Kenny Dalglish biography, net worth, career, age, height and fun facts
Scottish-born Sir Kenneth Mathieson Dalglish MBE was a manager and professional football player. He was born on March 4, 1951. He is considered one of Liverpool’s and Britain’s all-time best players and one of the greatest players of all time. During his career, he played forward for 338 matches with Celtic and 515 with Liverpool.
He also won 102 caps for Scotland’s national side, setting a joint record with 30 goals. In 1983, Dalglish was named the FWA Footballer of the Year in 1979 and 1983, the PFA Players’ Player of the Year in 1983, and the Ballon d’Or Silver Award recipient in 1983. According to FourFourTwo magazine in 2009, Dalglish has been inducted into both the Scottish and English Football Halls of Fame as the greatest scorer in post-war British football.
Kenny Dalglish Biography & Profile Summary
Born in Glasgow, Scotland, on March 4, 1951, Sir Kenneth Mathieson “Kenny” Dalglish is a retired Scottish football player and former manager of Liverpool. Currently, he is one of the club’s non-executive board members. Dalglish went from Celtic to Liverpool in 1977 for a then-club record transfer fee. In 1985, he was promoted to player-manager. He won three European cups, five domestic cups, and seven league titles in his first spell at Liverpool.
Due to his successful career at Liverpool, he was dubbed King Kenny by the fans. It is evident that he is largely considered the best football player in Liverpool’s history—he was chosen #1 in the 100 Players Who Shook The Kop list, for instance. Additionally, he is well-liked around the club for being brought about as manager in the late 1980s and for helping the team and the impacted families in the wake of the 1989 Hillsborough tragedy. He left his position as Liverpool’s manager in 1991, but returned 20 years later in 2011 to take over as interim manager following Roy Hodgson’s departure.
Full Name | Sir Kenneth Mathieson Dalglish |
Date of Birth | March 4, 1951 |
Place of Birth | Glasgow, Scotland |
Position | Forward, Attacking Midfielder |
Playing Career | Celtic (1969–1977), Liverpool (1977–1990) |
Managerial Career | Liverpool, Blackburn Rovers, Newcastle United, others |
Nickname | “King Kenny” (popularly known among Liverpool fans) |
Honors/Awards | Knighted in 2018, Scottish Football Hall of Fame |
Retirement Year | 1990 (from professional football) |
Family | Married to Marina Dalglish, involved in charitable work |
Notable Achievements | Multiple league titles and European trophies as a player and manager at Liverpool. Active role in supporting Hillsborough disaster victims’ families. |
Kenny Dalglish Net Worth
Kenny Dalglish, a former Scottish center striker and winner of the UEFA Champions League, is thought to have a net worth of $15 million.
Career in Liverpool
On August 10, 1977, Dalglish signed a contract with Liverpool for a club and British record cost of £440,000, leaving Scottish powerhouse Celtic. He was signed on as a direct replacement for the departing star forward, Kevin Keegan, who had joined Hamburg.
On August 13, 1977, he debuted in the Charity Shield match against Manchester United, which resulted in a tie. On August 20, 1977, he scored his first goal for the team away against Middlesbrough, just seven minutes into his league debut. Three days later, in a 2-0 victory over Newcastle United, Dalglish scored on his Anfield debut. With 31 goals in his debut season, he was Liverpool’s top scorer at the end of the campaign. Probably the most significant of these strikes was when in the 1978 European Cup Final, as he scored the only goal of the game to beat FC Bruges at Wembley, sealing the trophy for Liverpool for the second year in succession.
Managing Career
At thirty-four, Dalglish was appointed player-manager of Liverpool on May 30, 1985. Dalglish guided Liverpool to an FA Cup and league double in the 1985–86 campaign with the assistance of Bob Paisley. However, Liverpool could not build on their victory the next year, finishing without a championship for just the third time in 15 years. In 1987–88, Dalglish guided the squad to win the league title again; in 1989–90, they did it for the final time. Liverpool fell to Arsenal at home on the final day of the season, giving the Gunners the victory, but they had also come agonizingly close to winning the league in 1988–89. Still, Dalglish had guided Liverpool.
Dalglish changed the Liverpool team’s roster and style of play while he was the club manager. In his first venture into the transfer market, he brought in Steve Nicol and Jim Beglin to replace the well-known but ageing fullbacks Phil Neal and Alan Kennedy. He placed Jan Molby in a deeper sweeper position to make his squad more offensive and formulated a three-pronged attack. In the summer of 1987, he brought in John Barnes and Peter Beardsley to support center strikers John Aldridge, whom Dalglish signed in 1987, and Ian Rush, who left Juventus for the team in 1988.
In addition to winning five major domestic titles in his six years as manager, Dalglish’s tenure was marred by the club’s two big misfortunes. The first was the UEFA suspension in which Dalglish never got to lead his team in Europe due to the Heysel Stadium disaster during Joe Fagan’s tenure as manager. The second was the Hillsborough tragedy, which occurred during the semi-final of the FA Cup in 1988–89, a campaign that ultimately proved successful for Liverpool with the loss of 96 people.
Age and height
Kenny is 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) in height and is currently 72 years old.
Trivia
- Kenny Dalglish is often called “King Kenny” by Liverpool fans due to his iconic status at the club as both a player and a manager.
- Dalglish played a key role in Liverpool’s dominance during the late 1970s and 1980s, forming a formidable partnership with fellow striker Ian Rush.
- Apart from his football achievements, Dalglish is known for his charitable work. He and his wife, Marina, have been actively involved in various philanthropic endeavours.
- In addition to his success in football, Dalglish has been recognized for his leadership and resilience during the aftermath of the Hillsborough disaster in 1989, offering support to the victims’ families.
FAQs
- When did Kenny Dalglish retire from professional football? Kenny Dalglish officially retired from professional football in 1990 after a distinguished playing career. He later transitioned to a successful managerial career.
- How successful was Kenny Dalglish as a manager? Dalglish had a highly successful managerial career, particularly at Liverpool, where he won numerous domestic and international titles, including several English league championships and European Cups.
- Has Kenny Dalglish received any honors or awards for his contributions to football? Yes, Kenny Dalglish has received various honors, including being knighted in 2018 for his services to football, charity, and the city of Liverpool. He is also a member of the Scottish Football Hall of Fame.