Alan Hansen

Personal information
Full name	Alan David Hansen
Date of birth	(1955-06-13) 13 June 1955 (age 57)
Place of birth	Sauchie, Scotland
Height	1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Playing position	Centre back
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1973–1977	Partick Thistle	86[1]	(6)
1977–1991	Liverpool	434	(8)
National team
1979–1987	Scotland	26	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Alan David Hansen (born 13 June 1955 in Sauchie, Clackmannanshire, Scotland) is a Scottish former football player and BBC television football pundit. He played as a central defender for Partick Thistle, Liverpool and Scotland. In 1990 he became the first outfield player to win English league titles in three different decades.^[2] As a pundit, Hansen has acquired a reputation for his critical and analytical approach to the game, particularly in regard to defending.

Early life[link]

Hansen's grandfather Frederik Hansen (1912–1999) was Danish and was a distant relative of professional golfer Søren Hansen. Alan attended Lornshill Academy. Hansen received a permanent scar to his forehead from running into a plate-glass panel, aged 15. The glass was in a brand-new youth club which Hansen attended. During his 2 hour hospital stay he had 27 stitches in his head. He sued the education authority and won the case.^[3]

Playing career[link]

Sauchie Juniors[link]

Alan Hansen played his early football (along with his brother John) at the Scottish Junior league (Scottish equivalent of non league in England, one level below senior) club, Sauchie Juniors.^[4]

Partick Thistle[link]

Hansen turned down the opportunity to study at the University of Aberdeen, in order to join his brother John at Partick Thistle. During the summer while his application was being processed, he worked for six weeks in the offices of General Accident insurance — which he hated.^[5] As a trainee, Hansen was watching in the Hampden Park stands as Partick Thistle, which included his brother John, upset firm favourites Celtic in the 1971 Scottish League Cup final, beating their counterparts 4–1. In the summer of 1971, Hansen attended a trial at Liverpool Football Club having been spotted by their scouts, but was deemed to have failed to achieve the required standard.

After breaking into the first team at Thistle, Hansen was watched by top clubs, including Bob Paisley's Liverpool. In 1975–76 season Hansen played 21 times as Thistle won the Scottish First Division championship to gain entry into the Scottish Premier Division. By the end of the following season Hansen had 35 first team appearances, before moving south of the border to Liverpool. One extra bonus of signing for Liverpool meant that the nickname which he hated for years would soon be forgotten. After arriving at Anfield "Stretch" was forgotten and "Jockey" was born.

Liverpool[link]

Hansen cost Liverpool £110,000. He made his debut on 24 September 1977 in a league match at Anfield. Derby County were the visitors and were beaten by a single goal scored by Terry McDermott. Hansen hit his first goal the following month on 19 October during a European Cup 2nd round 1st leg tie at Anfield. He opened the scoring in the 14th minute as Liverpool demolished East German side Dynamo Dresden 5–1.

Hansen was put into the first team sporadically throughout the season — he wasn't in the side which lost the League Cup final after a replay to Nottingham Forest in 1978 but was selected for the side which retained the European Cup with a 1–0 victory over FC Bruges at Wembley, the goal scored by Kenny Dalglish. He managed 18 appearances in the First Division, where Liverpool finished runners-up to Nottingham Forest.

The following year Hansen was in the squad as Liverpool regained the League title and also fully established himself as a first choice central defender when long serving club captain Emlyn Hughes was sold to Wolves. He also made his full debut for Scotland. Jock Stein gave Hansen his Scotland debut on 19 May 1979 in a British Home Championship match at Ninian Park, Cardiff, in which Wales were the hosts and soundly beat the Scots 3–0. Hansen's 2nd cap came the following month on 2 June in a prestigious friendly against reigning World Champions Argentina, The South Americans beat the Scots by 3 goals to 1 at Hampden Park.

Liverpool's domination of club football continued in 1980 with another League title and then in 1981 they ended the season with their first League Cup after defeating West Ham United 2–1 in a replay at Villa Park. Hansen scored the winning goal in the 28th minute. They also regained the European Cup with a 1–0 victory over Real Madrid.

The league title returned to Anfield in 1982, and the team also retained the League Cup with victory over Tottenham Hotspur, although Hansen missed this triumph with injury. Hansen was selected in the Scotland squad for the summer's World Cup in Spain. The team failed to progress beyond the qualifying group due to drawing 2–2 with the USSR. An accidental collision between Hansen and central defensive partner Willie Miller allowed USSR striker Ramoz Shengelia through to score the Soviets' second goal.

In 1983, Liverpool once again took the League title and held on to the League Cup, this time defeating Manchester United in the final. The two trophies would remain at Anfield too in 1984, although Hansen was involved in a controversial incident in the League Cup final at Wembley when he appeared to handle a shot on the goal line. Despite protests from opponents and fierce Merseyside rivals Everton, no penalty was given. Liverpool won the final after a replay.

The club then completed a treble of trophies when they added yet another European Cup to the league title and League Cup. The final against AS Roma ended 1–1 and went to a penalty shoot-out, which Liverpool won.

