Wednesday 5 November 2014

Kenny Dalglish - Player Profile

Kenny Dalglish is believed by many to be the greatest player ever to play for Liverpool he has been christened King Kenny by the Kop and has managed the club twice including leading the club and the city through the aftermath of the Hillsborough disaster in 1989.

Dalglish joined Liverpool in 1977 from Glasgow Celtic for a then British record transfer fee of £440,000, he was signed as a replacement for club hero Kevin Keegan who had left to join Hamburg that summer.  What an investment that was probably the best money the club has ever spent.  During his time with Liverpool Dalglish won six championships, two FA cups, four League Cups, seven Charity Shields, three European Cups and one European Super Cup as a manager he won three more Championship, two more FA Cups and four more Charity shields and then in his second spell as manager won yet another league cup and reached a further FA Cup final a remarkable run of success that not many in world football can match.

Dalglish had plenty of ability and shone out as a star in an exceptional team scoring and creating goals but also always played with a smile and his dry sense of humour always shone through in television interviews.  Despite his ability and image any of his colleagues will tell you that Dalglish was no push over, he could put his foot in when he needed to and certainly let defenders know they were in a game, defenders always knew when kenny was on the pitch.

As a manager Dalglish won the clubs first double in his first season as manager, in fact he was a player manager even scoring the goal that won the league himself before going on and having a very successful spell as manager.  In 1989 Dalglish was manager of the club through and after the Hillsborough disaster and we couldn't have asked for a better man.  He led the club with great dignity through the worst time.  Kenny and his wife along with many of the players attended many of the funerals and supported the families through unimaginably terrible times and the stress on the man was there for all to see, the club and the city owe a huge debt of gratitude to Dalglish for what he did at this time.  Dalglish resigned from the club in 1991 stating it was the stress of the job, he returned to management in 1995 to win the League with Blackburn in 1995 ironically at Anfield. He later managed Newcastle finishing second in League and runner up in the FA Cup before returning to manage Liverpool in 2011, again when we needed him he was there.  At the time our club was in a state following our owners taking us to the brink of extinction and the disastrous management of Roy Hodgson.  Kenny stabilised the club even winning some silverware in to the bargain.

Arguably the greatest player and over two periods one of the best managers to have been at our club we can only be thankful that in 1977 he chose to join us.

@lfclumo 

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