Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed he enjoyed a ‘great night’ with his old rival Kevin Keegan shortly after the former Newcastle manager’s infamous ‘I would love it if we beat them’ outburst during the 1996 Premier League title race.
Newcastle and England legend Keegan passed away aged 75 on Monday after a short battle with illness, having been diagnosed with stage four stomach cancer in January and admitted to hospital with abdominal problems.
Bryan Robson, Graeme Souness and Michael Owen are among those who have written heartfelt tributes about Keegan for Daily Mail Sport, paying homage to the warm, kind and immensely talented former player and manager whose passing has left the football world in mourning.
And even Ferguson, whose fierce rivalry with Keegan defined the dramatic 1995-96 Premier League title race, had only warm words for his old adversary as he fondly recalled the ‘great night’ they shared just weeks after Manchester United pipped Newcastle to the crown.
Keegan and Ferguson’s rivalry reached its defining moment in April 1996, when Newcastle’s then manager delivered one of the most iconic post-match interviews in Premier League history, emotionally shouting down the microphone: ‘I would love it if we beat them. Love it.’
Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed he had a ‘great night’ with Newcastle legend Kevin Keegan (left) shortly after their rivalry reached boiling point during the 1996 Premier League title race
Keegan delivered the infamous ‘I would love it if we beat them’ rant in response to Ferguson’s mind games – but just weeks later enjoyed a ‘night on the piano’ with the ex-Man United boss
Speaking on Track Radio on Tuesday, Ferguson said: ‘That was Kevin’s emotions. He was all emotion in a lot of his job and he brought that emotion to the team too. They played for Kevin Keegan, there’s no question about that.
‘The interesting thing about that outburst from Kevin, about two weeks after the season had finished I was playing at Wentworth golf club with two of my friends and the barman said there was a great bar up the road with nice food.
‘So we went up there and who walks in, Kevin Keegan. And we spent the rest of the night on the piano. The great thing about him – he held no grudges. That was a fantastic quality he had. We had a great night.
‘You would always find whatever happened previous weeks, that was soon forgotten. I really respected him for that.’
Keegan’s ‘love it’ explosion occurred after Newcastle triumphed 1-0 over Leeds to keep their fading title hopes alive, having previously held a 12-point advantage over Manchester United at one stage in the season.
In the build-up to the game, Ferguson suggested that other teams played harder against the Red Devils than they did against Newcastle, prompting Keegan – who had spent months trying to ignore the Scot’s psychological tactics – to snap during a live Sky Sports interview.
Visibly angry, he stared into the camera and launched into his famous rant, insisting Newcastle would fight until the end before delivering the iconic line.
Although Newcastle won their remaining games, Manchester United held their nerve to clinch the Premier League title, and the speech became one of the defining moments of the decade.
