'The superstar of our group was our manager' - ex-players and staff in emotional return for Keegan tributes

[Getty Images] Kevin Keegan may have been fighting stage four cancer at the time, but the Newcastle United legend vowed there "will be a day when I'll come back" to St James' Park. It is rather poignant that he did not ultimately return. However, those inside the stadium will celebrate the 75-year-old's legacy on Sunday when Newcastle face Liverpool , another of his former clubs. It promises to be an emotional day for those former staff and players who have been invited back, including Warren Barton, who is flying in especially from the United States. "All of us will have a tear in our eye," the ex-Newcastle defender said. "Because, like when Sir Bobby [Robson] went, you just lose a little bit, but you never forget." Understandably so. Keegan took Newcastle from the brink of relegation to the third tier to the cusp of winning the Premier League just a few years later. This charismatic figure encouraged the city to dream when he returned to Newcastle as manager in 1992 following his previous spell as a player. Former first-team coach Derek Fazackerley knows that better than most. "He was never happy with mediocrity or just accepting what we were," he said of the two-time Ballon d'Or winner. "He was always trying to drive it forward because he was used to playing at the top and knew what it needed to sustain that." Those involved still look back on that period as one of the happiest of their lives, on and off the field. As much as ex-physio Derek Wright was "quite emotional" when he heard Keegan had died, a number of amusing memories also came flooding back, such as the day he beat Fazackerley in a race at the training ground. "Kevin must have had a bet on me and won some money because he then said: 'Right, come on, I'll give you a piggyback around the field,'" he said. "But he ended up in hospital for a few days after carrying me on his back. I think he prolapsed a disc. "It wasn't very nice for him but it's times like that where you think back: 'Oh my god – did that really happen?' He was just great. Unique, really." For ex-midfielder Lee Clark, too, there was pride as much as sadness when he witnessed the huge number of flowers and kits left outside St James' Park last month. The Hartlepool manager will also be there on Sunday, wearing his retro Newcastle shirt with Keegan's name and number seven on the back. "He gave the club its belief back," he said. "He gave the city its identity back. The people from Newcastle will be forever indebted. "People say to us lads now we were good in never turning down an autograph or a photograph, but we learned from the best because, let's get it right, the superstar of our group was our manager." Hit play below to hear Chris Heron of Wor Flags tell BBC Radio Newcastle of the plans for a tribute to Keegan at St James' Park before the Liverpool match... Explore all Newcastle content on BBC Sounds