Having had spells with the the likes of Liverpool and Newcastle United, Kevin Keegan is one of the best-known players and managers in the history of English football.
Both of those clubs are in FA Cup action this weekend and ahead of those ties, Sports Mole caught up with the ESPN analyst to discuss both sides' chances of success in the competition, the transfers of Daniel Sturridge and Demba Ba, as well as what winning the oldest cup competition meant to him.
During your first stint in charge of Newcastle, the club sold Andy Cole, who was the leading goalscorer. Now Demba Ba has gone to Chelsea, do you have any sympathy for Alan Pardew and the supporters?
"I sold Andy Cole – it was my decision. There was no pressure on me from anybody else. It was the right time for him to go and it was the right time for us to change the way that we played. That's what I felt was right and we both moved on to better ourselves. We went forward as a club and Andy scored a lot of goals, won medals and did great at Man United. It was a good move for both of us.
"This one is a bit different because this move was forged the day that they signed him. Obviously I don't know the negotiations, but it seems as though after being turned away with a knee injury, his advisors have gone to Newcastle and asked for a release clause. It was a deal that they both agreed to and you knew that someone was going to come in this window and pay £7m for Demba Ba. He is the third highest goalscorer in the Premier League over the last two years behind Rooney and Van Persie.
"It's a no-brainer – they were going to lose him. Newcastle have probably known that for half a season. There's no excuses, they know they are going to lose him and they know that they are getting £7m. I would think that they are going to sign someone to replace him. Whether it will be someone as good, experienced or successful, we'll just have to wait and see."
What about Papiss Cisse? Could he not fill the void?
"If I was Alan Pardew, I'd be pushing to get the best player that I can and spend enough money to try and better Demba Ba, if that's possible. There is no good buying someone and hoping that he is as good, you've got to look at it and think can we make a plus out of what looks like a minus.
"Would I trust Papiss Cisse? I don't see him as a prolific goalscoring centre-forward in the Premier League. He will get goals, and spectacular goals, but Demba Ba was more about headers and the strength. I think they will miss Ba's hold-up play. I don't see Cisse being that type of guy any more than I do someone like Theo Walcott. He can run, he's quick and knows where the goal is but can you build upon him away from home? No, I don't think you can. He's not a number one striker."
Is that type of striker not Andy Carroll? Do you think there is a chance that he could return to the club in the summer?
"Of course it is a possibility but I think wages could be a problem. He's moved out into a different wage bracket – that's the very reason why Newcastle didn't buy out Demba Ba's contract. I really think the wages would stop Andy Carroll coming back. Would Liverpool compromise and pay part of the wages? Possibly – but that could prove to be complicated. Could they take him on loan? Well if West Ham can afford him, surely Newcastle can. Whatever deal West Ham have done with Liverpool, I don't think that they'll be paying his full wages. I don't think you could rely on Carroll going back."
Newcastle haven't been in the best of forms in the Premier League. Is the FA Cup this weekend going to be a welcome distraction?
"I don't know what would be welcome at the moment. The big problem Alan Pardew has got at the moment is that he looks at his bench and it is not even a Championship bench. That tells you that he is down to the bare bones."
They have Brighton & Hove Albion away in the third round. It's not the easiest of ties is it?
"One of the places that Pardew wouldn't want to go is down to Brighton. They went there last year with a better team and in good form and still got beat. All those fears will be going not just through his mind, but the players' as well. Players worry when they get on the team coach and they are three of four players short. It's a long journey for the fans. They will make the trip, don't get me wrong, but it will be with a lot of trepidation. I could see an upset. Where they are with injuries to players – do they want a replay or another match with the squad he's got?
"Publically he would say 'yes' but privately if he got back on the coach and they've played well and got beat he may think 'now the team can pull themselves out away from relegation and into a comfort zone'. If they went down again, it would turn the club upside down. When the likes of Yohan Cabaye and Steven Taylor come back, they will be okay. They've got no need to worry though because they've got too much quality to go down. They may get sucked into it a little bit before their key players come back, but they'll be fine."
Another of your former clubs, Liverpool, could give a debut to Daniel Sturridge at Mansfield. Is that something that you think Brendan Rodgers should do?
"[Brendan Rodgers] could rest Suarez and start Sturridge up front and say: 'Go and show us that you can play up front.' He could play Sturridge down the left and Suarez and hope that they can the job done with an hour gone and then fetch some players off. That would be the perfect scenario."
What do you make of the signing of Sturridge? Do you think he will go on to be a good addition to the Liverpool squad?
"It baffled me a bit at first but maybe I'm not seeing something that Brendan Rodgers is. Is he better than Suso? Yes. Is he better than Sterling? At the moment I would say yes because of his experience but I think Sterling is going to go beyond him. I think Rodgers has looked at Sterling and thought at 17/18 he is playing a lot of football at the moment. It does make sense I guess because Sturridge plays that way.
"The down side of having those sort of players is that you can lose out against the likes of Stoke and Man City physically. But the up side is if you get the ball down and play, which is what Brendan's philosophy is, you can pass most of the other teams off the pitch. I'm not talking about the likes of Man United or Spurs, but against some other they could do that because there is a lot of pace with Sturridge, Suarez and Sterling."
Going back to that Mansfield game, do you expect Rodgers to make many changes to his starting lineup?
"He's not in a position where he can tinker too much. There best team is a decent team but after that it starts to look a little thin, inexperienced and a bit weak. I expect him to put a full side out, hoping to put it to bed early and then drag the likes of Steven Gerrard and Suarez off. Then they can get ready for Man United."
Is the FA Cup something you expect Rodgers to take seriously this season? Some pundits have suggested that he may concentrate on the Premier League instead.
"He will [take it seriously]. It's not whether the manager takes it seriously or not, it's if he starts tinkering when it is well-balanced and you are playing well. Players would start to think that the manager is not taking the competition seriously. I don't think Liverpool are good enough to tinker and not many teams are. To be fair, I think most teams take the FA Cup seriously now."
You have one FA Cup winner's medal to your name. How special was it to win the competition?
"It was very, very special. If I talked about five games that I remember most it would be right up there because we won it, played great and I scored two goals. I'd watched it as a kid and always dreamed of playing at Wembley and walking up those steps to get the medal.
"Of course, I know what it's like to lose one as well, against Man United. It's much better winning, I can tell you that. It's winner takes all. There is nothing for the loser, you just come away empty and despondent. You get a medal, but it is a loser's medal and I don't even know where mine is."
Do you think players today feel the same way as you?
"Probably not quite the same because in most other countries, like Germany for example, it is a very, very secondary competition. Whereas in England it is right up there with the league. Four or five years ago teams like Arsenal were putting out reserves, still good players, but not regulars. Suddenly it has turned round though and teams are taking it seriously again. Why? Because it is one of four things most teams can win and football is about winning.
"In this country it is still considered by the English players to be a major competition. I think the foreign players are also buying a bit more into it. You can't expect them to come over from Spain or Germany and be hyped up because as I say, in their country it's not as important. The crowds are up as well having dipped for a while. If you're taking your son to watch Newcastle at Brighton on Saturday, you want to see Newcastle's first team. You don't want to see Newcastle's youth team, which is what was happening with some clubs three years ago."
ESPN will air live and exclusive coverage of three FA Cup Third Round games this weekend: Swansea City v Arsenal at 1pm and Mansfield Town v Liverpool at 3.45pm on Sunday, then Cheltenham v Everton at 7pm on Monday. Visit ESPN.co.uk/tv for details.
Liam Apicella
