I never remember the man playing for us, I hadn't even been born when he left in '77. All I've got of him is on dvd. My impression of him is that he gave his all for the team and was a committed, very talented striker who did an awful lot in terms of laying the groundwork for the domination of Europe that was to come, and that began with his last game for Liverpool in the final in '77. Kenny Dalglish, as his replacement, certainly eclipsed him in the hearts and minds of the supporters, but he was a Liverpool hero and that should never be forgotten.
I've mainly known Keegan the manager, and to be fair, he's never had much success. Never won a major trophy. Never contended for the top prizes on a regular basis. Left several teams suddenly. Now it looks as though he may be gone for good. Well that's a shame in my eyes, because the overall impression he's left with me is that of a decent, honourable, honest man, a rarity in a sport filled with the most untrustworthy, dishonest sharks going. Maybe he was destined never to make it in that kind of an environment. His name seems to be just a punchline to many now, the only time his name is brought up to laugh at his emotional outburst back in '96.
But to me, he'll always be a man of integrity, a dying breed these days, who has to be seen as one of Liverpool's greatest players for the contributions he made in the early to mid seventies. I'll certainly never forget that.
