Kevin Keegan was king of the Kop when he waved an emotional farewell to Liverpool fans in 1977 after helping the club to their first ever European Cup, part of an historic treble that year. It was a fitting way to mark the end of an illustrious career at Anfield in which Keegan scored exactly 100 goals despite being signed by the legendary Bill Shankly as a midfielder.
Along with John Toshack, the diminutive forward formed one of the most prolific strike partnerships the Kop has ever seen. With the big Welshman winning everything in the air and the clever Keegan reading his knockdowns they were too hot to handle for defences across England and Europe.
Two years into his career at Liverpool, Keegan won his first silverware. He was instrumental in the league campaign that saw the Reds win their first title in seven years and scored two goals in the 3-2 aggregate win over Borussia Mönchengladbach in the UEFA Cup final.
An FA Cup winner's medal followed the next season with Keegan scoring a brace in the final against the team he would later manage so successfully, Newcastle United. He added another FA Cup and League title to his haul in the treble year before bowing out of Anfield at the top of his game to test his talents elsewhere.
Keegan's career started with rejection by his hometown club Doncaster Rovers before he got his start in the game at Scunthorpe United. His performances there were enough to persuade legendary Liverpool boss Shankly to part with £35,000 for his services. Shankly saw him as a replacement for Ian Callahan in midfield but a starring performance by Keegan up front in a pre-season game made the manager change his mind.
It did not take long to see he had made the right decision – in Keegan's debut against Nottingham Forest in 1971 he scored after just 12 minutes and set the tone for an illustrious career at Liverpool. His form was soon recognised by England and he made his debut for the national side in 1972, going on to win 63 caps, scoring 21 goals.
He left the Reds in 1977 to join German side Hamburg where he was almost as big a success as he had been at Anfield. Keegan was twice named European Footballer of the Year during his spell with Hamburg and won a Bundesliga title as well as making it to another European Cup Final.