The Newcastle United star who worked for NASA before becoming one of Kevin Keegan’s entertainers

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Newcastle United fans will always look back on Kevin Keegan’s time at the club with fond memories.

The 1995/96 season was the closest the Magpies ever came to winning the Premier League title, having led Manchester United by 12 points at one point.

Sadly, their form in the second half of the season took a big turn for the worse with Kevin Keegan’s usually clinical Newcastle United side struggling to find the back of the net, losing their lead and ultimately finishing second that season.

It was evident that the wheels had fallen off after Keegan’s ‘I would love it’ rant which saw him go on a passionate speech about how Newcastle were still fighting for the Premier League title, despite their dip in form.

Newcastle legend Les Ferdinand admitted that Toon players joked about Keegan’s rant with him in the training ground but the evidence was clear that wearing his heart on his sleeve was a weakness and ultimate downfall.

The squad throughout the Keegan years were branded as ‘The Entertainers’. They were known for their fast-attacking style of football and high-scoring games. A lot of Newcastle players who were at the club during his reign have gone on to be recognised as some of the best to have worn the black-and-white stripes.

There is another player who perhaps goes under the radar in that team – he might not have played football at all if his career choices went a different direction.

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Shaka Hislop’s career away from football before joining Newcastle

Former Newcastle goalkeeper Shaka Hislop didn’t feature as often as he would’ve liked for the Magpies. He spent a lot of time on the bench due to how well Pavel Srnicek was performing during that time.

However, Hislop still managed to make 71 appearances during his three seasons at the club, keeping 25 clean sheets.

He made the most appearances during the 1995/96 campaign but suffered an injury that kept him out for months, allowing Srnicek to take the number-one spot once again. Hislop left Newcastle on a free transfer at the end of the 1997/98 season having lost his place in the starting XI to young shot-stopper Shay Given.

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While he enjoyed a great career, Hislop revealed in an interview with FourFourTwo magazine in 2021 that he actually worked for NASA, the USA’s civil space program.

“I had been attending university in the US on a football scholarship, and had been doing a summer internship at NASA the year before I graduated.”

Hislop expanded on his time in the US further in an interview with the Sun in 2018, saying: “I have a degree in mechanical engineering and worked at NASA.

“The Space Station project was spread over multiple sites but the DC office where I worked we oversaw the SS Endeavour.

“I only spent a couple of months working there for a summer internship between my third and fourth years but it was an enlightening experience.”

After leaving Newcastle, Hislop played for West Ham United and Portsmouth before retiring at MLS club FC Dallas. The 56-year-old was also capped 26 times for Trinidad and Tobago, despite playing one for England’s under-21s.

Hislop now works as a pundit for ESPN and regularly watches Newcastle games. Following defeat to Brighton in October, Hislop expressed concern for Newcastle who were enduring a dip in form at the time but still backed Toon boss Eddie Howe to be successful.

Former Newcastle player Philippe Albert’s career after football

While Hislop did a lot of his university work before his playing career, his fellow teammate at Newcastle Philippe Albert had a bizarre career change after his playing career.

Albert scored one of Newcastle’s most iconic goals. The famous chip in Newcastle’s 5-0 win against Manchester United.

However, Albert opted to retire at age 30 to become a greengrocer.

The Belgian remained in that job for 11 years before giving it up but has no regrets about the change.

Now working as a pundit for Belgian TV, Albert reflected on his time as a greengrocer in an interview with the Guardian in 2019.

“I did it for 11 years and didn’t touch the money I earned in my football career,” he said.

“Up early, finishing late, that’s what I wanted: a normal life. I’m very proud of it. Otherwise, when you stop football, you do nothing. You have no life.”