Keegan wants to sign four or five players for next season, and while accepting that there will always be departures, with Stephen Carr and Peter Ramage having already left the club, he does not want to see wholesale changes.

However, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is still keen on Obafemi Martins, while Manchester United have been linked with a move for Michael Owen.

Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate, meanwhile, made his interest known in James Milner over the weekend, and is also understood to be keen on Alan Smith, while unsettled Charles N'Zogbia has long been expected to leave the club this summer.

But Keegan is adamant that every single one of his squad has bought into the ideas and philosophy he has brought to St James's Park.

Unlike Jose Mourinho, who famously took a rule book with him to Chelsea, Keegan's rules are unwritten, but this has not been a problem for the 57-year-old, who believes small changes made a big difference as Newcastle pulled away from relegation trouble.

He said: "Everybody at the club's been fantastic.

"I know there's stuff in the papers saying that players aren't happy, but I don't see that. I think they're happy at the club.

"I sat down with them when I first came in and said: 'What do you expect at the club? What do you like about this club, and what don't you like about it?'

"I took on board lots of things that they felt could be better.

"They bought into the new rules. They weren't written down, or anything.

"That's what we did, and that was the change around at this football club – lots of little things.

"They weren't big things. Lots of little things coming together means players coming in happy.

"You might find a player not happy here, and he'll probably be a player not in the side.

"I'd be amazed if you get many players not enjoying coming in to this football club.

"They might not enjoy being out of the team. Any player here can always come and see me.

"If they tell my why they're unhappy, maybe we can do something about it."