Dalglish excited by Euro voyage

Liverpool boss Kenny Dalglish is eagerly awaiting his first match in charge of the Reds in Europe.

The round of 32 Europa League match against Sparta Prague on Thursday will be the first time Dalglish leads Liverpool in European competition in more than 300 games in charge of the Merseyside club.

Although he led the club to three league and two FA Cup titles during his first stint in charge in the late 1980s, a five-year ban on English teams competing in Europe in the aftermath of the Heysel stadium disaster deprived him of opportunities on the continent.

“Back then we played against European teams in friendlies but after Heysel we were banned from Europe for five years,” Dalglish said.

“We won League Championships and FA Cups, but someone in their wisdom decided we should be banned so this is my first ever opportunity to manage Liverpool in Europe.”

“Like I say, I’m looking forward to it. There was some good work done before I came here to get us to this stage and I just hope we can build upon it.”

The Europa League is Liverpool’s last hope of winning any silverware this season, having already been knocked out of the FA Cup and League Cup and sitting 18 points behind leaders Manchester United in the Premier League standings.

“It will be difficult to win the trophy,” Dalglish said. “There are some good teams in there and I’d like to think we would be one of the teams you could class as a good side. It’s a strong competition.”

Captain Steven Gerrard, defender Daniel Agger and midfielder Christian Poulsen will miss the trip to the Czech Republic, but several young players are likely to get an opportunity.

“We are not at full strength. There are a few injuries but that’s part and parcel of football,” Dalglish said.

“I think it’s important we go and do ourselves justice. The lads have done well getting into the knockout stages of the Europa League so we’ll be going there looking to get a result.

“We know what they are about and it will be a difficult game for us. But hopefully it will be twice as difficult for them.”