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Steve Kean

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This article is about the Scottish football manager. For the economics and finance professor, see Steve Keen.

Steve Kean
Steve Kean.jpg
Kean in 2010
Personal information
Full name Stephen Kean[1]
Date of birth (1967-09-30) 30 September 1967 (age 54)[1]
Place of birth Glasgow, Scotland
Height 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Position(s) Winger
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1985–1987 Celtic 0 (0)
1987 → Swansea City (loan) 4 (0)
1987–1988 Alloa Athletic 1 (0)
1988–1991 Académica Coimbra 9 (1)
1991 Naval 35 (0)
1991–1992 Bath City
1993–1994 Newbury Town
Teams managed
2010–2012 Blackburn Rovers
2013–2017 DPMM FC
2014 Brunei
2021 Melbourne Victory (caretaker)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Stephen Kean (born 30 September 1967) is a Scottish football manager and former player who last managed Australian side Melbourne Victory. A winger, he spent his playing career in the lower divisions of Scottish, English and Portuguese leagues in the 1980s and 1990s, before moving into coaching. After a 21-month spell in charge of Blackburn Rovers, he resigned on 28 September 2012.

Playing career

Kean grew up in Cumbernauld, a new town on the outskirts of Glasgow, attending St. Maurice's High School. Upon leaving school, he joined Celtic as a professional, but was unable to break into a first team then dominated by Celtic legends Tommy Burns, Murdo MacLeod and Paul McStay.

He joined Swansea City on loan in 1987,[2] at the same time as Chris Coleman. They formed a lasting professional relationship, which carried on after both of their playing days had ended.

Kean then played for Académica Coimbra in Portugal, making nine appearances, and scoring one goal in all competitions.[3][4][5] During his time in Portugal, Kean also played for Naval.[6]

Coaching and management career

Kean with Coventry City in 2008

Coaching career

Since retiring from playing Kean has worked as a coach for Reading, Fulham, Real Sociedad and Coventry City, working as an assistant to Chris Coleman at Fulham, Real Sociedad and Coventry.[4]

In June 2008, it was reported that Kean was in talks with Chelsea to become assistant manager to Luiz Felipe Scolari.[4] Kean's fluency in Portuguese from his playing days was believed to be a key reason for Chelsea's interest.[4]

Blackburn Rovers

On 4 August 2009, Blackburn Rovers manager Sam Allardyce appointed Kean as his new first team coach. Kean replaced Karl Robinson who returned to Milton Keynes Dons. Allardyce commented that he had received numerous applications for the first team coaching position and Kean "stood out above the rest through his personality, experience and knowledge of football at the highest level".[7]

After the sacking of Allardyce on 13 December 2010 by new Blackburn owners Venky's, Kean was initially installed as caretaker manager but on 22 December 2010, he was appointed manager on a contract until the end of the season to prove his abilities in that position.[8][9] On 4 January 2011, it was revealed by Anuradha Desai, chairperson of Venky's, that Kean would be offered a new two-to-three-year long-term contract to manage the club and on 20 January 2011, it was confirmed by Blackburn that Kean had signed a contract until June 2013.[10][11] Kean's appointment was shrouded in a great deal of controversy since his agent Jerome Anderson had earlier played a major role in advising Venky's during the takeover of the club in the preceding months.[12][13][14] Furthermore, Allardyce later received "substantial", but undisclosed, damages from Kean after Kean had been recorded in a bar in Hong Kong falsely alleging that Allardyce had been sacked from his post at Blackburn Rovers because he was a crook.[15]

Kean started brightly as manager, but ten games without a win saw Rovers dragged into relegation trouble. A 15th-place finish was secured with a 3–2 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers on the final day of the 2010–11 Premier League season.

In November 2011, Blackburn confirmed that Kean had signed a new contract with improved terms, despite the club being in the bottom place of the league. This came despite Kean's comments less than a week earlier stating: "Yes, there have been discussions about a new contract, but I have told the owners that this is an inappropriate time to conclude any new contract discussions".[16] The new deal came after months of protests at the club in which fans campaigned to have Kean removed as Rovers manager as he had recorded just one league win all season.[17] At the time, Steve Kean was Blackburn Rovers' second worst manager since 1992, with only Paul Ince scoring a lower win percentage.[18]

