Kenny Dalglish thrilled by Liverpool’s ‘fantastic football’ after 5-0 win over Birmingham

Kenny Dalglish, Liverpool

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Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish has admitted he thoroughly enjoyed his players’ “fantastic football” as they thrashed Birmingham City 5-0 at Anfield.

A hat-trick from Maxi Rodriguez, plus strikes from Dirk Kuyt and Joe Cole, set the Reds on their way to another emphatic victory under the Scot. The result saw the gap to fifth placed Tottenham Hotspur closed to three points to keep alive the dream of Europa League qualification.

Speaking to reporters after the match, Dalglish revealed his delight at the ruthless performance he witnessed on Saturday.

He said: “It was good to get a goal early doors and then they Birmingham started to get in it a bit better.

“We got the second goal but I thought the third was the most important because at 2-0 its always a bit iffy. To their credit, the boys started the second half and were determined to put on as good a show as they did in the first half.

“I think we were deserved winners and played some fantastic football.

“It was very enjoyable for us.”

Rodriguez’s three-goal haul was the surprise of the day as he almost doubled his previous tally for the club. The Argentine had only started due to injury to £35 million record signing Andy Carroll and Dalglish believed the replacement’s impact paid testament to the commitment of his entire squad on the training pitch.

“Maxi Rodriguez is a very intelligent footballer and I’ve said before, the way the boys have gone about their training is a real credit. They’ve adapted well to the training,” the 60-year-old said.

“Maxi’s not played for a few weeks but he’s come on today and has done a massive job for us.

“And for Joe Cole, he’s been training fantastically as well. OK, it’s a goalkeeping mistake but he has a goal next to his name and it certainly won’t do us any harm and won’t do Joe any harm.”

“The two young boys John Flanagan and Jack Robinson have another game under their belts and they’ll see the benefit of that.

“They’ve had a good day.”