Liverpool emerged trophy-less from the following season, and were banned from all European competition after the 1985 European Cup Final at Heysel was preceded by rioting which caused the deaths of 39 Juventus fans. Though the result of the game was immaterial, Liverpool lost it 1–0. Hansen would never play a European tie again.

Manager Joe Fagan retired after Heysel, and Hansen's friend, team-mate and fellow Scotsman Dalglish was appointed as player manager. He gave Hansen the captaincy and the season ended in triumph, as in 1986 Liverpool became only the third side in the 20th century to complete a League and FA Cup "double", following Tottenham in 1961 and Arsenal in 1971. Hansen lifted both trophies as captain and earned his first FA Cup winners' medal, thereby completing the domestic set.

Liverpool won nothing in 1987, losing the League Cup final when Arsenal defeated them 2–1, while arch-rivals Everton took the League title. But in 1988, arguably the most skilled Liverpool team of all, with Hansen as skipper, lost just twice as they coasted to the League title — Hansen's seventh — and reached the FA Cup final, where they were beaten 1–0 by Wimbledon in one of the competition's biggest shocks.

Hansen was restricted to six league appearances in 1988–89 due to a knee injury, as Liverpool surrendered the league title to Arsenal when they conceded a last minute goal that gave the North Londoners a 2–0 win.^[6]

In April 1989, after the Hillsborough disaster claimed the lives of 96 Liverpool fans, Hansen was among many Liverpool stars left distraught by the tragedy, attending 12 funerals and visiting the injured in hospital. Liverpool eventually won the FA Cup against Everton in the final at Wembley, though Hansen didn't lift the trophy — this honour was given to team-mate Ronnie Whelan who had deputised in Hansen's absence through injury and retained the role even after the club's first choice captain was fit again. Hansen did not complain. In the 1988–89 season, Liverpool lost the League title and a second "double" thanks to a crucial goal in the final seconds by Arsenal player Michael Thomas at Anfield which gave the Highbury club the title.

Hansen made more appearances the following season but his persistent knee problems continued to affect his fitness although he still captained Liverpool to another League title, which made it eight individually for Hansen, which was a record at the time. The club came close to the "double" yet again, but lost a thrilling FA Cup semi final 4–3 to Crystal Palace.

Hansen was unable to play in any competitive games during the 1990–91 season (when Liverpool finished second in the league and were trophyless for only the third time since Hansen's arrival 14 years earlier) and he retired in March, a month after Kenny Dalglish resigned as manager. At this stage Ronnie Moran was caretaker manager until the appointment of Graeme Souness in the permanent position shortly afterwards.^[7]

Scotland[link]

Hansen won the last of his 26 Scotland caps in 1987. The reason given for his lack of caps by Scotland coaches of the late 1970s and the whole of the 1980s was that a formidable partnership had formed between players Willie Miller and Alex McLeish at Aberdeen (managed at the time by Alex Ferguson). Indeed, Ferguson (in temporary charge after the sudden death of Jock Stein) controversially dropped Hansen from the squad for the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, citing Hansen's poor international form and reluctance to play international friendly games in the warm up to the World Cup as the reason.

After retirement[link]

There were strong rumours that Hansen would be approached to take over as manager of Liverpool after his former captain Graeme Souness left in 1994. However, he ruled himself out of the running, stating that despite his great affection for the club, he simply was not interested in coaching or management; a position he has maintained ever since Roy Evans got the job.^{[citation needed]}

Media career[link]

Alan Hansen presenting an award in 2006

After rejecting the idea of management, when he retired from football in 1991 he planned to take three months off. After his wife pointed out that during his rest period, the telephone had not rung once, he started calling the networks.^[5] Sky Television employed Hansen as a pundit and summariser almost as soon as he ceased playing, and soon he had established enough of a reputation as a considered observer and thinker within the game for the BBC to approach him. He began working for BBC Radio 5 Live before moving on to Match of the Day.

For more than a decade, Hansen has been employed as the main pundit for the BBC's football coverage (rights to show matches or highlights permitting) and he is known as a calm, authoritative, and rational analyst of the game who is particularly keen on highlighting the triumphs and "shocking", "poor" or "diabolical" mistakes of defenders and commenting on "mediocre" performances.^[8][9]

Commentating on the Argentina-Romania match in the 1994 World Cup, Hansen said that "the Argentine defender warrants shooting for a mistake like that". The previous day, Colombian defender Andrés Escobar had been shot dead, a killing widely attributed to punishment for an own goal Escobar scored in Colombia's 2–1 loss to the United States earlier in the same tournament. The BBC issued a public apology for Hansen's choice of words.^[10]

Hansen is also known for coining the phrase "you can't win anything with kids," having made the remark following Manchester United's 3–1 defeat to Aston Villa on the opening day of the 1995–96 Premier League season. After selling high profile players like Ince, Hughes and Kanchelskis in the summer of 1995, United had introduced several youth team players including Paul Scholes, David Beckham, Nicky Butt and Gary Neville into the first team, yet proved Hansen wrong by winning a league and cup double that same season. Hansen still continues to this day to repeat these facts, for humorous effect.

