Biography

Joseph Kevin Keegan (born 14 February 1951) is an English former footballer and manager. A forward, he played for several professional clubs from 1968 to 1984. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, Keegan was recognised for his dribbling ability as well as his finishing and presence in the air. Having begun his career at Scunthorpe United, he moved to Liverpool in 1971 and then to Hamburger SV in 1977, enjoying great success at both clubs. During this period, he was a regular member of the England national team. After leaving Hamburg, where he was affectionately known as 'Mighty Mouse', Keegan played for Southampton and Newcastle United before retiring. Keegan returned to football in 1992 as manager at Newcastle. He later managed Fulham and Manchester City. All three clubs he managed won promotion as champions in his first full season there. He managed the England national team from 1999 to 2000.

Keegan began his playing career at Scunthorpe in 1968, before Bill Shankly signed him for Liverpool. There he won three First Division titles, the UEFA Cup twice, the FA Cup and, in his final season, the European Cup. Keegan gained his first England cap in 1972. He moved to Hamburg in the summer of 1977 and was named European Footballer of the Year in both 1978 and 1979. Hamburg won the Bundesliga title in 1978–79 and reached the 1980 European Cup Final. Keegan left Hamburg and played at Southampton for two seasons before transferring to Newcastle United in the Second Division in 1982. He helped Newcastle secure promotion in his second season, and retired from playing in 1984. He scored 204 goals in 592 appearances in his club career, adding 21 goals in 63 caps for the English national team.

Keegan moved into management at Newcastle in 1992, and the team won promotion to the Premier League as First Division champions in his first full season, the following year. Newcastle finished second in the Premier League in 1995–96, after leading for most of the season. After managing Fulham for two seasons, he took charge of the England team in February 1999, but resigned in October 2000 following a 1–0 loss against Germany in qualification for the 2002 FIFA World Cup. In 2001, he became manager of Manchester City for four years until he resigned in 2005. Keegan had been out of football for almost three years when he returned to Newcastle United for a second spell as manager in January 2008, but this lasted only eight months, as he resigned on 4 September 2008 following speculation about a dispute with the club's directors.