Story ProgressBack to home
Keegan talks about Newcastle return
Kevin Keegan held talks about making a dramatic return eight days after quitting but couldn't resolve his differences with owner Mike Ashley, AP learned.
- Indo-Asian News Service
- Updated: September 13, 2008 07:33 AM IST
Read Time:2 min
Manchester, England:
Keegan walked out on the Magpies on Sept. 4 - seven months after returning for a second stint in charge - blaming his lack of influence over transfers and interference from above at St. James' Park.
The only official comment on Friday came from the League Managers' Association which said in a statement that the talks were to "resolve several issues."
"The discussion failed to reach a satisfactory conclusion," the LMA said.
A person close to the situation told the AP that Keegan wasn't optimistic about a reconciliation after the talks collapsed and said it was unclear whether the discussions will resume. The 57-year-old Keegan spoke to Ashley about returning as well as compensation issues relating to his exit, the person said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.
Keegan and Ashley met as police were bracing themselves for demonstrations outside the ground on Saturday when Newcastle hosts Hull.
Ashley was in the United States last week when Keegan held crisis talks with the Newcastle board to try to resolve his grievances.
Keegan replaced Sam Allardyce, who was fired in January, but became disgruntled at the influence of director of football Dennis Wise.
"A manager must have the right to manage and that clubs should not impose upon any manager any player that he does not want," Keegan said in his resignation statement through the LMA.
Keegan had to be talked out of resigning just 38 days after arriving in 1992 when he quipped, "It's not like it said in the brochure," and stayed until 1997.
The "Geordie Messiah," as he is dubbed in the single club city, was enticed out of retirement to revive the optimism which thrived at Newcastle during his previous reign.
Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson on Friday backed Keegan along with Alan Curbishley, who quit West Ham last week also due to his authority being undermined.
"They both did the right thing resigning," said Ferguson, who has managed United since 1986. "You must have your pride and you must have control."
While West Ham swiftly agreed to a deal with Gianfranco Zola to replace Curbishley this week, little has emerged from Newcastle's search for Keegan's successor, with Chris Hughton remaining the caretaker manager.
Former Newcastle manager Kevin Keegan held talks about making a dramatic return eight days after quitting but couldn't resolve his differences with owner Mike Ashley on Friday, The Associated Press learned.Keegan walked out on the Magpies on Sept. 4 - seven months after returning for a second stint in charge - blaming his lack of influence over transfers and interference from above at St. James' Park.
The only official comment on Friday came from the League Managers' Association which said in a statement that the talks were to "resolve several issues."
"The discussion failed to reach a satisfactory conclusion," the LMA said.
A person close to the situation told the AP that Keegan wasn't optimistic about a reconciliation after the talks collapsed and said it was unclear whether the discussions will resume. The 57-year-old Keegan spoke to Ashley about returning as well as compensation issues relating to his exit, the person said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.
Keegan and Ashley met as police were bracing themselves for demonstrations outside the ground on Saturday when Newcastle hosts Hull.
Ashley was in the United States last week when Keegan held crisis talks with the Newcastle board to try to resolve his grievances.
Keegan replaced Sam Allardyce, who was fired in January, but became disgruntled at the influence of director of football Dennis Wise.
"A manager must have the right to manage and that clubs should not impose upon any manager any player that he does not want," Keegan said in his resignation statement through the LMA.
Keegan had to be talked out of resigning just 38 days after arriving in 1992 when he quipped, "It's not like it said in the brochure," and stayed until 1997.
The "Geordie Messiah," as he is dubbed in the single club city, was enticed out of retirement to revive the optimism which thrived at Newcastle during his previous reign.
Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson on Friday backed Keegan along with Alan Curbishley, who quit West Ham last week also due to his authority being undermined.
"They both did the right thing resigning," said Ferguson, who has managed United since 1986. "You must have your pride and you must have control."
While West Ham swiftly agreed to a deal with Gianfranco Zola to replace Curbishley this week, little has emerged from Newcastle's search for Keegan's successor, with Chris Hughton remaining the caretaker manager.
Topics mentioned in this article
Football Newcastle United
Get the Latest IPL 2024 Updates, check out IPL 2024 schedules and IPL points table at NDTV Sports.Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for more sports updates. You can also download the NDTV Cricket app for Android or iOS.