Away from football analysis, Hansen is a keen golfer, and he is a member of Hillside Golf Club playing off a handicap of three and regularly returns to the town of his birth near Alloa in Clackmannanshire, Scotland to participate in celebrity golf tournaments in aid of various charities. He has hosted documentaries on the sport and worked at the Masters Tournament for the BBC. He has also presented programmes on the rise in status and wealth of the modern footballer and appeared in television commercials, such as Carlsberg and Morrisons supermarkets.^[11]

He is a columnist for the Daily Telegraph, Telegraph.co.uk and the BBC website on football issues and has also worked as a motivational speaker.

Controversy[link]

During an appearance on Match of the Day on 21 December 2011, while discussing the prominence of racism in English football following allegations against Premier League players Luis Suarez and John Terry, Hansen caused controversy after twice using the word "coloured" in reference to black footballers. The BBC received 82 complaints by the following morning while some criticised Hansen's choice of words on social network Twitter. Shamrock Rovers player Rohan Ricketts tweeted "Is this Alan Hansen guy taking the f****** piss?? I’m not coloured??? He is part of the problem when using that word. We are BLACK Alan! Wtf [sic]." Hansen issued an apology the following day, saying "'I unreservedly apologise for any offence caused – this was never my intention and I deeply regret the use of the word."^[12][13]

Personal life[link]

Hansen lives in Southport with his wife Janet.^[14]They have been married since 1980^[15]and have a son Adam and a daughter Lucy.^[16]

Honours[link]

Partick Thistle

• Scottish First Division: 1

1975–76

Liverpool

• League Championship: 8

1978–79, 1979–80, 1981–82, 1982–83, 1983–84, 1985–86, 1987–88, 1989–90

• FA Cup: 2

1985–86, 1988–89

• League Cup: 3

1980–81, 1982–83, 1983-4

• FA Charity Shield: 6

1977–78*, 1979–80, 1980–81, 1982–83, 1986–87*, 1989–90

• European Cup: 3

1977–78, 1980–81, 1983–84

• Screen Sport Super Cup: 1

1985–86

* Shared

Runner Up[link]

Liverpool FC

• 1977–78 League Championship (Level 1)
• 1978–79 European Super Cup
• 1981–82 Intercontinental Cup
• 1983–84 Charity Shield
• 1984–85 Charity Shield
• 1984–85 Intercontinental Cup
• 1984–85 European Super Cup
• 1984–85 League Championship (Level 1)
• 1984–85 European Cup
• 1986–87 League Cup
• 1986–87 League Championship (Level 1)
• 1987–88 FA Cup
• 1988–89 League Championship (Level 1)

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Alan Hansen

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Alan Hansen

• Official past players at Liverpoolfc.tv
• LFChistory.net player profile
• Liverpool appearances part 1 1977/79-1979-80 at Sporting-heroes.net
• Liverpool appearances part 2 1980-81-1982-83 at Sporting-heroes.net
• Liverpool appearances part 3 1983-84-1986-87 at Sporting-heroes.net
• Liverpool appearances part 3 1987-88-1989-90 at Sporting-heroes.net
• Scottish caps 1979–87 at Sporting-heroes.net
• "Alan Hansen's Telegraph column archive" Telegraph.co.uk

v t e Scotland squad – 1982 FIFA World Cup 1 Rough 2 McGrain 3 Gray 4 Souness (c) 5 Hansen 6 Miller 7 Strachan 8 Dalglish 9 Brazil 10 Wark 11 Robertson 12 Wood 13 McLeish 14 Narey 15 Jordan 16 Hartford 17 Evans 18 Archibald 19 Sturrock 20 Provan 21 Burley 22 Leighton Coach: Stein

Kenny Dalglish

Personal information
Full name	Kenneth Mathieson Dalglish
Date of birth	(1951-03-04) 4 March 1951 (age 61)
Place of birth	Glasgow, Scotland
Height	1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)
Playing position	Second striker
Youth career
1967–1968	Cumbernauld United
1968–1969	Celtic
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1969–1977	Celtic	204	(112)
1977–1990	Liverpool	355	(118)
Total		559	(230)
National team
1971–1986	Scotland	102	(30)
Teams managed
1985–1991	Liverpool
1991–1995	Blackburn Rovers
1997–1998	Newcastle United
2000	Celtic
2011–2012	Liverpool
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Kenneth Mathieson "Kenny" Dalglish (Scottish pronunciation:  [dɛlɡliːʃ]) MBE (born 4 March 1951) is a Scottish former footballer and manager. In a 22-year playing career, he played for two clubs, Celtic and Liverpool, winning numerous honours with both. He is Scotland's most capped player, with 102 appearances, and joint leading goal scorer, with 30 international goals. Dalglish was voted PFA Player of the Year for the 1982–83 season,^[1] and Football Writers' Footballer of the Year in 1979 and 1983. In 2009 FourFourTwo magazine named Dalglish as the greatest striker in post-war British football,^[2][3] and in 2006 he topped a Liverpool fans' poll of "100 Players Who Shook the Kop".^[4] He has been inducted into both the Scottish and English football Halls of Fame.

