The Tampa Bay Rowdies are excited to announce the hiring of Paul Dalglish as head coach for the 2010 inaugural season.Dalglish, a Scotland native, comes from an impressive soccer heritage as the son of "King" Kenny Dalglish, one of the greatest players and managers in soccer history. His sister, Kelly Cates, is also an on-air soccer journalist for ESPN.
Dalglish started his career in 1994 at Glasgow Celtic FC and went on to play for Liverpool's reserve team. Dalglish continued his professional soccer career as a striker and right-winger for Newcastle United FC playing under manager Rudd Gullit in the English Premier League, Norwich FC, Blackpool FC, Hibernian FC and the Houston Dynamo. While playing for the Houston Dynamo in Major League Soccer, Dalglish helped lead the team to two MLS Cup titles in 2006 and 2007 and he was awarded the 2006 Western Conference Final MVP.
Dalglish retired in 2008 to pursue a career in coaching. Dalglish has spent time studying coaching techniques and match strategy at Liverpool with manager Rafa Benitez and at Blackburn Rovers FC with manager and former Rowdies player Sam Allardyce. He also coached for the Houston Dynamo Academy.
"Paul will be an asset in so many ways. He brings an extensive knowledge of the game and a soccer pedigree that is truly uncommon," said Andrew Nestor, president and owner of the Rowdies. "He has first-hand experience as a player in both North America and in Europe, and he is a true student of the game. More importantly, he has great character and integrity."
Dalglish will be responsible for player selection and management of the Rowdies. He will work directly with technical director and head scout Perry Van Der Beck to build the 2010 inaugural team roster and build the Rowdies player development initiatives. The Rowdies have already hosted an invite-only pro combine in Tampa last month. The next scheduled combine for the Rowdies is in England in mid-December.
"Because of his soccer-rich background, Paul knows the game and will easily identify the type of player we looking for in this first and very important season," said Van Der Beck.
• Discuss this story on the USL First Division message board...
• Digg this story
• Add to Del.icio.us
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.