Keegan - by Anthony Quinn (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

A BOOK OF THE YEAR IN THE TIMES, DAILY TELEGRAPH, FINANCIAL TIMES AND IRISH TIMES

From the author of Klopp: My Liverpool Romance comesanother funny and insightful look at one of Britain's greatest and strangest soccer figures.

He was stranger than he knew - than any of us knew.
England captain. Mercurial competitor. Pop star manqué. The Face of Brut 33. Pioneer of the footballers' perm. Twice winner of the Ballon d'Or. Kevin Keegan owned the 1970s. We had never seen his like before. There appeared to be nothing he could fail at.

Tracking his career from youth-team player at Scunthorpe to the England manager's job, by way of Liverpool, Newcastle and Hamburg, Keegan considers the extravagant highs of a man who touched the game with genius, who was never fired and who came within an ace of triumph as a manager. A story of almost and maybe, of excellence and of failure, it is a story too, perhaps, of the fans' quixotic search for a messiah.

Review Quotes

"A marvellous tribute to one of the great characters of English football . . . This charming book, as light and delightful as a soufflé, is a supremely enjoyable portrait [...] Pleasingly erudite, Quinn has a liberal splattering of footnotes all of which are witty and sardonic." -Times

"Anthony Quinn's slim, funny, beguiling biography is full of vignettes that illuminate Keegan." - FT Weekend

"Fascinating...[Keegan] was the best footballer of his generation." - Observer

"Quinn writes beautifully and effortlessly and this short little book is a pleasure to read. Pleasingly erudite, Quinn has a liberal splattering of footnotes all of which are witty and sardonic." - Sunday Times

"Keegan had a career of two halves. Dripping in trophies and plaudits as a player, he wore a "halo of failure" in the dugout, missing out on a title that was his to win at Newcastle and leaving the England job with a whimper. Novelist Quinn digs into King Kev's steeliness and money-minded approach in this engaging biography." - Telegraph, 'Best Books of 2025'

"A quirky, freewheeling and riotously entertaining yomp through the life of Kevin Keegan, one of the great forgotten figures of English football." - Irish Times, 'Best Books of 2025'

Praise for Klopp:

"An elegiac memoir [and] a love letter to the great man himself." - The Times

"Delightful...perfectly captures the man's endearing likeability."- Mail on Sunday

"A lively and highly engaging read, Quinn's warm, conversational prose digressing into comparisons with the pop star heroes of his youth (David Bowie, Marc Bolan) as well as classic film"- When Saturday Comes