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Off side or won goal?

02 October 2008 / Chris Syder
Issue: 7339 / Categories: Features , Terms&conditions , Employment
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was King Kev wise to walk out on Newcastle United? Chris Syder reports

Anyone with an interest in football will have been fascinated about the recent high-profile employment conflict between Kevin Keegan and Dennis Wise, which it is claimed was at the heart of late-night discussions at Newcastle United to convince Keegan not to walk out on his employment.

With the assistance of the League Managers Association, Keegan retracted his apparent earlier resignation and engaged in talks “with a list of demands”. It is understood that Keegan’s priority was control of future transfers at St James’s Park, as he felt his role as manager was being undermined. The “him or me” power battle that followed between Keegan on one side and Wise and Tony Jimenez, Newcastle’s vice-president overseeing recruitment, and the directors, on the other side (who vet all transfers) over Newcastle United’s transfer policy is being asserted as one of the main causes for Keegan’s subsequent final resignation. 

It is not yet clear whether Keegan had second thoughts about leaving

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