Uh-oh. Newcastle chief executive Chris Mort came out and publicly backed his manager, Kevin Keegan, today, saying that Keegan is the man to turn the club around and that there is no “doubt or worry” about Newcastle’s recent form.
Now that Keegan has the vote of confidence, expect him to be gone by the end of the month.
Just kidding, I think. We all joke that once the ownership backs the manager during hard times, there’s a very good chance that they’ll act in the contrary and get rid of him sooner rather than later. In this instance though, the manager is a legend at the club and probably has more wiggle room than most in his position.
Still, things don’t look good for Keegan and Newcastle. When Keegan got back into managing after taking some time away from the game, he had to have thought Newcastle was in better shape then they really are. Sure, financially they’re set, but this just isn’t a good team. Aside from Steven Taylor and James Milner, there are no quality youngsters on the roster and the veteran players are perennial underachievers for the most part.
Mike Ashley will have to overpay to bring even average to above-average players in because Newcastle isn’t a desirable location to play, not for the team itself or in the city.
I honestly can’t see Keegan staying beyond next season and he may leave this summer. Now that he has the dreaded vote of confidence though, he could very well be gone next week.