Dalglish began his career with Celtic and between 1971 and 1977 he won four Scottish First Division titles, four Scottish Cups and one Scottish League Cup with the club. In 1977, Bob Paisley paid a British transfer record of £440,000 to bring Dalglish to Liverpool. His years at Liverpool marked one of the club's most successful periods: he won seven league titles, three European Cups and five domestic trophies. For these achievements and his style of play he was given the name King Kenny by Liverpool supporters. Dalglish became player-manager of Liverpool in 1985 and in a six-year tenure won three league titles and two FA Cups. He resigned as Liverpool manager in 1991.

Eight months later Dalglish made a return to football management with Blackburn Rovers, whom he led from the Second Division to the Premier League title in 1995. Soon afterwards he stepped down as Blackburn manager to become Director of Football at the club, before leaving altogether in 1996. In January 1997 Dalglish took over at Newcastle United. Newcastle were Premier League and FA Cup runners-up during his tenure, but could only finish 13th in 1997–98. He was dismissed two games into the following season. Dalglish was appointed Director of Football at Celtic in 1999 but a stint as caretaker manager ended in an acrimonious departure the following year.

Between 2000 and 2010 Dalglish focused on charitable concerns, founding The Marina Dalglish Appeal with his wife to raise money for cancer care. In January 2011 Dalglish was appointed Liverpool's caretaker manager, which was made permanent in May 2011.^[5][6] Despite winning the League Cup, Liverpool finished a disappointing 8th in the Premier League and Dalglish was dismissed in May 2012.^[7]

Playing career[link]

Early career[link]

Dalglish, the son of an engineer, was born in Dalmarnock in the East End of Glasgow, and was brought up in Milton in the north of Glasgow. He moved to the docklands of Govan, near Ibrox, home of Rangers football club, when he was 15, and he grew up supporting Rangers.^[8][9] Dalglish attended Milton Bank Primary School in Milton and started out as a goalkeeper.^[10] He then attended High Possil Senior Secondary School, where he won the inter-schools five-a-side and the inter-year five-a-side competitions. He won the Scottish Cup playing for Glasgow Schoolboys and Glasgow Schools, and was then selected for the Scottish schoolboys team that went undefeated in a home nations Victory Shield tournament.^[10] In 1966 Dalglish had unsuccessful trials at West Ham and Liverpool.^[11]

Celtic[link]

Dalglish signed a provisional contract with Celtic in May 1967. Celtic manager Jock Stein sent Sean Fallon to see Dalglish and his parents at their home; on hearing that Fallon was at the door, Dalglish rushed upstairs to remove the Rangers posters from his bedroom walls.^[12] In his first season Dalglish was loaned out to Cumbernauld United, for whom he scored 37 goals.^[13] During this time he also worked as an apprentice joiner.^[10] By the following year Dalglish was a full professional and a regular member of the highly-rated Celtic reserve team that became known as the Quality Street Gang, due to its having a large number of future Scottish internationals, including Danny McGrain, George Connelly, Lou Macari, and David Hay.^[14] Dalglish made his first-team competitive debut for Celtic as a substitute in the 1968 Scottish League Cup quarter-final tie against Hamilton Academical.^[15] Dalglish was in the stands when the Ibrox disaster occurred at an Old Firm match in January 1971, when 66 Rangers fans were killed.^[16]

By the 1971–72 season, Dalglish had become established in the Celtic first team. He scored his first competitive goal for the club, a penalty, in a 2–0 Scottish League Cup tie win over Rangers at Ibrox in August 1971, and that season went on to score 23 league and cup goals in 49 appearances. The following season Dalglish was Celtic's leading scorer, with 41 goals in all competitions. He was made Celtic captain in the 1975–76 season, during which Celtic failed to win a trophy for the first time in 12 years, after Stein was badly injured in a car crash and missed most of the season.^[17] On 10 August 1977, after making 320 appearances and scoring 167 goals for Celtic, Dalglish was signed by Liverpool manager Bob Paisley for a British transfer fee record of £440,000.^[18] Dalglish's departure was unpopular with the Celtic fans, and when he returned in August 1978 to play in Stein's testimonial, he was booed by a large contingent of Celtic supporters.^[19]

Liverpool[link]

Dalglish was signed to replace Kevin Keegan, and Liverpool supporters were initially sceptical that he could perform this task.^[20] However, Dalglish quickly settled into his new club. He made his debut, wearing Keegan's number seven shirt, on 13 August 1977 in the season opener at Wembley, in the Charity Shield against Manchester United. He scored his first goal for Liverpool in his league debut a week later on 20 August, against Middlesbrough. Dalglish also scored three days later on his Anfield debut in a 2–0 victory over Newcastle United, and he scored Liverpool's sixth goal when they beat Keegan's Hamburg 6–0 in the second leg of the 1977 UEFA Super Cup final. By the end of his first season with Liverpool, Dalglish had played 62 times and scored 31 goals, including the winning goal in the 1978 European Cup Final final at Wembley against Bruges.

