Kevin Keegan plans farewell, but says 'no statue until I have died!'

The football legend, who played for England and Newcastle before going on to manage both sides, shared the health update on Sunday, indicating that the disease has spread to other parts of his body.

Keegan, 75, was diagnosed with stomach cancer in January and is now planning his farewell, stating at an event last weekend that he wanted to "say goodbye properly" to supporters.

One of English football's all-time greats, Keegan won titles at Liverpool and Hamburger SV, and as a manager led Newcastle from the second division to the brink of Premier League glory and also took England to Euro 2000.

But when asked by Peter Graves at an event in Tyne Theatre on Sunday, he said he did not want a statue.

“My statue is the way people receive me," he said, adding that he had not been back to St James's Park since a dispute with the Newcastle board led to his departure as manager in 2009, his last job in football.

"You will have to wait until I die, I'm afraid," he added. "I'm not against the statues that are outside."

“I want to say goodbye. I didn’t get the chance when I left the club last time."

Here are the statistics around Kevin Keegan's career.

Kevin Keegan's honours as a player

With Liverpool

Football League First Division: 1972–73, 1975–76, 1976–77

FA Cup: 1973–74; runner-up: 1976–77

FA Charity Shield: 1974, 1976

European Cup: 1976–77

UEFA Cup: 1972–73, 1975–76

With Hamburger SV

Bundesliga: 1978–79

European Cup runner-up: 1979–80

With England

British Home Championship: 1973, 1975, 1979, 1982

Individual

Ballon d'Or: 1978, 1979

Kevin Keegan's managerial statistics

Newcastle 1992-1997: Win 55%, Draw 20%, Lose 25%

Keegan led Newcastle from Division 2 [the modern-day League 1] to the Premier League and challenged for the title in 1995-96, but lost out to Manchester United. He led the club in Europe the next season before resigning due to differences with the board.

Fulham 1998-1999: Win 62%, Draw 20%, Lose 18%

Keegan took over with Fulham in the third tier, he led the team to the second tier with the help of an impressive squad bankrolled by Harrods owner Mohamed Al-Fayed. He left in 1999 to become England manager.

England 1999-2000: Win 39%, Draw 39%, Lose 22%

His time with the national side was brief, managing to qualify for Euro 2000 but getting knocked out in the group stage. His final game in charge was a home defeat to Germany, the last match at the old Wembley.

Manchester City 2001-2005: Win 44%, Draw 22%, Lose 34%

Keegan immediately won promotion to the Premier League in his first season with City, where they have stayed ever since. He established them as a top-flight club before retiring from football in 2005.

Newcastle 2008: Win 32%, Draw 22%, Lose 46%

Having come out of retirement in 2008 to take over at Newcastle, Keegan guided the club away from the relegation zone but left in the summer after a dispute with the club's ownership.