LIVERPOOL legend Kenny Dalglish is excited by the potential for growth at the club as Rafael Benitez’s side close in on a second Champions League final in three seasons.
Dalglish insists former Valencia manager Benitez holds the key to what happens next for 2005 winners Liverpool, after they cruised past PSV Eindhoven in the quarter-finals.
Barclays Premiership rivals Chelsea block their passage to the Athens final, guaranteeing at least one English team will appear in the May 23 UEFA showpiece.
Dalglish said: “Rafa did well at Valencia and his team is brilliantly organised. They are really well prepared.
“The players have great belief and confidence in what he is telling them to do. When you get those two things together it is reflected on the pitch, especially in Europe, it sticks out like a sore thumb.”
Dalglish won three European Cups as a player with Liverpool and went on to successfully manage the team.
He shares in the optimism surrounding the club following the recent investment by American George Gillett and Tom Hicks, and the projected move to a new 60,000-seat stadium.
He said: “Liverpool won the Champions League two years ago and there are a lot of positive things happening at the club.
“There is the prospect of a new stadium in three years, prospect of the Champions League and the prospect of Rafa having a few extra shillings to spend.
“He has always had money to spend, it’s not like they have been paupers, and now they’ve inhe-rited this money.
“He’s always been able to buy players and he’s bought a few but it is positive and we are looking forward to see what will happen.”
Liverpool and Chelsea have been joined in the Champions League semi-finals by Manchester United, with AC Milan making up the quartet.
Dalglish believes the progress of the three English clubs demon-strates the strength of the Premi-ership.
Dalglish added: “It was comfortable for Liverpool against PSV.
“It was hard to see how they put Arsenal out but they missed Alex, who is a really good player.
“Liverpool have a one-in-four chance. I’d love to see Liverpool in the final, whoever else joins them doesn’t really matter.
“It’s a great reflection on the Premiership that they have three of the four semi-finalists. That speaks volumes for the quality of the Premiership.
“There are a lot of fantastic players in the Champions League, it is great to watch and that’s been reflected by three of the four teams in the semi-finals.”
