Kevin Keegan dies: He ranks the five best King Kev players

Kevin Keegan he died at the age of 75 earlier this week following a battle with stage four cancer.

As a player, Keegan was one of them descriptive statistics for footballwinning two Ballon d’Or awards and scoring 254 goals in 744 games for the likes of Liverpool, Newcastle United, Southampton and Hamburger SV during a brilliant career.

Eight years after ‘King Kev’ hung up his boots, he stepped into management, where he carved out another incredible legacy and left an indelible mark on English football.

His most famous spell came at Newcastle United, and although the Premier League title eventually eluded him, the Magpies became one of the most exciting and feared teams in the country under his leadership.

When Keegan first arrived at St James’ Park, Newcastle were floundering in the second tier and flirting with relegation, making their transformation into genuine contenders within six years one of the best managerial rebuilding programs in English football.

After his move from Tyneside, Keegan also managed Fulham, Manchester City and the England national team before returning to Newcastle for a brief second spell, bringing the curtain down on a memorable managerial career soon after.

Sports mole takes a look at Kevin Keegan’s five greatest players.

5) Rob Lee – Newcastle United

Ahead of the 1992-93 campaign, while Newcastle were still in the First Division, Keegan strengthened his squad by signing Rob Lee from Charlton Athletic.

The move proved inspired, as Lee quickly established himself as one of the club’s most influential players and remains a cult hero amongst the St James’ Park faithful.

The midfielder went on to make 381 appearances for the Magpies and scored 56 goals, his best under Keegan, netting 44 goals in his first four seasons at the club.

4) Andy Cole – Newcastle United

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In February 1993, Keegan persuaded Andy Cole to swap Bristol City for Tyneside in a British record transfer fee of £1.75m.

Cole made an immediate impact, scoring 12 goals before the end of the campaign to fire Newcastle to the First Division title and securing promotion to the Premier League.

If that debut was indicative of his quality, the following season confirmed his status as one of Europe’s most lethal strikers, as he scored 41 goals in just 45 games to spearhead Keegan’s attack.

Although his Newcastle career lasted three years, Cole’s remarkable return of 68 goals in 84 games ensured his place among the club’s modern greats.

3) Les Ferdinand – Newcastle United

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After establishing himself as one of the most feared players in England with 90 goals in 184 games for Queens Park Rangers, Les Ferdinand was one of the few players to arrive in the tents joined by Keegan along with Shaka Hislop, David Ginola and Warren Barton.

Like Cole before him, Ferdinand spent little time finding his feet, scoring 50 goals in 84 appearances over two outstanding seasons.

Those exciting teams at Newcastle came agonizingly close to ending the club’s long wait for a league title, but ended up falling short in multiple title races.

Keegan later admitted that lifting the trophy could have kept his star-studded squad together, but football had other plans.

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Following his spell in charge of England, Keegan began a new challenge at Manchester City and wasted little time making a statement in the transfer market, with Nicolas Anelka his headline purchase.

One of football’s greatest globetrotters, the Frenchman had already represented Paris Saint-Germain, Arsenal, Real Madrid and Liverpool before arriving at Man City, carrying a proven pedigree despite being in his twenties.

Anelka scored 14 goals in his first campaign before increasing his tally to 24 the following season, finishing his City career with 45 goals in 103 games before joining Fenerbahce.

1) Alan Shearer – Newcastle United

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Sir Alex Ferguson appeared to have won the race for Alan Shearer in the summer of 1996, but one conversation with Kevin Keegan changed Newcastle’s history.

Instead of moving to Manchester United, the England striker chose his boyhood club, joining Newcastle for a world record fee of £15m.

Shearer would go on to score 206 goals in 405 games, cementing his status as Newcastle’s all-time leading goalscorer and an all-time Premier League legend.

Although Keegan was entitled to manage Shearer for a short time, convincing him to return home remains one of the defining moments of his managerial career and arguably the greatest signing of all time.