Rafa Benitez reveals how he wants to emulate Newcastle 'great' Kevin Keegan

Keegan's time in the dugout on Tyneside has been hitting the headlines after a number of explosive comments from his upcoming autobiography were released.

The 67-year-old has revealed several behind the scenes insights into life at St James's Park which prompted former recruitment chief Tony Jimenez to hit back at Keegan earlier this week.

Nonetheless, Benitez remains a big fan of the former England manager and has spoken about his desire to emulate Keegan's achievements at Newcastle.

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And the Spaniard has shed light on his 'good memories' of Keegan - which include a virtuoso performance against Real Madrid and the Spaniard's Premier League debut.

“I will tell you all I remember about Kevin Keegan: he was great here and I would like to do as well as he did here," he said.

“But I remember him because he was playing for Hamburg and they played against Real Madrid, and the first game was a disaster. He didn't touch the ball.

“But the second game when they played away, Perez Garcia was marking him man-to-man and they won, so he was amazing as a player.

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“My first game in the Premier League was against Manchester City when he was in charge and we drew at Anfield.

“Good memories as a player, as a manager, everything."

Keegan's autobiography is set to hit the shelves next week and, while Benitez is an admirer, the Spaniard won't be queuing for a copy on release day.

Instead, he's focused on his own team as they continue their search for a first triumph of the campaign.

When asked whether he would read Keegan's insight to life at St James's Park, Benitez said: “Not yet. If it's interesting, I will read the book. But always you have to have a clear idea.

"The main thing for me now is to make sure that these players do well, and that's it.

"I am so focused on my game that I don't have time to read what is going on now. I want to concentrate on my team."