On the morning of March 22, the 57-year-old had gone nine matches without a win since succeeding Sam Allardyce.

He was in serious danger of seeing his side dragged into the thick of the fight for Barclays Premier League survival.

But later that day, a 2-0 victory over Fulham at St James's Park brought an end to his wait and started a seven-game unbeaten run.

That sequence of positive results was interrupted by title hopefuls Chelsea on Monday afternoon, sparking Keegan's frank assessment of the Magpies' chance of breaking into the top four during his time at the helm.

However, as he prepares for tomorrow's final day clash with Everton at Goodison Park with the club's status secured, he admits he would happily have taken that not so very long ago.

Keegan said: "I think the answer is 'yes'. Anyone would have done in that situation.

"When you are sucked into a relegation fight, you tend to want to look up, but you feel forced to look down.

"You tend to want to be positive, but you think, 'If they win that...'

"I have been talking to other managers who are still in there and you always think, regardless of how positive you are, that everybody else is going to win their games.

"But that doesn't mean to say that the last two games haven't been important to me.

"You know from how I was on Monday how disappointed I was with the second-half performance against Chelsea.

"Maybe I shouldn't have been as disappointed as that when you think it's Chelsea, but I was."

Keegan's comments after the Chelsea game prompted his trip to London yesterday to meet club owner Mike Ashley.

The pair emerged from their talks with chairman Chris Mort, deputy chairman Derek Llambias, executive director (football) Dennis Wise and vice-president (player recruitment) Tony Jimenez with peace restored and having drawn up a plan of attack for this summer's transfer market.

It could prove to be a busy close-season for the Magpies, but first Keegan will have a chance to reflect upon a whirlwind few months back on Tyneside.

His latest mission has brought a series of challenges, but a man renowned for his enthusiasm has met them all head-on.

He said: "I have really enjoyed being back here.

"There have been a lot of things in the last six or seven weeks working in the players that would give you reason for optimism.

"It has been a mixed bag, really, but when you have a season like we have had at Newcastle, that's what you get, a mixed bag.

"It is not all highs and it is not all lows. If it is all lows, you end up getting pretty much sucked into that relegation fight and usually going down; if it is all highs, it's a fantastic season."