Liverpool Director of Football Damien Comolli has reacted to the news that Kenny Dalglish has been given a new three year contract to stay on as manager, he told Liverpoolfc.tv:
“We said at the start of the process we wanted somebody who was competent, had good man-management skills and who understood the philosophy of the Club. Kenny fits perfectly with what we’ve been looking for. There is nobody better to say what the club’s playing philosophy is because that’s what he represents. This is the right thing for the club and is very positive news. I have been talking with players about stability, about keeping them long-term, and I think that’s even more important with the manager. I think the last thing anyone wanted was another change, so this is a strong sign of stability and that the club is settled in all areas. We didn’t really look elsewhere because Kenny turned things around very quickly, with the help of Steve Clarke. For us, it was a no brainer.”
Comolli praised Dalglish’s performance as manager and compared him to one of his previous bosses at Arsenal:
“He hit the ground running and turned things around very quickly. He came in from day one knowing what he wanted to do because he knew the boys anyway, especially the key players like Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher, and knew the young players in the Academy. The impact has been great. Arsene Wenger was at Arsenal before I arrived there and so I could only see it from the outside but I think the two share some qualities. The first thing is the quality of the football. Kenny insists on quality of passing and movement on the pitch. Secondly, when you are talking about individual players they both like intelligent players who can see things. When Kenny talks about players, he talks about whether they can see a pass in the final third. What about their vision? That’s something Arsene talks about.They both have a massive ability to give confidence to the team and to the players. They bring self belief into the young players by saying ‘you are good so that is why you are playing’. That gives fantastic confidence to young players. The other thing they say is ‘don’t do anything different to what you have been doing. It doesn’t matter that you’re at Anfield or the Emirates, just play your normal game. If I pick you it’s because you are good enough’. That’s a fantastic approach Kenny has got with young players.”
Article courtesy of David from Live4Liverpool