In his second season Dalglish recorded a personal best of 21 league goals for the club, and he was also named Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year. He did not miss a league game for Liverpool until the 1980–81 season, when he appeared in 34 out of 42 league games and scored only eight goals as Liverpool finished fifth in the league, but still won the European Cup and Football League Cup. He recovered his goal-scoring form the following season, and was an ever-present player in the league once again, scoring 13 goals as Liverpool became league champions for the 13th time, and the third time since Dalglish's arrival. It was also around this time that he began to form a potent strike partnership with Ian Rush;^[21] Dalglish began to play just off Rush, "running riot in the extra space afforded to him in the hole".^[22] Dalglish was voted PFA Player of the Year for the 1982–83 season,^[1] during which he scored 18 league goals as Liverpool retained their title. From 1983 Dalglish became less prolific as a goalscorer, though he remained a regular player.

After becoming player-manager on the retirement of Joe Fagan in the 1985 close season, Dalglish selected himself for just 21 First Division games in 1985–86 as Liverpool won the double, but he started the FA Cup final win over Everton. On the last day of the league season, his goal in a 1–0 away win over Chelsea gave Liverpool their 16th league title.^[23] Dalglish had a personally better campaign in the 1986–87 season, scoring six goals in 18 league appearances, but by then he was committed to giving younger players priority for a first team place.

With the sale of Ian Rush to Juventus in 1987, Dalglish formed a new striker partnership of new signings John Aldridge and Peter Beardsley for the 1987–88 season, and he played only twice in a league campaign which saw Liverpool gain their 17th title. Dalglish did not play in Liverpool's 1988–89 campaign, and he made his final league appearance on 5 May 1990 as a substitute against Derby. At 39, he was one of the oldest players ever to play for Liverpool.^[24] His final goal had come three years earlier, in a 3–0 home league win over Nottingham Forest on 18 April 1987.^[25]

Scotland[link]

Tommy Docherty gave Dalglish his debut for the Scottish national side as a substitute in the 1–0 Euro 1972 qualifier victory over Belgium on 10 November 1971 at Pittodrie. Dalglish scored his first goal for Scotland a year later on 15 November 1972 in the 2–0 World Cup qualifier win over Denmark at Hampden Park. Scotland eventually qualified and he went to the 1974 World Cup in West Germany, where they were eliminated during the group stages.

In 1976, Dalglish scored the winning goal for Scotland at Hampden Park against England, by nutmegging Ray Clemence. A year later Dalglish scored against the same opponents and goalkeeper at Wembley, in another 2–1 win.

Dalglish went on to play in both the 1978 World Cup in Argentina – scoring against eventual runners-up the Netherlands in a famous 3–2 win^[26] – and the 1982 World Cup in Spain, scoring against New Zealand. On both occasions Scotland failed to get past the group stage. In total, Dalglish played 102 times for Scotland (a national record) and he scored 30 goals, (also a national record, which he shares with Denis Law.^[27][28]) Dalglish's final appearance for Scotland, after 15 years as a full international, was on 12 November 1986 at Hampden Park in a Euro 1988 qualifying game against Luxembourg, which Scotland won 3–0. His 30th and final international goal had been two years earlier, on 14 November 1984, in a 3–1 win over Spain in a World Cup qualifier, also at Hampden Park.^[29]

Managerial career[link]

Liverpool[link]

After the Heysel Stadium disaster in 1985 and Joe Fagan's subsequent resignation as manager, Dalglish became player-manager of Liverpool. In his first season in charge in 1985–86, he guided the club to its first "double". Liverpool achieved this by winning the League Championship by two points over Everton (Dalglish himself scored the winner in a 1–0 victory over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge to secure the title on the final day of the season^[23]), and the FA Cup by beating Everton in the final.^[30] The following season was trophyless for Liverpool. Before the 1987–88 season, Dalglish signed a number of new players: Peter Beardsley from Newcastle, John Aldridge from Oxford United (who replaced Ian Rush); winger John Barnes from Watford; and Oxford United midfielder Ray Houghton. The new-look Liverpool side shaped by Dalglish topped the league for almost the entire season, and had a run of 37 matches unbeaten in all competitions (including 29 in the league; 22 wins and 7 draws) from the beginning of the season to 21 February 1988, when they lost to Everton in the league. Liverpool were crowned champions with four games left to play, having suffered just two defeats from 40 games. However, Dalglish's side lost the 1988 FA Cup Final to underdogs Wimbledon.^[31] Dalglish guided Liverpool to victory over Everton in the second all-Merseyside FA Cup final in 1989, but was deprived of a second double in the last minute of the final game of the season. In the 1989–90 season Liverpool won their third league title under Dalglish. At the end of the season Dalglish also received his third Manager of the Year award. Dalglish resigned as manager of Liverpool (on health grounds^[32]) on 22 February 1991, two days after a 4–4 draw with rivals Everton^[33] in which Liverpool surrendered the lead four times. At the time of his resignation, the club were three points ahead in the league and still in contention for the FA Cup.^[34]

