League. Moyes has once and then he couldn't get beyond the qualifiying stage.

Keegan took us from a much lower starting place than the teams those managers inherited. He built a team with bargain buys and journeymen players until we had got into the top flight and some real money was released.

 

If Keegan is backed financially we will challenge anyone outside the current top four and we will be playing better football to boot. If Ashley really wants to have fun and Keegan is backed Abramovic style we can challenge anyone. Keegan may not have the tactical nous of Wenger etc but he knows a footballer when he sees one.

[Dave]

As many have pointed out, I'm desperate to see what he will do with Ashley's money behind him. He wouldn't have come without the promise of major funds.

 

I hope this transpires, and if it does (providing we stay up), this summer will be fun. Might even have to bring back the transfer forums!

[Parky]

Business decision.

 

Settle the fans, keep up the interest, ride the (non-existent) honeymoon period into solid season ticket sales and merchandising for 08/09.

 

Low risk due to the high likelihood of him leaving if things start to fuck up and meanwhile draw 'expertise' around the board to contingency plan the future.

 

Consumer marketing at its finest.

 

What I said and this as well.

[Parky]

As many have pointed out, I'm desperate to see what he will do with Ashley's money behind him. He wouldn't have come without the promise of major funds.

 

I hope this transpires, and if it does (providing we stay up), this summer will be fun. Might even have to bring back the transfer forums!

 

 

[Dave]

Business decision.

 

Settle the fans, keep up the interest, ride the (non-existent) honeymoon period into solid season ticket sales and merchandising for 08/09.

 

Low risk due to the high likelihood of him leaving if things start to fuck up and meanwhile draw 'expertise' around the board to contingency plan the future.

 

Consumer marketing at its finest.

 

What I said and this as well.

 

Very cynical IMO.

 

And I'm cynical as fuck.

[Parky]

...and people saying he isn't a tactician need also to point out this is a relative statement. It's not like he knows nothing about football is it?

[Parky]

Business decision.

 

Settle the fans, keep up the interest, ride the (non-existent) honeymoon period into solid season ticket sales and merchandising for 08/09.

 

Low risk due to the high likelihood of him leaving if things start to fuck up and meanwhile draw 'expertise' around the board to contingency plan the future.

 

Consumer marketing at its finest.

 

What I said and this as well.

 

Very cynical IMO.

 

And I'm cynical as fuck.

 

Nah.

 

You've softened a lot Dave over the last couple of years.

[Dave]

You think so?

 

Example?

[TRon]

worth revisiting this article i reckon:

 

http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/sport/2007/10/31/on_second_thoughts_kevin_keega.html

 

for all his faults kegga understands the purity and beauty of football that so many players and managers these days seem to have forgotten. people take the p*ss out of his soccer circus but thats what he does best, puts enjoyment and fun into the game, something that appears to have got lost in translation of football into today's greedy, bloated leviathon.

 

whether he can do it again remains to be seen, but there are tentative signs to be positive - i for one dearly hope he keeps his sh*t together and exercises a few of his demons this time round. if anyone deserves a bit of redemption its KK.

 

good luck kegga, no question you'll need it, but stranger things have happened....

 

That article was uncannily good.

[Parky]

You think so?

 

Example?

 

 

 

Even just in this thread. We both know KK was a massive gamble and the timing of the appointment was precarious yet you like me are wanting to be proved wrong. If that makes sense?

 

*Examples? Wtf!

 

 

[ChezGiven]

Business decision.

 

Settle the fans, keep up the interest, ride the (non-existent) honeymoon period into solid season ticket sales and merchandising for 08/09.

 

Low risk due to the high likelihood of him leaving if things start to fuck up and meanwhile draw 'expertise' around the board to contingency plan the future.

 

Consumer marketing at its finest.

 

What I said and this as well.

 

Very cynical IMO.

 

And I'm cynical as fuck.

 

"A good piece of lateral thinking"

 

Was it Phillip Green who said this to Ashley on the plane back from Hong Kong? Some retail billionaire with no knowledge of football anyway.

 

I wonder why a retail giant was consulted and why he thought it was good thinking?

