Not many involved in football can claim to have captained and managed their national team. Kevin Keegan though is quite unique. Two-time winner of football's most prestigious individual accolade, the Ballon d'Or - Keegan is arguably Britain's best ever export and has been described as "the first superstar English player". Kevin Keegan enjoyed a trophy-laden career in football. After starting out at lowly Scunthorpe United, his natural talent and penchant for creativity proved to good an opportunity for Bill Shankly, the then manager of Liverpool to miss out on. Keegan's transfer proved a masterstroke.
At Liverpool FC, Keegan made a blistering start - scoring 12 minutes into his Anfield debut in a match against Nottingham Forest. Shankly told the youngster he would play internationally, and 18 months later he was proved right as Keegan played in a World Cup qualifier for England against Wales.
Keegan would go on to become one of Liverpool FC's key players, and won his first of three league titles in the 1972/73 season. His late goal to seal victory over title challengers Leeds United would prove decisive and end a seven-year trophy drought for te reds. That season, the side would also see Liverpool win the UEFA Cup.
Keegan made 323 appearances, scoring 100 goals and winning three first division titles, two UEFA Cups, one European Cup and an FA Cup. In 1977 he made the move to Hamburger SV setting a British record transfer when he signed for £500,000. His move proved particularly beneficial for both player and club - as he would go onto win the Ballon d'Or in the 1978 and 1979 season, making him one of six British players to win the Ballon d'Or at the time and the first to win it twice. Only Michael Owen has won it since.
For England Keegan became a prominent player too and amassed 63 international caps, scoring 21 goals. He would also captain England 31 times until his retirement at the end of the 1982 World Cup when England made the quarter-finals. Unfortunately Keegan was injured for the most part of the tournament, making only one appearance. He would later take his domestic career to Newcastle United via a fruitful spell at Southampton. At the club he helped Newcastle to promotion to the first division in his second season before retiring in 1984.
His management career began in 1992, following a similar trend. He took Newcastle United back to, what was then rebranded as the Premier League. In 1995-96 he took the side to a second-place finish in the Premier League, narrowly missing out on the top-spot. He would go on to manage Fulham, England and Manchester City - proving himself as one of the most successful men to have both played and managed in the game.
Keegan's talent brought pressure with it. As his club and international team's best hope of success, Kevin bore the brunt of both's intense desire to win. He is able to speak about the pressure and qualities required to reach the top of the professional game, putting this in the context of corporate and sporting success. Uniquely engaging as a football speaker, a pundit and an after dinner speaker, Kevin Keegan is a perfect addition to an event.
