Newcastle United 0, Blackburn Rovers 1

Mar 3 2008 by Stuart Rayner, The Journal

KEVIN Keegan the manager is revered on Tyneside despite having failed to bring the club its first major trophy since 1969. Newcastle United’s fans look beyond the bald facts on the club’s honours board when assessing Keegan’s impact, so much so that even those too young to remember his playing career regard him as a hero, despite his greatest managerial achievement to date being finishing second in the top flight.

So it was perhaps in the spirit of 1995-96 – when Keegan was exhilarated by the 4-3 defeat at Anfield which sealed his side’s fate in the Premier League title race – that he seemed reasonably happy to settle for second best on Saturday.

Of course there is often a big difference between what a manager says in public and what is reserved for the dressing room, but Keegan was treading a fine line with his comments after Blackburn Rovers snatched their win.

To lose a game in which they created all the best chances was as criminal as the way substitute Matt Derbyshire was allowed to win it 40 seconds from the end of normal time.

But the string of misses highlighted the confidence famine which has hit the Magpies hard over the past two-and-a-half months. So rather than plunge the knife in, Keegan grabbed the positives.

Another defeat, extending his winless sequence to seven since returning as manager, was glossed over as he spoke of a performance more than good enough to avoid relegation.

He hailed the sharpness of Michael Owen, whose misses made him look anything but the world-class predator he once was, and stressed that Alan Smith’s exceptional work-rate and commitment were enough to keep picking a centre-forward who has not scored a league goal since November 2005.

Keegan does not have the resources to be a perfectionist like Arsene Wenger, Sir Alex Ferguson or Avram Grant, all of whom would have been livid had their team tossed away three points as Newcastle did. The best United have to play for this season is finishing above Sunderland.

Such is the paucity of teams between them and Derby County’s dead men walking, the Magpies ought to avoid relegation, but the bigger danger is ending the season with the kind of downward momentum which drags them into a relegation battle next year.

That Mark Hughes admitted he had targeted this game was a damning indictment of how the once-mighty had fallen. Fortress St James’s is as intimidating as a sandcastle.

Newcastle did not play very well – their passing was dreadful – but ought to be sitting more comfortably in the Premier League table today. Steve Harper’s reaction to Owen’s first and worst miss said it all. After being played through by one of a couple of brilliant Joey Barton through-balls, he glided past Brad Friedel only to shoot beyond the far post. Harper sank to his knees, head in hands.

There were slightly less extreme histrionics from Harper when Owen lost another one-on-one with the American. This time the chance was saved but it was unusual for Owen to give the goalkeeper a chance in that situation, reward for the way Friedel tipped the striker’s header over five minutes earlier.

Owen was not the only culprit. In the 20th minute Damien Duff seemed to be trying to remember how to score he dwelt so long over a chance, allowing Morten Gamst Pedersen to block. Duff and James Milner showed promise on the wing, but like their team, to little result.

“We defended really well so the defenders will be disappointed, the midfield were competitive and inventive and the forwards really at it,” Keegan said. “If we show a video of this game they will see a team that played very well but didn’t get the rewards.”

Smith, who headed over in the eighth minute, had nothing like the opportunities Owen did but that the centre-forward’s place does not seem under threat in a goalless season is alarming. “If effort, endeavour and honesty won you things, Alan Smith would have medals galore,” said Keegan. “I still believe in him because I have picked him for every game.” Harper pulled off good saves but Newcastle were mugged when they lost possession at a corner and two passes later were behind, Jose Enrique having been left to deal with any counter-attacks.

Next is Anfield, where under normal circumstances perhaps a point would do. But in this situation Newcastle cannot afford to settle for second best.