King Kenny received a resounding ovation from the public when they heard he will be taking over as care-taker manager of his beloved Liverpool until the remainder of the season. His short stint back in charge has seen pundits and fans of football notice the quick effect he has had on the teams performances with wins against Chelsea and Manchester United. But with his short stint looking to be extended in the summer, will Liverpool fans sing their usual start of the season song 'This will be our year!'
Kenny Dalglish was the last manager for Liverpool to win the title all the way back in 1990, and since his departure there has been something missing that has halted Liverpool's long title haul and seem stuck on 18. His shock resignation in 1991 was said to be of health reasons but returned to management 8 months later with Blackburn where he led them to a remarkable league title. Surely Kenny hadn't fallen out of love with his beloved Liverpool?
During his stint as Liverpool manager he enjoyed massive success winning the league 3 times, the FA Cup twice and the League cup. But he also experienced some of the most emotional times as a Liverpool fan. He was appointed Liverpool manager after Joe Fagan's resignation after the tragic Heysel disaster. But the disaster that most affected him and Liverpool supporters was the Hillsborough disaster, claiming 96 lives. Kenny was known to be seriously affected by this emotionally but built even more respect by attending most funerals. So maybe these tragedies had taken toll on him and couldn't do any more for the club than he has done. But 20 years on after his resignation he is appointed Liverpool manager and the side immediately show an exuberance in their attitude and with the Kop singing Dalglish all throughout the games.
His return to the hot seat as Liverpool manager has been a party for Liverpool players and supporters, but looking at the bigger picture managers only stay in a job, especially a job at Liverpool, for winning trophies and with only a few months under his belt in the Premier League, it is hard to look at the big picture and ask if Liverpool can really win the league under Dalglish. Can one man really change a club that much by beaming his smile across Liverpool? No. But what his reputation does for the players playing for him is give them a sign of respect to their manager, something Roy Hodgson or even Rafael Benitez was able to get fully. Being a club legend at Liverpool that's done and won it all for the club makes it easy for the players to look up to him and play for him the way he wants them to play - the old Liverpool 'pass and move' way.
What fans have to be careful of is that every manager in the Premier League comes under pressure from the media for maybe a bad run. If Liverpool go for a bad run under Dalglish the media will say 'He can't cope with managing nowadays' or 'He's been out of the game too long' But it's how they deal with it that makes them great managers. Ian Holloway is a fine example of dealing with media, he manages a side that is never expected to win anything but his attitude with his players and press make him a respected figure. That's exactly what Kenny has shown in his few months back in charge of Liverpool.
Maybe it's time for Liverpool to show they are back in business. New owners willing to back King Kenny with whatever he seems to want. And a new vibrant attitude around Anfield that can only be compared to the last stint Kenny had in charge of Liverpool. Liverpool fans state 'This year will be ours' every summer. But this summer them words may become a bit more believable with what seems a whole new Liverpool.
But for now Kenny will keep on smiling and enjoy his time as Liverpool boss as much as fans love seeing him there. His biggest test is yet to come.
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