Hillsborough disaster[link]

Dalglish was the manager of Liverpool at the time of the Hillsborough disaster on 15 April 1989. The disaster claimed 94 lives on the day, with the final death toll reaching 96. Dalglish attended many funerals of the victims – including four in one day^[35] – and his presence in the the aftermath of the disaster has been described as "colossal and heroic".^[36] Dalglish broke a twenty-year silence about the disaster in March 2009. He expressed regret that the police and the FA did not consider delaying the kick-off of the match, a move which might have averted the 96 deaths.^[37] During the Hillsborough Memorial Service on 15 April 2011, Liverpool MP Steve Rotherham announced he would submit an Early Day Motion to have Dalglish knighted, "not only for his outstanding playing and managerial career, but also the charity work he has done with his wife, Marina, for breast cancer support and what he did after Hillsborough. It is common knowledge it affected him deeply".^[38]

Blackburn Rovers[link]

Dalglish returned to management in October 1991, at Second Division Blackburn Rovers. By the turn of 1992 they were top of the Second Division, and then suffered a dip in form before recovering to qualify for the playoffs,^[39] during which Dalglish led Blackburn into the new Premier League by beating Leicester City 1–0 in the Second Division Play-off final at Wembley. The resulting promotion meant that Blackburn were back in the top flight of English football for the first time since 1966.^[40] In 1992, Dalglish signed Southampton's Alan Shearer for a British record fee of £3.5 million.^[41] Despite a serious injury which ruled Shearer out for half the season, Dalglish achieved fourth position with the team in the first year of the new Premier League. The following year, Dalglish failed in an attempt to sign Roy Keane.^[42] Blackburn finished two positions higher the following season, as runners-up to Manchester United. By this time, Dalglish had added England internationals Tim Flowers and David Batty to his squad. At the start of the 1994–95 season Dalglish paid a record £5 million for Chris Sutton, with whom Shearer formed an effective strike partnership. By the last game of the season, both Blackburn and Manchester were in contention for the title. Blackburn had to travel to Liverpool, and Manchester United faced West Ham United in London. Blackburn lost 2–1, but still won the title since Manchester United failed to get a result in London. The title meant that Dalglish was only the fourth football manager in history to lead two different clubs to top-flight league championships, after Tom Watson, Herbert Chapman and Brian Clough. Dalglish became Director of Football at Blackburn in June 1995. He left the club at the end of the season after a disappointing campaign under his replacement, Ray Harford.

Newcastle United[link]

In January 1997 Dalglish was appointed manager of Premier League side Newcastle United on a three-and-a-half-year contract, taking over from Kevin Keegan. Dalglish guided the club from fourth position to a runner-up spot in May and a place in the new format of the following season's UEFA Champions League. He then broke up the team which had finished 2nd two years running, selling popular players like Peter Beardsley, Lee Clark, Les Ferdinand and David Ginola and replaced them with aging stars like John Barnes (34), Ian Rush (36) and Stuart Pearce (35), as well as virtual unknowns like Des Hamilton and Garry Brady.^[43] He also made some good long-term signings like Gary Speed and Shay Given. The 1997–98 campaign saw Newcastle finish in only 13th place and, despite Dalglish achieving some notable successes during the season (including a 3–2 UEFA Champions League win over Barcelona and an FA Cup final appearance against Arsenal), he was sacked by Freddie Shepherd after two draws in the opening two games of the subsequent 1998–1999 season, and replaced by former Chelsea manager Ruud Gullit.^[44] One commentator has since written, "His 20 months at Newcastle United are the only part of Kenny Dalglish's career that came anywhere near failure".^[45]

Celtic[link]

In June 1999 he was appointed Director of Football at Celtic, with his former Liverpool signing John Barnes appointed as head coach.^[46] Barnes was sacked in February 2000 and Dalglish was appointed manager, and he guided them to the Scottish League Cup final where they beat Aberdeen 2–0 at Hampden Park, and he left the club shortly thereafter. Dalglish was unhappy with the departure and Celtic's termination of his contract. He had recommended previous manager Barnes to the club and offered himself as a replacement manager should the young Barnes not succeed in the role.^[47] In spite of the termination of his contract, Dalglish vowed to stay on as Director of football. After a brief legal battle, Dalglish accepted Celtic's settlement offer of £600,000.^[48]

Return to Liverpool[link]

Dalglish managing Liverpool against Bolton in August 2011

In April 2009 Liverpool manager Rafael Benítez invited Dalglish to take up a role at the club's youth academy. The appointment was confirmed in July 2009,^[49] and Dalglish was also made the club's ambassador.^[18]

Following Benítez's departure from Liverpool in June 2010, Dalglish was asked to help find a replacement, and in July Fulham's Roy Hodgson was appointed manager.^[50] However, a poor series of results at the start of the 2010–11 season led to Liverpool fans calling for Dalglish's return as manager as early as October 2010,^[51] and with no subsequent improvement in Liverpool's results up to the end of the year (during which time the club was bought by New England Sports Ventures),^[52] Hodgson left Liverpool and Dalglish was appointed caretaker manager on 8 January 2011.^[53] Dalglish's first game in charge was on 9 January 2011 at Old Trafford against Manchester United in the 3rd round of the FA Cup, which Liverpool lost 1–0.^[54] Dalglish's first league game in charge was against Blackpool on 12 January 2011; Liverpool lost 2–1.^[55] After the game, Dalglish admitted that Liverpool faced "a big challenge".^[56]

