• Murphy pointed out Reds had played 'under very little
pressure'
• We played fantastic that night against Fulham, says Dalglish
Kenny Dalglish
has taken Danny Murphy to task after the Fulham
captain claimed Liverpool
have to prove they can perform under pressure when they bid
to return to the Champions League next season.
Liverpool were transformed in the second half of the season
under Dalglish, rising from 12th when he replaced Roy Hodgson as
manager in January to sixth and only missing out on the Europa
League after losing their final two matches. Among several
impressive performances was a 5-2 win at Fulham on 9 May,
after which Murphy praised his former club's revival but claimed
Liverpool's woeful start to the season had allowed them to play
without pressure in the final months.
When asked if Liverpool could challenge for the title in 2012,
Murphy replied: "It's hard to say because they have been playing
under very little pressure. They haven't needed to go out and win
games, and everything they get now is a bonus. It will be a
different ask for those players to play under pressure every week
if they are near the top, but with Kenny in charge and a few more
additions they will be pushing for the top four again."
Dalglish is unhappy with that evaluation, however, and has
rebuked a player who championed Hodgson's credentials for the
Liverpool job that he sought last summer. The Liverpool manager
said: "He [Murphy] should know there is always pressure here. He
played here long enough, didn't he? I just know that we played
fantastic that night against Fulham and so does he.
"There's always a caveat in there somewhere, isn't there?
There's always somebody that asks a question. But if you take any
pride in your work, you are under pressure in any walk of life.
It's not just exclusive to football. You worry about their ability
to play first, and I'm sure the players can handle anything else
that comes with it."
Dalglish says he did not want the season to end having won 10 of
18 Premier League games since taking charge. "The season has only
been a short one for myself having come in in January," he said.
"You don't feel ready for a holiday and want it to continue. There
will be plenty of enthusiasm in July when we come back."
Having confirmed Liverpool will be in the market for top‑quality
additions this summer, the Scot is adamant he will have a squad
capable of handling and fulfilling expectations next season. "The
expectation is for everybody to build on what has happened since
January, have a good summer and go into every game with the same
attitude and commitment as we have shown since January. If you put
those things in place, then we aren't going to be too far away.
"Everyone is looking forward to next season, which wouldn't have
been the case if we had stayed 12th. The fans are looking forward
to it and so are the players. The disappointment of earlier in the
season doesn't do them any harm, because once you win a couple of
games you see how enjoyable it is. We only need to show
improvement, and that will be a successful season. If we improve on
what we've done this season next season, then I don't think anybody
can be disappointed."