1978 WORLD CUP KEVIN KEEGAN
Here Keegan is pictured pre-perm in the late 1970s, having just traded in his maroon Ford Cortina while playing for Liverpool. In the ‘70s, Keegan had an image and was the pin-up boy of football. Many will remember his ‘Brut’ aftershave television advert with Henry Cooper. Keegan was a superstar outside of football and needed a car to portray that.
The Datsun 240Z was the right choice – it was a rich man’s Ford Capri or Opel Manta with stylish looks, a great chassis and superb reliability. Add in the fun drive it offers, sublime handling and the fact it also makes a great long-distance tourer, and it is easy to see why Kevin later upgraded to the even quicker 260Z.
Dutch FC superstars Johan Cruyff and Johan Neeskens, who both played for the Netherlands in the 1974 World Cup, were also owners of the popular 240Z. They both moved to Barcelona in 1973 and 1974 respectively, with the later taking his Datsun with him all the way from Ajax.
Neeskens was so loved by the Barcelona fans that his car would have bodywork removed while he parked. He once said: ‘I’ve caught kids trying to unscrew parts off my car!’ We like to think that the Catalan community simply had a deep love of the superb Datsun 240Z.
FUN FOOTBALL FACT Keegan played for England 63 times, scoring 21 international goals, some of those coming in the 1974 and ’78 World Cup qualifying games. Sadly, England failed to make it to either tournament and Keegan was injured leading up to the 1982 tournament in Spain, but was still desperate to play in a World Cup knowing it would be his last international hurrah. He was brought on in England’s final game against hosts Spain in a bid to make it to the next round but failed to score. It would be his last appearance in an England shirt, until becoming international manager in 1999.