[Guest float one in]

Out of all of the candidates that were being mentioned at the time, I really wanted Deschamps. I watched his Monaco team a canny bit (was living in france at the time) and was always impressed. He's respected in the game, is a no nonsense character and is definitely an up and coming manager. I thought he'd have us competing for the best young players around, and like Mourinho at Chelsea he wouldn't settle for mediocrity - he has always been driven to win, as a player and manager.

 

I didn't even want to think about Keegan coming - I thought it would be a step backwards, and I couldn't bear the thought of him failing and seeing him break as he did when he was England manager. I am not exaggerating when I say that he is my hero, and that would have been a heart breaking thing to happen. I didn't want him to risk tarnishing the memories we all have of his earlier times here.

 

But when I heard he was coming back, emotions came back to me that I had forgotten I'd ever experienced in the first place. As Parky said, the man is special. At a time when top level football is, for the most part, a load of souless corporate horribleness, KK represents a romance that we are lucky to be a part of. The stuff that used to get bandied about by Sky/the papers/other supporters about us being 'the best fans in the world' is total rubbish, anyone with anything about them knows we are no worse or better than anyone else. However, the relationship that our football club has with the region is special, no doubt it, and Keegan is right in the middle of that. He loves the club as much as we do - he understands us, and knows what we want. More importantly, he wants it as well.

 

Being at St Andrews on Monday and seeing us really gan for it in the second half confirmed my belief in the man. He's not going to take us down, nee chance. He's going to keep us up! Then he's going to sign us some class players in the summer and make them work like dogs in the pre-season, just like he always used to, and none of them will be in any doubt about what it means to be playing for our club. As other people have already said, we owe him more than he owes us, and there's absolutely no reason he can't bring the good times back. I think its not said often enough that he is also the best football manager this club has ever had! Forgetting about the emotional stuff for a second, that is a hell of a thing. 

[Dave]

I read that as though they only appointed Keegan to make money short-term. Surely the only way Ashley can really benefit financially from owning us is for the club to do well? He's rich as fuck, he's not going to go through all this just for a few million quid is he?

 

On that front it doesn't matter who they appoint, the money will only roll in consistently if we are winning.

 

So it may well be a business-driven decision, but only if they think Keegan is capable of moving us up the league.

[Baggio]

Keegan's alright, I think it was a brave decision by Ashley as it was an appointment that had the potential of leaving everyone at the club with egg on their face if it didn't work out, the press would really go to town if it didn't work out.

 

There's a lot of similarities between his management style and that of martin Jol, neither are that big on tactics but their strength is in getting a good squad together, keeping them motivated and getting them playing entertaining football, I know Jol struggled this season but over the past few years he's had them up there challenging for 4th spot in the league, if he can do it then why not Keegan?

 

One of the main reasons I was unhappy with him coming back was that I don't think he could sort the club out on his own, he'd sort the first team out but I didn't fancy him to sort out the club from top to bottom, I think the appointment of Wise will take the pressure off him in that department and allow him to concentrate on the first team only, that's where his attention is needed.

 

I'm also looking forward to seeing what sort of players Keegan, Wise and Vetere can come up with between them, this for me will be the most exciting part as one of Keegan's main strengths is spotting a good player, with Vetere out there finding talented players for keegan to run the rule over you've got to think they can come up with a few gems between them.

 

I'm hoping he'll work out but it's early days yet, with money behind him you fancy him to put together a talented squad that play entertaining football, I'll be happy with that after the football we've seen over the past few years and if we don't win anything you at least fancy him to leave us in a much better position than he found us.

[Colos Short and Curlies]

Business decision.

 

Settle the fans, keep up the interest, ride the (non-existent) honeymoon period into solid season ticket sales and merchandising for 08/09.

 

Low risk due to the high likelihood of him leaving if things start to fuck up and meanwhile draw 'expertise' around the board to contingency plan the future.

 

Consumer marketing at its finest.

 

What I said and this as well.

 

Very cynical IMO.

 

And I'm cynical as fuck.

 

"A good piece of lateral thinking"

 

Was it Phillip Green who said this to Ashley on the plane back from Hong Kong? Some retail billionaire with no knowledge of football anyway.

 

I wonder why a retail giant was consulted and why he thought it was good thinking?

