You can’t accuse Kenny Dalglish of doing himself too many favours. Indeed, far from being chastened or at least sobered by the experience that inevitably followed his casting of Luis Suarez as a victim, the Liverpool manager still seems to spend every public appearance looking for trouble and finding it.
An exception, perhaps, was Saturday’s attempt to ascribe the home defeat against Wigan to tiredness. Any manager might have reached for that one (though the exaggeration of an injury list supposedly preventing Dalglish from “freshening” the side was unconvincing). A little of the humility displayed by his predecessor, Roy Hodgson, in similar circumstances would nevertheless be in order.
Some hope. Dalglish’s answer to the adversity bred of failure to win 19 of 30 Premier League matches is to advise his questioners to take an intelligence test and be less “disrespectful” to the knockout competitions, one of which Liverpool have won (their name is on the Carling Cup below that of Birmingham City, who were subsequently relegated) and the other being the FA Cup, in which they have reached the semi-finals.
Out of respect for the FA Cup, it ought to be mentioned that five other clubs are in it, including Everton, whose replay at Sunderland tomorrow night is the key to a Merseyside derby at Wembley. Everton have also edged to within two points of their rivals and it would be disrespectful to ignore that, especially given the disparity between the financial muscle available to Dalglish and David Moyes.
Nor do I remember Dalglish and a host of fellow Anfield legends showing proper respect to Gerard Houllier when he led Liverpool to not one or two but three cups while guiding the team not to seventh place in the League but third.
Under Dalglish they struggle even to qualify for the Europa League, let alone win its equivalent, and it is time not so much for an intelligence test as a reality check.
