Kevin Keegan Resigns - What’s Next For Newcastle?
Well, that ends that. After a week filled with speculation about Kevin Keegan’s future at Newcastle, Keegan has decided to call time on his second stint at St. James’ Park, as he resigned today.
In a statement, Keegan said, ‘I’ve been working desperately hard to find a way forward with the directors, but sadly that has not proved possible.
‘It’s my opinion that a manager must have the right to manage and that clubs should not impose upon any manager any player that he does not want.
‘It remains my fervent wish to see Newcastle United do well in the future and I feel incredibly sorry for the players, staff and most importantly the supporters. I have been left with no choice other than to leave.’
This doesn’t come as a shock, but it’ll be only a matter of time before the management rues having let the childish infighting get to this point, if they don’t already.
At some point, Mike Ashley, fervent Newcastle supporter he is, should’ve stepped in and handled the situation, without Keegan having to leave. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case, and there was only one route that Keegan could take - out the exit door. While some might say that Keegan is walking out on the club a second time, you can’t fault a man for sticking up for what he believes in.
The 3-0 defeat against Arsenal on Sunday shows that Newcastle have a long way to go before they can think of being at the heights they reached during Keegan’s first stint as manager, but this is about the worst time to upset the proverbial applecart, because there is promise in the squad and the chance to make positive steps for the future this season.
However, if it was going to happen, it’s best that it happens now and not in a few months, because by that time, the turmoil could’ve seen any hopes for a respectable season go up in smoke. Not that this is exactly helpful for that either, but it’s pretty apparent that this was how it was going to end up.
What direction will Newcastle go in now? It’s pretty clear that Wise isn’t going to be sacked, so they can’t have someone who’ll soon have the same disagreements that forced Keegan to leave his post.
This opens up the possibility that Wise, who has no experience as a manager in the top flight, could return to management and continue to assume his current role at the same time.
However, if Mike Ashley wants to go with a more experienced manager/Wise doesn’t want to return to management, the new man better be will preferably be someone who would not only get along with the right people and be able to produce the results, but be popular with the fans (and not bore them).
There is someone, somewhere, crazy enough - and potentially equally qualified - to take the job fully aware of the recent revolving door of managers at St. James’ Park and what they’ll be getting themselves into.
Maybe the next man will do better than Keegan could have, but whatever the case, Newcastle will be going through their fourth (full-time) manager in less than a year and a half, which no matter how you shake it, isn’t the best road to success.
Did Keegan make the right decision by walking out? Could his resignation have been prevented? Who do you think will be Newcastle’s next manager?
Whatever happens, they’re going to sing Shearer’s name and he’s either going to say no, or he’s going to come in and fuck it up.
Curbs won’t touch the job either, so you’ve got a situation where someone from the lower leagues or someone from Europe who’s used to working with a sporting director will be brought in.
It hasnt been right for Newcastle ever since they fired Bobby Robson. Ashley is an idiot. Both Keegan and Curbs were right to leave their positions. Say what you want about the lack of ability of English managers, at least they’ve got balls.
As for the fans and the players, lets hope the management finds someone who can deliver. If they wait for a year, there’s a good chance that a certain Mark Hughes will be available………………..
i hope that fat beer guzzling twat steps down and sells to someone who actually has a knowledge of english football.
I don’t think it’s about the manager at all, though Keehgan was right to go. Newcastle fans have a right to demand of Ashley what his intentions are for the club. This so called fan and billionaire has been all mouth and no action so far.
Does he ever intend to seriously invest in the team? This is what matters, much more than who the manager is.
If not he should *uck off and give the fans a break. They deserve better.
A fan for 40 years thought long and hard about renewing both mine and my son’s season tickets around Christmas time but with the change in manager and the promises made by the far controller I purchase our season tickets and committed to three years I now feel cheated and the goods I have purchased are not fit for purpose but isn’t that the way Mr Ashley has always done business. If we boycott the next game that’s £60.00 down the drain if I cancel my direct debit for the next two seasons I get penalised financially
Commiserations Colin. And to think that the Man City investors would have moved in at Newcastle if Ashley wasn’t so greedy!
