King Kev produced an amazing series of ultimatums
during showdown talks with club owner Mike Ashley
yesterday.
Knowing he has the Toon fans behind him, Keegan called
for:
Executive director of football Wise to be paid
off.
Vice-president Tony Jimenez, who is in charge of
player recruitment, to also be shown the door.
Control of all transfers in and out —
AND given the power to negotiate all player
contracts.
Just 24 hours earlier Keegan’s eight-month reign seemed
to be coming to an end with the board squeezing him into a corner.
The ENTIRE first team was up for sale during the
summer transfer window and two players — Xisco and Ignacio Gonzalez
— were brought in without his say so. But, after vocal
demonstrations by the fans, a revolt by the players and threats of
a supporters’ boycott of the next home game, Keegan emerged holding
all the aces.
A Toon insider told SunSport: “The way Keegan is trying
to pull this round is staggering. "If he gets his way, he’ll
have a power which he hasn’t had since coming
back.”
Most of the Toon squad felt ‘insulted’ by the discovery
that they were up for sale. Now, if Keegan does go, the stars
loyal to him will ALL slap in transfer requests in
January. The insider said: “The players feel surprised and
disappointed and they also feel insulted.
“I’ve never known it so quiet here. It’s like there was
a funeral going on, like there had been a death in the
family. “Kev’s hugely popular among the players, so the mood
is nothing like normal — how could it be with so much hanging over
the club?”