Following your famous father into his profession is no easy feat. Take Chad McQueen for example. Dad Steve made The Great Escape and The Magnificent Seven. Chad made Sexual Malice and Indecent Behavior II. Or Julian Lennon. His Pop wrote Strawberry Fields Forever and Imagine. Julian penned the lesser known ?Jesse? and ?Stick Around?.

So it was never going to be an easy task following three time European Cup winner and holder of a record 102 caps for Scotland, Kenny Dalglish. But son Paul has carved a career in football for himself despite several setbacks.

A striker, just like his dad, he has his father?s looks but is more of a target man than the great architect of goals Kenny was. Now with Hibs he?ll be looking to be in the starting line up for this weekend?s game against Kilmarnock having made an appearance as a substitute last week at home to Aberdeen.

Born in 1977 he first signed professional forms with Blackburn Rovers before he moved to Celtic as a 17 year old. This was of course the club where his father had scored over 100 league goals and became a legend. His spell at Parkhead failed to yield a single first team game and in 1997 he left to join Liverpool.

If he wanted to get out of the shadow of his famous father Anfield was certainly the wrong place to go. In nearly fourteen years there Kenny had won 8 Championships, 2 FA Cups and 3 European Cups. After two years Paul left Liverpool, just as with Celtic, without ever having played in the first team.

He joined Newcastle where his father was manager and was immediately sent out on loan to Bury. He played several times for The Shakers, mainly as a substitute before returning to St James? Park.

After 17 months in the job Dad Kenny was sacked. New manager Ruud Gullit was prepared to give Paul a chance and he scored twice in eight starts. He also earned a call-up to the Scotland Under-21 squad, scoring on his debut in a 2-0 win over Estonia at Broomfield Park, Airdrie in October 1998. This was the first of seven Under-21 caps in which he scored a total of 3 goals.

Fellow Scot Duncan Ferguson?s ?8M arrival from Everton saw Dalglish move back into the reserves. After that his first team chances were few and far between and although settled in the north-east, a clash with Gullit saw him make a move to Norwich City, initially on loan, then in a permanent ?300,000 transfer.

Paul scored Norwich’s first goal of the 1999/2000 season on the opening day at West Bromwich Albion.

Dalglish found himself lonely in East-Anglia as his friends and family were all 5 hours away back in the North. He scored only two goals for The Canaries in 48 appearances. Norwich would have had to pay Newcastle an extra ?200,000 if he played 2 more games for them.

Paul eventually joined Wigan on loan in March 2001 with an understanding that Norwich would not block a permanent move. Two sendings-off in consecutive matches over the Easter period blotted Paul’s copybook with Wigan but things were looking up as he turned it into a permanent move in August.

In April 2002 Scotland boss Berti Vogts called Paul into a practice squad for uncapped players to play against Dundee United. He scored in the 2-0 Scotland XI win and Vogts told him that he could have a future in the senior international set-up if he found regular first team football.

That same month however, he was released by Wigan. In a bid to find that elusive regular first team place he had trials with DC United, Preston, Burnley and Peterborough before ex-Liverpool player Steve McMahon signed him on a one year deal with Blackpool. Two goals in 31 appearances wasn?t enough for him to hold down a regular place at Bloomfield Road.

From there he ended the 2002/2003 season on loan to Scunthorpe, though he failed to win a permanent deal with The Iron and on his return to Blackpool he was released. He then went back to the United States for a trial with Dallas Burn, but a move didn?t materialise.

In July 2003 he signed another one year contract, this time with Linfield. The weight of expectancy on him due to his famous father was beginning to get on his nerves at this stage. After signing he told The Scotsman, “You can?t go anywhere without people saying ?You?ll never be as good as your dad? or ?You?ll never live up to your dad?. People have made it difficult for me because of my dad, but I?m a strong character and I?ve never let people get me down.”

He had started a multi-media company in Manchester and it was the resulting business commitments that led to his parting of the ways with the Irish side. When he signed, it was on the understanding that he would travel to Belfast on the Thursday, train with the full squad that evening, carry out promotional activities on the Friday, and fly home after the game on the Saturday. Linfield were happy to allow Paul to follow his business interests while still receiving the benefits of having him as a full-time player.

In October 2003 however the two parties agreed to a termination of his contract due to Dalglish?s business interests increasing and Linfield?s feeling that they weren?t getting the best from the deal.

In January 2004 it was reported that he had signed for Italian side Modena. Paul, who was at that time working as a football agent scoffed at the suggestions. “I wish,” he told the Belfast Telegraph. ?It?s funny. It’s not even that I’ve been linked with a move to Italy, according to some reports I’ve actually signed. The nearest I’ve come to Italy is watching The Godfather on television.” He went on to say, “If I can sell myself to a club in Serie A then I must be the best agent in the world but then why aren’t players queuing up outside my door?”

He made a big move into television in August of 2004 with a regular spot on Sky?s Soccer AM. Every week he interviewed footballers such as Michael Owen, Graeme Souness, Joe Cole, and yes even his Dad.

He also played for their football team The Soccer AM Badgers.

His involvement in the media led to him taking a part as an extra in the Danny Cannon film Goal! Here he began to realise that he missed being a footballer and decided that at 28, it wasn?t too late to have another shot at it.

?When you are out of it, you realise football is the best game in the world,? he later told The Scotsman newspaper.

Mike Newell at Luton Town allowed him to have a pre-season with him in order to get himself fit.

In August 2005 Paul signed with SPL side Livingston. Only four hours after signing he made his debut in the League Cup 2nd round match away to Raith Rovers. He scored an extra-time winner in a 2-1 victory. He went on to establish himself in the Livingston first team as he relished his return to the game.
After scoring against Celtic in a 2-1 defeat on Boxing Day Paul told Sky Sports, ?I have screwed the nut. My attitude was a disgrace after I left Newcastle and it is only now that the penny has dropped. Last Christmas I was at my mum and dad’s house, eating turkey and barely able to see because I was that drunk.?
On transfer deadline day January 2006 Hibernian manager Tony Mowbray took him to Easter Road for a nominal fee. Dalglish was delighted to take a step up from bottom of the table Livi.

He has become a fans? favourite with the green and white half of Edinburgh, who have christened him, not entirely imaginatively, Paulo.

After joining Hibs Paul told the Daily Record “I don’t regret taking time out of the game. I wouldn’t be here if I hadn’t done that. My only regret is that after I left Newcastle my heart and soul weren’t really in football and I wasn’t trying my best every day.

“But without taking the two years out to take stock, I don’t think I would be sitting here now at Hibs.?

With Derek Riordan having left for Celtic, and Hibs in need of goals, he now has his chance to make something of the last few years of his career. It might not even be too late to break into the Scotland team. We?re in no position to overlook any decent Scotsman, even if they are uncapped at 29.

No matter how well he does on the field though, for some people, he?ll never shake off being his father?s son.

While Paul was at Livingston, Dalglish senior told The Scotsman, “I don’t think he has a problem with me being his Dad, it seems to be other people who do. It’s a fact of life. Whether it is fair or unfair is for other people to decide, but I think he’s alright with his name. He hasn’t asked to change it by deed poll as far as I know.”

This entry was posted on Saturday, August 5th, 2006 at 4:19 pm and is filed under Scottish Football News. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments. Both comments and pings are currently closed.