KOP News # 1271

Rodgers would welcome Dalglish back

Tuesday, 05 June 2012 18:49 Darren Phillips

Brendan Rodgers has hailed Kenny Dalglish as an inspiration and a man who embodies the distinct spirit of Liverpool Football Club. The new manager also says that he would be more than happy seeing his predecessor return to serve the club in some capacity.

Confessing that the Anfield legend is a tough act to follow, and that equalling the Kop legend's achievements will be impossible, the 39-year-old hopes he can approach the standards Dalglish presided over as a player, then a manager - though believes that he can only tackle that job via his own methods.

Dalglish used his Twitter account to congratulate Rodgers on obtaining the post and wished both his successor plus the club good wishes for the future.

Just after being sacked he also implored fans to trust in the Fenway Sports Group (FSG) and their plans to drive Liverpool forward. 

Rodgers thinks his rise to become Anfield boss in a limited period of time is clear proof that his approach is effective.

"I have the ultimate respect for Kenny Dalglish," he said.

"My door is always open for Kenny Dalglish. This is his home. As chairman Tom Werner said, he is the heart and soul of this club.

"His love for this club is unrivalled. He is the best player in the history of this club. I am not here to win any race or competition. This guy is a legend in the game and here at Liverpool Football Club.

"But what I know is history judges you as a manager and hopefully in time people will look back at what I have achieved here and I can walk beside these people.

"But there is no way I can try and overtake someone like Kenny Dalglish. All I can do is be myself.

"That is all I've ever tried to be - to be a student of the game and be the very best I could. That has helped me make a meteoric rise as because of my work I've been able to get the opportunities."

Expanding on what he can bring to the club and how that can be measured, the former Swansea City manager acknowledged that he is now serving a club with a unique place in the game and a cannon of people who care about its present and future.

"This is a prestigious club and Kenny is a guy who has a wonderful history here and will continue to have a great future in terms of Liverpool. I can't worry about that," added Rodgers.

"The only way you can overcome that is by winning. On a lesser scale, when I went in to Swansea there was a similar thing. The chairman put me in and I was in to the challenge of making the club better.

"It will be the same thing here. I respect every manager and player who has played at the club but now it's a new cycle and I enter into that with great motivation, aware of the risk, aware of the challenges but excited about everything.

"I'm excited about everything about this city. It's a city of folklore and football and I am proud to be a part of it."

Defining types of follower Rodgers holds are present within the fanbase of each team, regardless of its stature, the Reds boss continued his analysis. 

"I know there are three types of supporters at every club," he added.

"Number one is those who, no matter who the manager is, they love their club and they will love their manager whoever it is because Liverpool is their life and their passion and they love their club.

"The second group is supporters who will accept you but to earn their real respect you will have to be successful. That's fine.

"The third group are the critics and you never change them ever. If you win four nil it should have been five. If you win the league it should have been three. I will never worry about that group because you can never affect them. If you do a good job you are proving them wrong but they can't be proved wrong so they will kill you even more."