Kevin Keegan death unites Liverpool and Hamburg, mayor says

Liverpool legend Kevin Keegan became a "bridge between two great cities", Liverpool City Region Mayor Steve Rotheram has said in a letter written to the mayor of Hamburg.

Keegan, who died on Monday aged 75, left Liverpool FC in 1977 to join Hamburg SV. He was due to visit the German city with Rotheram for its annual Harbour festival, the mayor revealed.

In the letter Rotheram wrote that the cancer diagnosis meant the former England striker was unable to travel.

One of the most decorated English players of all time, winning the Ballon d'Or twice, he lifted seven major honours - including the club's first European Cup on his final appearance. It was after this Keegan made the move to Germany.

In the letter, seen by Local Democracy Reporting Service, Rotheram said: "For one half of our football-mad city, Kevin was a footballing hero, for the other, a well-respected irritant on derby day.

"He was not just a Liverpool FC legend and one of the most beloved figures our city has ever known.

"When Kevin left our shores for Germany in 1977, he did more than make a then-record transfer between two football clubs. He built a bridge between two great cities."

He said that Keegan's success belonged equally to Liverpool and Hamburg where he was both "admired and loved", adding, "To me, he embodied better than anyone else that famous maxim: football is the people's game."

Click here to read article