Inducted in 2002
SIR KENNY DALGLISH MBE
Football
Kenny Dalglish played for his country for the last time at Hampden Park in November 1986. Despite the 30-plus years that have passed, he remains the most capped – and arguably most talented – player Scotland has ever seen.
Having scored 30 times for Scotland in his 102 appearances, he also shares the record with Denis Law for the most international goals. He was also the first player to score 100 league goals in both Scotland and England — 167 for Celtic and 169 for Liverpool. It was appropriate that a player of such regal standing should become known as ‘King Kenny’ by the Liverpool faithful.
Growing up in Glasgow, he began his career at Celtic in 1971 and helped them to victory in four Scottish League Championships, four Scottish Cups and one Scottish League Cup. He transferred to Liverpool in 1977 for a record fee of £440,000 and would stay at Anfield for 14 years.
As a player, he contributed to the club’s most successful periods, winning six English League Championship wins, one FA Cup, four League Cups, five FA Charity Shields, three European Cups and one UEFA Super Cup. He won the Ballon d'Or Silver Award in 1983, the PFA Players' Player of the Year in 1983, and the FWA Footballer of the Year in 1979 and 1983.
Kenny’s management career began at Liverpool in 1985, when he became the first player-manager to lead his team out at Wembley. After winning a further three First Divisions, the FA Cup, and four FA Charity Shields, he moved to Blackburn Rovers and led them to the English title (now the Premier League) for the first time in more than 80 years. He also managed Newcastle United and Celtic before returning for a second spell as Liverpool boss in 2012, winning the League Cup.
In October 2017, Anfield’s Centenary Stand was officially renamed the Kenny Dalglish Stand in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the club. He was awarded an MBE in 1984 and knighted in 2018 in recognition of his footballing achievements, as well as his charitable works and support of the families affected by the Hillsborough tragedy.
In 2009, FourFourTwo magazine named him as the greatest striker in post-war British football, and in 2006, he topped a Liverpool fans' poll of ‘100 Players Who Shook the Kop’.
