Newcastle United Champions League history maker applies for Motherwell manager role
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A Newcastle United cult hero is reportedly battling it out with a former Australia manager and a former Everton star to become new manager of Scottish Premiership side Motherwell.
The Steelmen parted company with former manager Stuart Kettlewell last month after he cited ‘personal abuse’ as the main factor in his decision to tender his resignation. That was reluctantly accepted by the Fir Park hierarchy, who have now started their search for a successor amid reports of interest from several potential candidates from Scotland and abroad.
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Hide AdThe Motherwell Times have reported former Australia manager Graham Arnold is keen to work in Europe and has thrown his hat into the ring and former Everton forward Steven Naismith and ex-Preston North End boss Ryan Lowe have also been linked with the vacancy.
As per GlasgowWorld, the same outlet have now reported the Steelmen have also received interest from former Newcastle United and Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Temuri Ketsbaia. The Georgian became something of a cult hero during a three-year stay at St James Park after he was secured on a free transfer by former Magpies manager Kenny Dalglish in the summer of 1997. Just over a month after his arrival, Ketsbaia secured a place in United folklore when he scored a crucial late winner against Croatia Zagreb to take Newcastle into the group stages of the Champions League for the first time in their history.
However, the former AEK Athens star is probably better known for a somewhat bizarre ‘celebration’ after he fired home a late winner against Bolton Wanderers during the second half of his first season on Tyneside. In a game when Alan Shearer made his long-awaited return from a broken ankle, the Georgian scored in the closing stages before taking off his shirt and kicking the advertising hoardings at the Gallowgate End at St James Park.
Speaking about the incident with the Daily Mail in 2016, he said: “It was a very bad time for me, I deserved to be playing more. Now I had this opportunity to express myself, and I did. But it is not something I like. I am upset that people remember me because of this. That is a great shame, I did so much more for the club.”
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Hide AdAfter making over 70 appearances for the Magpies, Ketsbaia went on to play for Wolves, Dundee and Anorthosis Famagusta, before embarking on a managerial career with the latter in 2004. The 56-year-old has also enjoyed spells with Greek giants Olympiakos and AEK Athens and moved into international management with Georgia and Cyprus - but has been out of work since leaving his role with the latter in September last year.
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