Former English footballer Kevin Keegan, double Ballon d’Or in 1978 and 1979, died of cancer at the age of 75, his family announced on Monday July 20.
“It is with great sadness that we announce that Kevin Keegan has passed away at the age of 75,” his family announced in a statement. “The former England player and coach was battling cancer and lived his last moments surrounded by his wife and daughters,” she continues. Having undergone surgery in January, Keegan revealed in June that his cancer had reached stage 4.
One of the best strikers of his generation, he won the European Champion Clubs’ Cup with Liverpool in 1977 as well as three English championships (1973, 1976 and 1977). On the road to the European coronation with the Reds in 1977, the man nicknamed the “Super-mouse” put an end to the hopes of Saint-Étienne by scoring in the second minute of the semi-final return.
After joining Hamburg from 1977 to 1980, he returned to his native Southampton and then Newcastle. His playing career finished, he became a coach. He notably dealt with the Magpies, whom he promoted to the Premier League in 1993, and Fulham, before briefly taking the reins of the English selection (1999-2000). He also coached Manchester City.
Kevin Keegan played 63 times (21 goals) for the Three Lions between 1972 and 1982, where he was captain for a time. He “was a very loving husband, father and grandfather”, emphasized his family, thanking the medical staff and asking for respect for their privacy in this “immensely difficult moment”.
