Sir Kenny Dalglish is revered as one of British football’s greatest-ever talents but the man himself is as remarkable off the pitch as he was on it.
‘King Kenny’ racked up countless accolades as a player and then as a coach, but his continued charity paintings mean the accolades haven’t stopped since he retired from the game.
Now he has been honoured with the Lifetime Achievement award at BBC Sports 2023 Personality of the Year.
Dalglish and his wife Marina have raised more than £10 million for charity.
The couple also founded the Marina Dalglish Appeal, which raises money for cancer care.
Dalglish used his platform as a Celtic, Scotland and, of course, Liverpool legend to make his case, with unsurpassed achievements, whether in attack and later on the bench.
Dalglish won 8 league titles and 3 European Cups as a Merseyside player and manager after joining Bhoys for £440,000 in 1977.
The 72-year-old, who was born in Glasgow, has won all of his European successes, as well as six of his eight championships as Liverpool’s star striker.
Dalglish scored 172 goals in 515 games and was able to do it all to such an extent that he took over as coach at the age of 35 in 1985.
Three more titles and two FA Cups followed, but it wasn’t until four years into his reign that the Scot ensured his call was etched not only in the hearts and minds of all Liverpool fans, but also in their souls.
Dalglish was Liverpool’s manager at the time of the Hillsborough crisis and led the club and the city through that trauma.
He lived off the letters of families who suffered the tragedies and were escorted by the police to attend up to 4 funerals a day.
The emotional toll led him to leave Liverpool in February 1991, only to retake control of Blackburn eight months later.
Dalglish missed out on signing a young Roy Keane to Manchester United in 1993 but still memorably guided Blackburn to the Premier League title two years later to end their eight-decade wait.
Brief spells at Newcastle United and a return to Celtic followed before the legendary striker took an 11-year break from management.
Dalglish’s enduring love for Liverpool led him to dust off the tactical image to succeed Roy Hodgson in 2011 and lead them to the League Cup in 2012, the club’s first trophy in six years.
The Reds’ eighth-place finish saw him sacked three months later, but such is his influence that he has his own position at Anfield.
Jurgen Klopp told Liverpool’s website: “Kenny surely everything [for Liverpool FC]. It’s Liverpool.
“He’s got his own position [at Anfield], and well deserved, and he’s one of the kindest people you’ll ever meet. He’s very happy, he loves his club and he supports it enormously. “
And, as always, he paid tribute to everyone else: “I’ve believed in the importance of team success and I wouldn’t be where I am today without all the players I’ve played with, the other people I’m with. ” I have played. I have worked hard and the enthusiasts have supported me, so this is for them.
“It’s for them” could well be the name of Dalglish’s memoirs. . .
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