 

They've become mates, Green has taken Mike under his wing a bit since the floatation of SD

[fredbob]

At the moment i'm feeling cautiously optimistic. When the news broke hand on heart i was a bit gutted, i thought it was a step back and that Keegan wasnt the best man for the job. I was both worried that he'd lost it as a manager having admitted he was out of love with the game and worried that he'd ruin his magnificent legacy at the club.

 

At the moment I'm feeling a little uneasy with the situation we find ourselves in at the moment, but im hoping we stay up for the reason that i feel i trust no one more than Keegan with money.

 

I always thought that this appointment was a little too nostalgic for my liking but understood the appointment as it was one that 95% of the fans could get behind, aside from some truly world class managers this club was never gonna get a manager which everyone could truly get behind so even though i was alittle gutted i wasnt too surprised.

 

Having heard all the candidates who were apprently linked with the job the standout candidate was Deschamps. He would of been an incredibly ambitious appointment with a long future in front of him if he were a success. He's already had some decent credentials as a manager and definitely got the credentials and experience as a player, he also had the style of play that we as nufc fans liked so it seemed the standout candidate for me.

 

In Keegan We Trust.

[ChezGiven]

Business decision.

 

Settle the fans, keep up the interest, ride the (non-existent) honeymoon period into solid season ticket sales and merchandising for 08/09.

 

Low risk due to the high likelihood of him leaving if things start to fuck up and meanwhile draw 'expertise' around the board to contingency plan the future.

 

Consumer marketing at its finest.

 

What I said and this as well.

 

Very cynical IMO.

 

And I'm cynical as fuck.

 

"A good piece of lateral thinking"

 

Was it Phillip Green who said this to Ashley on the plane back from Hong Kong? Some retail billionaire with no knowledge of football anyway.

 

I wonder why a retail giant was consulted and why he thought it was good thinking?

 

They've become mates, Green has taken Mike under his wing a bit since the floatation of SD

 

So Green understood the decision even though he knows nothing about football and absolutely nowt about Newcastle.

 

Clearly a footballing decision then.....

[B-more Mag]

[Apologies for off-topic post -- can't start new threads and can't find the right existing thread  .]

 

Can anyone direct me to, or provide me with, a good bibliography re: NUFC history?

[Dave]

Wikipedia is the obvious link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Newcastle_United_F.C.

[cp40]

for me, he is the best.

my first match with my mates, was keegsns debut82,( had been with my dad in the70s.)  all the best times ive had following newcastle home and away have been during keegans times as player and manager. i wasnt around for the robson years, and apart from that all ive seen is crap. i cud go no for hours promoting the positives for keegan , but im dying for a crap =+the dog needs walked..........

 

more from me on keegan later.

 

lee.r

[cp40]

its simple really.

 

keegan instucts his teams to go out and attack the opposition.

 

Most newcastle fans enjoy watching us attack the opposition.

 

You win more games by attacking the opposition.

 

Players are happier playing in a team that attacks the opposition.

 

The most successful sides over the years have done so by attacking the opposition.

 

The most entertaining matches to watch are where teams attack the opposition.

 

You cant score goals unless you attack the opposition.

 

You dont get 3 pts unless you attack the opposition.

 

I think you may be getting the idea by now.

 

Keegan understands this, in fact it is his Philosophy.

 

Sam Alardyce shud read this and maybe it will click for him as to what football is about.

 

ATTACK.

 

lee r

[B-more Mag]

Wikipedia is the obvious link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Newcastle_United_F.C.

 

Thanks. I'm looking for something a bit more in depth, though. I'll stop interrupting now.

[NG32]

Maybe he has learnt something, for example settling for a point at Birmingham.

 

 

 

[Guest Rob X]

Keegan needs to be brutal with this squad. He's shown that he can make unpopular decisions when he sold andy goal as he had a plan on changing direction. As long as he knows who he wants and the owner is in agreement and makes it happen then I'm happy enough to have him having looked at the alternatives since BR. But he either needs to make sure he can motivate the players he keeps here like n'zogbia or ship them out. If he think Taylor is not going to improve, ship him out. Same goes for the likes of martins, faye, barton, smith. All of them in fact when you think about it.