Liverpool legend Kenny Dalglish has called for patience with the team and believes criticism of Arne Slot “could be a bit more constructive.”
The last time Liverpool retained the league title was in 1984 when Kenny Dalglish was the main man in a treble-winning side that won the European Cup, First Division and League Cup all in one campaign.
Yes, Liverpool surpassed 96 points in 2019 and 2020, but the fact remains that they didn’t retain the league, and they won’t again this time around, in very different circumstances of course.
We can debate for days why Liverpool have significantly dropped off this season – there are several reasons – but we are thankfully beginning to come out the other side of the rut.
BOURNEMOUTH, ENGLAND - Saturday, January 24, 2026: Liverpool's Mohamed Salah reacts to conceeding a last minute goal after the FA Premier League match between Bournemouth AFC and Liverpool FC at Dean Court. The game finished 2-3.(Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
Speaking to the Athletic, Dalglish, who serves as a director of the club, said of Slot’s struggles: “It’s always easier to criticise someone than it is to praise them.
“There’s a lot less patience these days and that’s a problem. If you don’t have patience, it’s unlikely you’ll have success.
“Nothing just grows overnight. Nobody has ever walked into a club and won a trophy straightaway. Everyone has an opinion, but things could be a bit more constructive at times.”
Instead of reflecting on the team’s problems, Dalglish is choosing to be optimistic about the future after four wins in Liverpool’s last five games.
“The way we were brought up, it was all about the next game,” the 74-year-old added.
“Don’t look any further ahead than that. Liverpool’s last game was excellent. If we can put on performances like that most weeks, we’ll have a lot of pluses.”
When Kenny Dalglish resigned
Press Conference - Kenny Dalglish
Slot is only the second manager, after Jurgen Klopp, to win the league for Liverpool since Dalglish led the team to the title in 1990.
By the following spring, he had left the club.
So, there is precedent for a manager to leave in the season following a title-winning campaign, but there were major differences between Dalglish’s departure and any potential Slot exit.
When the Scotsman left in February 1991, Liverpool were top of the league and favourites to retain their crown.
Suffering from the weight of the Hillsborough disaster’s aftermath, Dalglish resigned following a 4-4 draw against Everton in which the Reds were pegged back four times.
Reflecting on his decision, Dalglish said: “The proper thing to do at that time was to step away because the club didn’t deserve that.
“If you’re the manager, then you have got to be there to make decisions. That’s what you’re employed for. If you’re not making them, then it’s not fair on anyone to stay, especially after what Liverpool Football Club had done for us.”
Kelly Cates, one of four children Kenny has with wife Marina, has led a successful broadcasting career and now co-hosts Match of the Day.
She recalled to journalist James Pearce: “The night before the news came out, my mum called me back from my friend’s house across the road to tell me.
“I can’t remember exactly what she said, but the next minute you came back and walked into the house with a little box of stuff from your office. I ran up the stairs in tears. It was horrible. That was how I found out.
WOLVERHAMPTON, ENGLAND - Friday, December 21, 2018: Kelly Cates with her father Liverpool's non-executive director Kenny Dalglish before the FA Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers FC and Liverpool FC at Molineux Stadium. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
“It was a quick decision, wasn’t it?”
“Yeah, I decided on the Thursday and it was announced on the Friday,” Dalglish responded.
On a par with Bill Shankly and Jurgen Klopp‘s resignations for its shock factor, Dalglish took the time he needed to recover and made a winning return to football, lifting the Premier League with Blackburn in 1995.
Hopefully, Slot, too, can become a champion again, and Dalglish wants that to be at Anfield.