Kenny Dalglish inherited the title 'King of the Kop' from Kevin Keegan, not long after Bob Paisley signed him from Celtic in August 1977. Born in the Dalmarnock area of Glasgow on 4 March 1951, Kenny enjoyed remarkable goalscoring success with Celtic. He had helped his side to four Scottish League titles, and had winner's medals in four Scottish Cup Finals and one Scottish League Cup Final. Although he had started by occupying a midfield position, he nevertheless scored a remarkable 112 goals in 204 League encounters.

Dalglish went on to play nearly 500 games for Liverpool, scoring on more than 160 occasions. In many ways he was the complete footballer. He had remarkable ability and instant reaction, and was very determined. He also had an unselfish attitude attitude and was therefore an excellent team man, ideal for a well-drilled Liverpool side and very useful for the Scottish international team, for whom he made 102 appearances - a record north of the border.

During his time as a Liverpool player, Kenny Dalglish collected five League Championship medals, as well as four for the League Cup and one for the FA Cup. He also played in four European Cup Finals.

Bob Paisley saw Dalglish's withdrawn, remote off-field personality as the key to how he made the transition from player to manager with ease. ' When he put on those boots he shone like a beacon,' said Paisley, ' but off the pitch he was a loner and I don't think anyone at the club would say they knew him well. It never pays for a manager to be close friends with the players under him.'

Dalglish has never been known for his extrovert behaviour. English interviewers and supporters alike may had some difficulty in understanding an accent which mirrored an apparently dour Glaswegian personality, but when he took over as player-manager o Liverpool in June 1985, and then proceeded to win the Double in the following season, no one much cared. Kenny went on to enjoy more of the success to which he had become accustomed, and Liverpool won two more League titles and had one more FA Cup success while he was in charge.

To everyone's surprise, Dalglish resigned his managerial post in February 1991. The stresses and strains had seemingly got to him at last, but many were also surprised when he over at Blackburn Rovers not long afterwards. More success followed, as high-spending Blackburn gained Premiership status and everyone wondered how Kenny managed to communicate with his equally unforthcoming deputy, Ray Harford. Kenny than 'moved upstairs' before taking charge at Newcastle following the early-1997 departure of Kevin Keegan.