Further controversy was created when Kean admitted 'forfeiting' a League Cup quarter-final at Cardiff City for the sake of their league form, with fans subsequently demanding a refund for the ticket price, travel expenses and money lost due to not working on the day.[19][20] In December 2011, the local newspaper and MP Jack Straw joined the fans in calling for Kean's resignation ahead of a crucial home match with Bolton Wanderers.[21] Another defeat concluded Kean's first 38 league games as Blackburn manager in which he had amassed just 32 points and left Rovers bottom of the table at Christmas.[22] Despite all of this, Kean remained defiant by insisting that he would stay in his job long enough to fashion a revival and that he would be "100% shocked" if he was sacked.[23][24]

Results were somewhat improved in the second half of the season but five successive defeats in April dragged Rovers deep into relegation trouble again with Kean having recorded just 12 wins from his 55 league games since he took over. On 7 May 2012, a home loss against Wigan Athletic relegated Blackburn Rovers to the Football League Championship and ended an eleven-year run in the top flight.[25]

Kean left his position as Rovers' manager on 28 September 2012 with the club third in the Championship table. He declared that he had been "forced to resign" and that his position had been "untenable".[26]

DPMM FC

In October 2013 Kean agreed a deal to become the new manager of S.League side DPMM FC.[27] Kean signed an initial one-year contract with the club in Brunei on 28 November 2013.[28][29] Brunei led the 2014 S.League for the majority of the campaign but ended up finishing as runners up to Warriors FC following a 2–1 defeat to Tampines Rovers on the final day of the season.[30] They were also knocked out of the 2014 Singapore Cup in the semi-final by Home United.[31] The team did lift some silverware however, as they won the 2014 Singapore League Cup, beating Tanjong Pagar United 2–0 in the final.[32]

Kean was also appointed as the head coach of Brunei national football team for the 2014 AFF Suzuki Cup qualification tournament in Laos in October 2014.[33]

Brunei DPMM clinched the S-League championship on 21 November 2015, with a 4–0 win at home to Balestier Khalsa.[34] Kean was named as the S.League's coach of the year in 2015.[35]

In early November it was announced that Kean would leave Brunei DPMM at the end of the 2017 S.League season, a year before his contract with the club ended.[36]

Melbourne Victory

On 23 October 2020 Kean was announced as the assistant coach for Melbourne Victory, serving under head coach Grant Brebner.[37] Brebner and Kean had previously worked together during their time with Reading, with Kean serving as Academy Director and then First Team Coach, while Brebner was a player.[38] In April 2021, Kean was appointed as interim coach until the end of the 2020–21 A-League season, following the sacking of Grant Brebner.[39][40]

Personal life

On 15 August 2011, Kean was convicted of drink driving at Macclesfield Magistrates' Court. The Court rejected his defence that his drinks had been spiked following a match against Manchester United. He was banned from driving for 18 months and fined £1,800.[41]

Managerial statistics

As of 6 June 2021[42][43]
Managerial record by team and tenure
Team From To Record
P W D L Win %
Blackburn Rovers 13 December 2010 28 September 2012 74 21 16 37 028.4
DPMM FC 7 November 2013 4 November 2017 135 67 22 46 049.6
Brunei 12 October 2014 20 October 2014 4 0 0 4 000.0
Melbourne Victory FC 19 April 2021 30 June 2021 10 2 2 6 020.0
Total 223 90 40 93 040.4