Shortly after his appointment, Dalglish indicated he would like the job on a permanent basis if it was offered to him,^[57] and on 19 January the Liverpool chairman Tom Werner stated that the club's owners would favour this option.^[58] On 22 January 2011, Dalglish led Liverpool to their first win since his return, against Wolves at Molineux.^[59] After signing Andy Carroll from Newcastle for a British record transfer fee of £35 million and Luis Suárez from Ajax for £22.8 million at the end of January (in the wake of Fernando Torres's sale to Chelsea for £50 million), some journalists noted that Dalglish had begun to assert his authority at the club.^[60][61] Following a 1–0 victory against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in February 2011, described by Alan Smith as "a quite brilliant display in terms of discipline and spirit"^[62] and a "defensive masterplan" by David Pleat,^[63] Henry Winter wrote, "it can only be a matter of time before he [Dalglish] is confirmed as long-term manager".^[64]

On 12 May 2011, Liverpool announced that Dalglish had been given a three-year contract.^[65] In February 2012, Dalglish led Liverpool to their first trophy in six years, with victory in the 2011–12 Football League Cup.^[66] In the same season he also led Liverpool to the 2012 FA Cup Final where they lost 2–1 to Chelsea. Despite the success in domestic cups, Liverpool finished the season eighth, their worst showing in the league since 1994; they also failed to qualify for Europe's Champions League for a third straight season.^[67] Following the end of the season, Liverpool sacked Dalglish on 16 May 2012, citing that "results in the Premier League have been disappointing". Dalglish's second stint in charge at Anfield proved controversial at times. The Scot consistently defended Luis Suarez in the wake of the striker's eight-match ban for allegedly racially abusing Manchester United defender Patrice Evra when the teams met in October 2011. After the Uruguayan's apparent refusual to shake Evra's hand in the return fixture in February 2012, an apology from both player and manager came only after the intervention of the owners. Critics have also questioned whether the England trio of Andy Carroll, Jordan Henderson and Stewart Downing represented value for money at a combined cost of approximately £70m.^[68]

Personal life[link]

Dalglish has been married to Marina since 26 November 1974.^{[citation needed]} His best man at his wedding was another ex-professional footballer, Jim Donald of Queen of the South.^[69] The couple have four children, including Kelly, born 1975 and Paul, born 1977. Kelly is now a correspondent for ESPN UK; Paul followed in his father's footsteps as a footballer, and is the current manager of the Austin Aztex. His other daughters are Lynsey, born 1982 and Lauren, born 1988.^{[citation needed]} Dalglish's wife was diagnosed with breast cancer in March 2003, but she made a good recovery from the disease. She was awarded an MBE in the 2009 New Year Honours list for services to charity.^[70]

Charity work[link]

In 2004, Dalglish and his wife founded the charity The Marina Dalglish Appeal to raise money to help treat cancer. Dalglish has participated in a number of events to raise money for the charity, including a replay of the 1986 FA Cup Final.^[71] In June 2007 a Centre for Oncology at University Hospital Aintree was opened, after the charity had raised £1.5 million.^[72] Dalglish often competes in the annual Gary Player Invitational Tournament, a charity golfing event which raises money for children's causes around the world.^[73] On 1 July 2011, Dalglish was awarded an honorary degree by the University of Ulster, for services to football and charity.^[74]

Career statistics[link]

Club[link]

National team statistics[link]

International goals[link]

Scores and results list Scotland's goal tally first.