This is what I don’t understand. On the one hand you’ve got Keegan, who is considered a ‘legend’ at the toon and had one quite successful stint as manager previously. On the other hand you’ve got Dennis Wise, a plonker if ever there was one. He was an idiot as a footballer and is probably still an idiot. What would make the Newcastle board appoint a plonker like wise with the job of finding and recruiting new players.
Beyond that, what would make the Newcastle board side with Wise in a dispute with Keegan. Newcastle were starting to make some progress under Keegan and now because of the board placing their faith in a guy who is a positive nin-cum-poop that progress has gone down the drain.
I’m starting to wonder if the Newcastle board are even remotely interested in providing some stability to their club or do they just like being in the paper’s so much that they intentionally fuck things up at every opportunity.
DD - or maybe it’s because they wanted to cut costs because the previous management had completely fucked the club up?
Ahmed - I think if it were a case of cutting costs then they should be specifically looking for a manager who doesn’t mind -
1. working with limited resources ie. budget, lunatic players or should I say player and lost board members.
2. leaving decisions as to which players he has to work with to Dennis (The Menace) Wise.
Maybe the Newcastle board should implement a “2nd Coming” policy. First they bring back Gullit and his “sexy football”. Wait for 6 months then fire him for not wanting to sell Shay Given and Martins. Then bring back Glenn Roeder and fire him for not wanting Dennis Wise to be named official club captain (even though he’s retired).
Then they should scrap the “2nd Coming” policy and just make Wise the manager. After 6 months they should fire him for not wanting to sell the players he wants to sell and not wanting to work with the players he wants to buy. At least the Sun and Mirror will have something worth reading to write about.
As a newcastle fan I`d rather see our club in the hands of someone else than Ashley, actually I couldn`t care less who it is as long it`s not this fat London loving bastard that has no idea how to manage a football club.
Fact: Keegan needed time,he needed players & was promised a managers job,funds were there,debts covered,everything seemed to be in place.
Fact:Keegan never got the time did he? The players that he sought for never came (Coloccini & Guthrie excepted),he never got to issue his job properly thanks to Wise & Ashley,
funds were suddenly abscent & 2 new signings that will prove to be a waste of money & one sale of a player that was in the fans reach(Milner) when they could have sold dead weight like Smith & Cacapa instead of selling Faye.
I don`t think my club can recover fully until Ashley & his minions disappear from the north-east & make a fast run home to London & hide for a long time.
Ok, he erased debts, but was that at the cost of our Premier League future? Too early to speak of now maybe but our concerns are still there & will be as long as Ashley runs the club this way.
He may have a long term plan for all this, I really hope he does, but right now he`s acting clueless & refuses to communicate with the fans, & believe me Mike, we are the thin ice u are treading very heavily on, continue this & your face will be on a wanted poster all over Newcastle long after this charade.
We wanna hear u explain yourself & we want results for this betrayal, if not u at least have to be responsible enough to sell & leave, cause what u have done & haven`t done aint gonna last much longer.
Prepare yourself against the fury from us fans, cause u never seemed to realize the magnitude of The Toon Army & how important we are for this club, we should actually take this situation & shape up a new hierarchy that is fan based, we should own this club, or at least have a percentage say when a new coach or new owner is established, which will happen in a very near & lovely future.
It`s hard being a fan of this club, but at least we have the dignity to stand firm when things get rough, not as u other wank-offs in the grounds of Emirates or Stamford Bridge who always has something to say about Newcastle,though u haven`t been a fan for more than 2 years & u chear for the best team. No heart, no colours, no pride.
This is not for u long-timer fans though, only for these new not knowing football slag-mouthing wankers.
Pardon my french but u can change teams as u change clothes, its easy being a fan when u win, much harder to stay put when things get rough, trust me we Magpies know everything about it hehehe.
As for a coach, Deschamps would be great, but I would really like someone like David Moyes or maybe Hughes. We need to have at least one top british manager(apart from Ferguson) left in this league.
I will loose a lot of sleep & maybe even develop an illness
over this but things will change for the better, cause it can`t get that much worse…or can i`t?!!!