Former
Manchester City and Newcastle boss Kevin Keegan has hailed old rival
Sir Alex Ferguson as the greatest football manager of all time ahead of
the Scot’s retirement from the game.
One of Man United’s greatest title wins
came in 1996 when they clawed back a 12-point gap in January to overhaul
Kevin Keegan’s Newcastle
The pair have enjoyed some memorable
managerial duels, notably when Keegan’s Newcastle were edged to the
Premier League title by Manchester United in the 1995-96 season.
And the ex-England boss believes what Ferguson has achieved will be unsurpassable.
“For me, he’s the undisputed greatest football manager the game has seen,” Keegan told ESPN.
“No-one will achieve what he has done again. It’s impossible the way
football is going and to be honest almost impossible where it’s been.
“If someone had told you 26 years ago
that he would go on and build what he has, you’d have laughed them out
of town. With all the clubs around at that time, the likes of Liverpool,
Arsenal and Everton, the thought of Manchester United becoming such a
dominant force would have been ridiculous.
“I wish him a really happy retirement,
no-one deserves to enjoy their retirement more than him for everything
he has put in to football. I think he’ll miss it and the game will miss
him.”
Although Keegan suffered disappointment
at the hands of Ferguson, he also guided Manchester City to their first
Premier League victory over United, in the last ever Manchester derby at
Maine Road.
But there is one result he remembers with particular fondness.
“We had some great battles over the
years, but my favourite memory is definitely when my Newcastle side beat
Man United 5-0 (in October, 1996) ,” Keegan said. “I’ll take that
result with me and I know Sir Alex won’t begrudge me that!”
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