5 caretaker managers who did well in the Premier League

#4 Kenny Dalglish (Liverpool)

Kenny Dalglish turned Liverpool's fortunes around in 2011 as caretaker

Roy Hodgson’s reign as Liverpool boss was an unmitigated disaster, so when he was fired in January 2011 – leaving the Reds floundering in 12th position in the Premier League – it came as no surprise. His caretaker replacement, however, was a surprise, as club legend and former Premier League title winner Kenny Dalglish was brought out of retirement to take the helm.

Dalglish had been working in the club’s academy and as an ambassador since 2009, but he hadn’t managed at the top level since a brief period in charge of Celtic in 2000. His first game in charge saw a disappointing loss to Blackpool, but a 2-2 draw with local rivals Everton was then followed by 4 straight victories.

Under ‘King Kenny’, the Reds managed to win 10 of their final 18 games, only losing on a further 4 occasions after the Blackpool defeat, and they slowly climbed up the table into a comfortable 6th place finish – not where they’d have expected to be at the start of the season, but a far cry from where Hodgson left them.

As the caretaker, Dalglish also oversaw one of the most dramatic transfer windows in Premier League history, as Liverpool sold Fernando Torres to Chelsea for around £50m and used the money to bring in Luis Suarez and Andy Carroll – and obviously one of those two was a huge hit at Anfield.

Due to his successful spell as caretaker, Dalglish was rewarded with a contract as Liverpool’s permanent boss in the summer of 2011, and although his only full season in charge saw the Reds win the EFL Cup – their first trophy since 2006 – he was relieved of his duties in the summer of 2012 after finishing just 8th in the Premier League.