Kenny Dalglish was another to stun Anfield with a sudden departure

Back to Jurgen Klopp and his impending leaving of Liverpool. When it was announced it came as a surprise to everyone, except Liverpool supporters. To them it was an earth-shattering shock, one with which they are now only coming to terms.Before it comes to the parting of the ways, there are competitions to be won, the Premier League chief among them.

Now that Man City have found their mojo – Inside Track’s Premier League No 1, Kevin de Bruyne, back, flying, and making and scoring goals, and Haaland re-discovering early season form following injury – the Pool know they are on anything but a solo-run.

Also on the premises are IT’s pre-season choice, Arsenal. The Gunners are – and here comes a terrible cliché – firing on all cylinders, hitting the target for fun. That is, in the Premier League - they weren’t so hot in Europe last week, losing to Porto.

Klopp’s surprise announcement wasn’t the first of its kind in Liverpool’s history. As mentioned here a few weeks ago, few could believe it when Bill Shankly handed in his papers back in 1974, his team at the time riding high, having recently won the league and FA Cup.

Less than two decades later, again when memories of major domestic victories were still fresh in Anfield minds, Kenny Dalglish took his leave. It was around this time in 1991. The Scot’s charges were top of the league and still in the FA Cup, but not playing particularly well.

Recent form hadn’t been good. There were just two league wins from seven outings before Dalglish left, and it was a bit of a struggle in the Cup as well, ‘Pool needing replays to get past the Second Division’s Blackburn and Brighton, and then scoring four, but conceding as many, in another replay, this one against neighbours Everton.

Everton eventually won the tie, while Arsenal took over the league’s top spot before finishing seven points clear of the long-time leaders.

A winner in the red jersey as a player and then player-manager, Dalglish felt he was putting himself under too much pressure in “my desire to be successful”. He added: “I felt it would be wrong to mislead everybody thinking everything was fine.” It’s said the Hillsborough Disaster, which had happened two years earlier, had a profound effect on him.

The speculation soon began as to who would take over. Former Anfield favourites, Alan Hansen, Phil Neal and John Toshack were mentioned, and there was even a nod for Jack Charlton, who at the time had his Republic of Ireland team prominent on the World Cup stage.

In the end, it was another Anfield old boy, Graeme Souness, who was sent for, the Scot prised away from Ibrox, where, as manager, he had contributed to Rangers’ then-record eight league titles in-a-row.

Dalglish – who gave his nickname, King Kenny, to an Oriel Park legend – wasn’t long out of work. By the end of 1991 he was in the hot-seat at Second Division Blackburn Rovers, and before long enjoyed success, guiding the Ewood Park side to the newly-named Premier League.

There was better to come. Having finished runners-up to Manchester United, Blackburn took the top spot in the 1994/’95 renewal, and in the process deprived United of entering the record books, which today shiow as 5-in-a-row champions. This victory saw Dalglish become only the fourth manager – Brian Clough was one of the others – to win the top league with two different clubs.

Dalglish had spells with Newcastle and Celtic after that, before returning to Anfield, where, if he didn’t match his previous exploits, lost none of the love supporters had for him in the years after his arrival from Celtic. There’s a stand in his name at Anfield.