When the 1982 World Cup finals in Spain came around, it coincided with Newcastle United toiling at one of the lowest ebbs in the club's 90-year history - but little did long-suffering fans know that a huge, headline-grabbing surprise was just around the corner.
As the 2022 finals in Qatar progress, we're looking back at previous tournaments, recalling any Newcastle United connections, and remembering what else was going on in those years. So far, we've covered the World Cup finals from 1950 to 1978.
After a drab campaign, United had finished the 1981-82 season ninth in the second tier and they were now firmly entrapped in the footballing doldrums. The club had little money, few saleable assets on the pitch, and once-proud St James' Park after years of neglect was in a sorry state.
READ MORE: Newcastle United at the World Cup: 1950 - Wor Jackie and George Robledo
In the event, that summer would quite unexpectedly deliver huge excitement on Tyneside. The club, in a scarcely believable display of ambition, sensationally managed to secure the signing of England captain and twice European footballer of the year, Kevin Keegan.
In August, 31-year-old Keegan made his debut at St James’ Park as the sun blazed over the region. Inevitably, the new signing scored. It was the only goal of the game - the winning goal - with the sight of the ball hitting the back of the net sending the 36,000 crowd into raptures. Keegan was an instant hero and his story at Newcastle United is well-documented. Twice he would save the club from oblivion - as a player and, a decade later, as a manager. But that was in the future.
In June 1982, Kevin Keegan was still a Southampton player, representing England at the World Cup in Spain. It was the Three Lions' first appearance in the finals for 12 years, but Ron Greenwood's team somehow conspired to be knocked out of the tournament in the second phase, despite not losing a single match.
Nursing an injury through the campaign, Keegan finally made it on to the pitch for the final 25 minutes of the game against the host nation, with England needing to win to stay in the competition. A 0-0 draw meant they were out. A matter of weeks later, Keegan joined Newcastle, sending Tyneside into a frenzy of what would be justified anticipation ahead of the new season.
Once again, no Newcastle United players took part in the 1982 finals, but there were plenty of United players and managers past and present participating, in the shape of Ossie Ardiles (Argentina), Graeme Souness and Kenny Dalglish (Scotland), Kenny Sansom (England), and Tommy Cassidy and David McCreery (Northern Ireland).
Away from football 40 years ago, April saw Argentina invade the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic, and servicemen from across the North East were part of a massive task force which sailed south to finally re-take the islands – with the loss of 258 British lives – two months later.
In entertainment, TV viewers welcomed the launch of Channel 4 and a groundbreaking music show which would be filmed on Tyneside called The Tube. In technology, the new Sinclair ZX Spectrum was a milestone moment in home computing, while the first CD players went on sale in Japan. If you happened to get your hands on one of these newfangled devices, the likes of Bucks Fizz, Human League and Survivor were in the pop charts. And, back, at St James’ Park, the Rolling Stones became the first major rock band to perform at the stadium.
At the cinema, you might go to see films such as ET, Chariots of Fire , and An Officer and a Gentleman . And, on TV, folk were tuning in to Dynasty, Hill Street Blues and Only Fools and Horses , while filming started on a brilliant new series which would hit our screens the following year and have a strong Tyneside theme. Its name? Auf Wiedersehen, Pet.
In the World Cup final on July 11, 1982, a superb Italy team, spearheaded by Paolo Rossi, beat West Germany 3-1 at the Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid watched by 90,000 spectators. Just weeks later and 1,000 miles away in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, there was no less excitement when Kevin Keegan ran on to the St James' Park pitch for the very first time.
READ NEXT:
- Newcastle United at the World Cup: 1954 - The sometimes-forgotten Magpies striker
- Newcastle United at the World Cup: 1958 - three Magpies and the arrival of Pele
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Newcastle United at the World Cup: 1962 - The infamous 'Battle of Santiago'
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Newcastle United at the World Cup: 1966 - the Magpie who nearly made the England squad
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Newcastle United at the World Cup: 1970 - Pele's Brazil and the 'beautiful game'
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Newcastle United and the World Cup: 1974 - Moncur a TV pundit but England miss out
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Newcastle United and the World Cup: 1978 - hard times for the Magpies and England