Goal	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	15 November 1972	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Denmark	1–0	2–0	WCQG8
2	16 May 1973	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Northern Ireland	1–2	1–2	BHC
3	27 March 1974	Waldstadion, Frankfurt	West Germany	1–2	1–2	Friendly
4	14 May 1974	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Wales	1–0	2–0	BHC
5	6 June 1974	Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo	Norway	2–1	2–1	Friendly
6	30 October 1974	Hampden Park, Glasgow	East Germany	3–0	3–0	Friendly
7	20 May 1975	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Northern Ireland	2–0	3–0	BHC
8	29 October 1975	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Denmark	1–1	3–1	ECQG4
9	8 May 1976	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Northern Ireland	3–0	3–0	BHC
10	15 May 1976	Hampden Park, Glasgow	England	2–1	2–1	BHC
11	8 September 1976	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Finland	3–0	6–0	Friendly
12	27 April 1977	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Sweden	2–1	3–1	Friendly
13	1 June 1977	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Northern Ireland	1–0	3–0	BHC
14	1 June 1977	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Northern Ireland	3–0	3–0	BHC
15	4 June 1977	Wembley Stadium, London	England	2–0	2–1	BHC
16	15 June 1977	Estadio Nacional, Santiago	Chile	1–0	4–2	Friendly
17	21 September 1977	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Czechoslovakia	3–0	3–1	WCQG7
18	12 October 1977	Anfield, Liverpool	Wales	2–0	2–0	WCQG7
19	11 June 1978	Estadio San Martin, Mendoza	Netherlands	1–1	3–2	WCG4
20	25 October 1978	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Norway	1–1	3–2	ECQG2
21	25 October 1978	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Norway	2–2	3–2	ECQG2
22	7 June 1979	Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo	Norway	2–0	4–0	ECQG2
23	26 March 1980	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Portugal	1–0	4–1	ECQG2
24	25 February 1981	Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan	Israel	1–0	1–0	WCQG8
25	23 March 1982	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Netherlands	2–0	2–1	Friendly
26	15 June 1982	Estadio La Rosaleda, Málaga	New Zealand	1–0	5–2	WCG6
27	15 December 1982	Heysel Stadion, Brussels	Belgium	1–0	2–3	ECQG1
28	15 December 1982	Heysel Stadion, Brussels	Belgium	2–1	2–3	ECQG1
29	12 September 1984	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Yugoslavia	3–1	6–1	Friendly
30	14 November 1984	Hampden Park, Glasgow	Spain	3–1	3–1	WCQG7

Playing honours[link]

Celtic (1969–1977)

• Scottish First Division (4): 1971–72, 1972–73, 1973–74, 1976–77
• Scottish Cup (4): 1972, 1974, 1975, 1977
• Scottish League Cup (1): 1975

Liverpool (1977–1990)

• Football League First Division (6): 1978–79, 1979–80, 1981–82, 1982–83, 1983–84, 1985–86
• FA Cup (2): 1986, 1989
• FA Cup Runners-up (1): 1988
• Football League Cup (4): 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984
• Charity Shield (7): 1977 (Shared), 1979, 1980, 1982, 1986 (Shared), 1988, 1989
• European Cup (3): 1978, 1981, 1984
• European Cup Runners-up (1): 1985
• European Super Cup (1): 1977

Managerial honours[link]

Liverpool (1985–1991, 2011–2012)

• Football League First Division (3): 1985–86, 1987–88, 1989–90
• FA Cup (2): 1986, 1989
• FA Cup Runners-up (2): 1988, 2012
• Football League Cup (1): 2012
• Charity Shield (4): 1986 (Shared) 1988, 1989, 1990 (Shared)

Blackburn Rovers (1991–1995)

• FA Premier League (1): 1994–95
• Football League Second Division Play Off Winners (1): 1991–92

Celtic (2000)

• Scottish League Cup (1): 2000

Awards and achievements[link]

• PFA Player of the Year: 1982/83
• FWA Footballer of the Year: 1979/80, 1982/83
• Scottish Premier Division top goalscorer: 1975/76
• Manager of the Year award: 1985/86, 1987/88, 1989/90, 1994/95
• Premier League Manager of the Month: January 1994, November 1994
• Inaugural Inductee to the English Football Hall of Fame: 2002
• Member of the Scotland Football Hall of Fame
• Member of the FIFA 100
• Freedom of the City of Glasgow: 1986
• 1st in the Liverpool Football Club poll 100 Players Who Shook The Kop: 2006
• Scotland: 30 goals in 102 international caps (both national records)
• Balon d'Or 1983: 2nd place

Managerial statistics[link]

Team	Nat	From	To	Record
G	W	D	L	Win %
Liverpool		30 May 1985	22 February 1991	&10000000000000299000000299	&10000000000000182000000182	&1000000000000007600000076	&1000000000000004100000041	&1000000000000006086999960.87
Blackburn Rovers		12 October 1991	25 June 1995	&10000000000000196000000196	&10000000000000103000000103	&1000000000000004600000046	&1000000000000004700000047	&1000000000000005254999952.55
Newcastle United		14 January 1997	27 August 1998	&1000000000000007800000078	&1000000000000003000000030	&1000000000000002200000022	&1000000000000002600000026	&1000000000000003846000038.46
Celtic		10 February 2000	1 June 2000	&1000000000000001800000018	&1000000000000001000000010	&100000000000000040000004	&100000000000000040000004	&1000000000000005556000055.56
Liverpool		8 January 2011	16 May 2012	&1000000000000007400000074	&1000000000000003500000035	&1000000000000001700000017	&1000000000000002200000022	&1000000000000004729999947.30
Total				&10000000000000665000000665	&10000000000000360000000360	&10000000000000165000000165	&10000000000000140000000140	&1000000000000005414000054.14

Bibliography[link]

• Kelly, Stephen (1993). Dalglish. Headline Book Publishing; New edition edition (19 Aug 1993). ISBN 0-7472-4124-4. 
• Dalglish, Kenny; Winter, Henry (2010). My Liverpool Home. Hodder & Stoughton. ISBN 978-1-4447-0419-8. 
• Macpherson, Archie (2007). Jock Stein: The Definitive Biography. Highdown; New Ed edition (18 May 2007). ISBN 1-905156-37-5. 

References[link]