Honours

Manager

DPMM

Individual

  • S.League Coach of the Year: 2015

References

  1. ^ a b Hugman, Barry J., ed. (2005). The PFA Premier & Football League Players' Records 1946–2005. Queen Anne Press. p. 339. ISBN 1-85291-665-6.
  2. ^ "Swansea City: 1946/47 – 2009/10". Post War English & Scottish Football League A – Z Player's Database. Retrieved 9 October 2010.
  3. ^ "Statistics" (in Portuguese). Veteranosaac.com. Archived from the original on 3 November 2013. Retrieved 8 May 2012.
  4. ^ a b c d "Kean linked to Chelsea coach role". BBC Sport. 19 June 2008. Retrieved 19 June 2008.
  5. ^ Steve Kean at ForaDeJogo
  6. ^ "New: Steve Kean interview!". The British Coaches Abroad Association. Retrieved 12 May 2019.
  7. ^ "Who is Blackburn's interim manager Steve Kean?". www.telegraph.co.uk. 14 December 2010. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
  8. ^ "Blackburn Rovers sack manager Sam Allardyce". BBC Sport. 13 December 2010. Retrieved 18 December 2010.
  9. ^ "Steve Kean put in charge by Blackburn". BBC Sport. 22 December 2010. Retrieved 22 December 2010.
  10. ^ "Kean to land long-term deal". Sky Sports. 4 January 2011. Retrieved 5 January 2011.
  11. ^ "Kean signs contract to June 2013". Blackburn Rovers F.C. 20 January 2011. Archived from the original on 1 September 2012. Retrieved 20 January 2011.
  12. ^ Conn, David. "How an agent came to hold so much power at Blackburn Rovers", The Guardian, 21 December 2010. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  13. ^ Hytner, David. "Steve Kean finds value of friends in high places at Blackburn Rovers", The Guardian, 16 December 2010. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  14. ^ "Blackburn Rovers board's dismay at Venky's conduct revealed in letter". The Guardian. 15 January 2012.
  15. ^ "Steve Kean pays Sam Allardyce damages over 'crook' claim". BBC Sport. 16 January 2013. Retrieved 16 January 2013.
  16. ^ "Rovers confirm Kean contract revision". ESPNsoccernet. 23 November 2011. Retrieved 23 November 2011.
  17. ^ "Anti-Steve Kean banner flown by Blackburn Rovers fans". BBC Sport. 5 November 2011. Retrieved 23 November 2011.
  18. ^ "Kean out? How Kean fares historically". EPL Index.com. 19 November 2011. Retrieved 6 April 2012.
  19. ^ "Blackburn boss Steve Kean admits Carling Cup 'forfeit' at Cardiff". BBC. 30 November 2011. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  20. ^ "Rovers fans demand refund after Kean admits to 'forfeiting' Cup game". The Mirror. 30 November 2011. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  21. ^ "Lancashire Telegraph comment: Time to go Steve Kean". Lancashire Telegraph. 19 December 2011. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  22. ^ "Blackburn Rovers 1-2 Bolton Wanderers, 20th December 2011". BBC. 20 December 2011. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  23. ^ "Under-fire Kean banking on season of goodwill". BBC. 21 December 2011. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  24. ^ "Blackburn Rovers boss Steve Kean '100% shocked' if he was sacked". BBC. 20 December 2011. Retrieved 11 September 2016.
  25. ^ Winter, Henry (8 May 2012). "Blackburn Rovers relegated from Premier League as Antolin Alcaraz scores only goal in Wigan's great escape". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 17 October 2012.
  26. ^ "Steve Kean 'forced to resign' as Blackburn Rovers manager". BBC Sport. 28 September 2012. Retrieved 28 September 2012.
  27. ^ "Steve Kean: Ex-Blackburn boss to take charge at Brunei DPMM". BBC Sport. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
  28. ^ "Kean and Jeffers set to arrive at DPMM". goal.com/en-sg/. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
  29. ^ "New DPMM FC coach inks one year deal". borneobulletin.brunei-online.com.bn. Archived from the original on 1 December 2013. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  30. ^ "Summary - S.League- Singapore". Soccerway. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
  31. ^ "Summary - Singapore Cup- Singapore". Soccerway. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
  32. ^ "Summary - League Cup- Singapore". Soccerway. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
  33. ^ Syarif Rasani (11 October 2014). "Kean:We're not underdogs". Brunei Times. Archived from the original on 23 October 2014. Retrieved 16 October 2014.
  34. ^ a b "Steve Kean: Ex-Blackburn boss wins Singapore S-League title". BBC Sport. BBC. 21 November 2015. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
  35. ^ Duerden, John. "Melbourne's new number two still seeking to shrug off Premier League troubles". The World Game. Special Broadcasting Service. Retrieved 27 February 2021.
  36. ^ "Ex-Premier League manager Steve Kean to leave Brunei DPMM". espn.co.uk. ESPN. 5 November 2017. Retrieved 10 November 2017.
  37. ^ "Steve Kean appointed Assistant Coach". Melbourne Victory. 23 October 2020. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
  38. ^ "Steve Kean on Melbourne move". Melbourne Victory. Melbourne Victory FC. Retrieved 27 February 2021.
  39. ^ Lynch, Michael (17 April 2021). "Brebner out after Victory's 7-0 humiliation against Melbourne City". The Sydney Morning Herald.
  40. ^ "Steve Kean confirmed as interim Head Coach". Melbourne Victory. 19 April 2021.
  41. ^ "Blackburn manager Steve Kean banned for drink driving". The Daily Telegraph. 15 August 2011. Archived from the original on 10 January 2012. Retrieved 21 August 2011.
  42. ^ "Steve Kean". Soccerbase. Retrieved 24 March 2012.
  43. ^ "Brunei Duli Pengiran Muda Mahkota FC". Soccerway. Retrieved 17 April 2014.

External links

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