A WEEK seems a long time in football, but a grateful Newcastle United moved with alacrity to replace Kevin Keegan with perhaps the only man in the game capable of blocking out the imposing shadow he cast over Tyneside, Kenny Dalglish.

Seven days, almost to the minute, after Keegan's resignation was formally accepted by Newcastle's board, Dalglish was paraded at St James' Park as Keegan's successor.

"An ordinary week at an ordinary football club," Newcastle's chief executive Freddie Fletcher said. But from the way the chairman Sir John Hall, sitting between Fletcher and Dalglish, motioned to the former as he introduced the latter, it was evident that the speed of the appointment has caused disorientation.

However, the fact that Newcastle had released details of their proposed share flotation last Thursday showed that a swift deal was imperative for stockmarket confidence. By capturing a man of Dalglish's stature, Newcastle have answered many questions, both financial and footballing.

The latter matter is what concerns the supporters, whose mood of mourning last week was replaced by one of expectation yesterday. Few men could have caused such a brightening and Dalglish is one of them, though he was keen to pay tribute to his predecessor's record before looking to the future. With singing fans audible outside, Dalglish snuffed out a suggestion that Keegan had left them in the lurch.

"I think you're out of order saying that," he snapped. "It's a good lurch to leave them in, isn't it? I don't think there would he too many fans criticising Kevin Keegan if you look at the work he has done at this club, and I go along with that."

Expecting a follow-up question about the pressure on Keegan, and the perception that the Scot had been similarly affected at Liverpool and Blackburn, Dalglish said: "I left Liverpool because I was unable to do the job because of two disasters in 14 years' service. I don't think there were too many complaints.

"At Blackburn I left for footballing reasons, reasons I couldn't make public because I was protecting Ray Harford. I've only ever not finished one contract in football and that was at Liverpool."

With the assistant manager Terry McDermott to his left and the coach Arthur Cox watching, Dalglish said they would be in charge for tonight's third-round FA Cup replay at St James' with Charlton and that he would be making no immediate changes in the back-room staff.

"Terry Mac will stay here. He's someone I know I can trust and the same goes for Arthur. He has got a vast knowledge of Newcastle football club and it would be wrong of me to dismiss that. I can learn from it," said Dalglish.

Dalglish briefly met the Newcastle players before facing the press and greeting the fans. Dalglish signed Alan Shearer and David Batty while at Blackburn, and played alongside and managed Peter Beardsley at Liverpool. With McDermott and Mark Lawrenson on the coaching staff, there will be plenty of familiar faces for the new man.

In signing a 3 1/2 year contract, and confirming that he is moving from Southport to the North-East, Dalglish's intent is clearly long-term and after this season he may review the staffing situation.

His first match as manager, although he does not know whether that is his official title yet, will he the visit to Southampton on Saturday to meet another old Liverpool colleague Graeme Souness.

Dalglish had first heard about the Newcastle post when going to a funeral in Scotland last Wednesday. "I thought it was a joke," was his initial reaction, "but then I phoned Terry Mac." It was not until Monday that Newcastle made contact, and they met at a restaurant in Preston.

"I spoke to Freddie Fletcher, the vice-chairman Freddie Shepherd and the chairman's son and they just said they would let me know." By yesterday morning Hall had obviously had enough of Bobby Robson's procrastination in Barcelona and, having issued the order to get Dalglish, he immediately flew home.

Now Newcastle expects - "the start of a new era" said Hall - and, 20 years after replacing Keegan as a player at Liverpool, Dalglish has done it again as a manager. He moved to Newcastle on the same day that American Express promised 150 new jobs in the city, and for the Toon Army Dalglish will do nicely.

Dalglish inherits a Newcastle side challenging for honours on three fronts - they are fourth in the Premiership, in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup and still in the FA Cup - but he was not about to make any rash predictions about success.