"I WAS NOT surprised to see Roy Hodgson's tenure as Liverpool manager come to an end yesterday - and Martin O'Neill is the man I want to succeed him at Anfield.
Although Kenny Dalglish has been put in charge of the team until the end of the season and many supporters would like to see the Anfield legend get the job on a full-time basis, I'm not sure that would be the right move for the club's long term future.
Kenny would probably relish the chance to return to the top job at Liverpool and if he does well in the next few months, then the clamour for him to get the job would put the club's American owners under pressure to hand him the post full-time.
Suited
However, Kenny has been out of the game for many a year now and I feel he would be better suited to the ambassadorial role he has been working in to good effect for the last few years.
It would also be terribly sad to see Kenny's fantastic Liverpool legacy tarnished by a disastrous second spell as manager, which is possible if he takes over now.
That's why I believe the board need to look to an outsider to revive a team that has collapsed horribly this season.
I hope Kenny does a decent job in the coming months and maybe he will prove he has what it takes to move the team forward in the long term.
He should get the players playing with a bit of pride again as everyone in that dressing room will respect him for what he has achieved in the game.
Yet after weighing all options up, I'm convinced that O'Neill would be a most suitable candidate to take the team forward in the long term and if he does get the job at Anfield, it would not be before time.
I wanted Martin to get the job when Gerard Houllier left Anfield in 2004 and the Reds could have gone for him again last summer when it was clear that his time at Aston Villa was coming to an end.
However, everything is right for the Irishman to take over now as he is out of work and ready for the biggest challenge of his career.
Liverpool need a manager with real passion, a motivator who can lift the club out of its slump. O'Neill fits the bill as he ticks a lot of the boxes we need right now at Anfield.
I've always liked his management style and he appreciates the need to have a British/Irish influence in a Premier League team. That is something that has been lost at Liverpool after a decade, when foreign signings have become the trend.
Whether Martin would be willing to work with Sporting Director Damien Comolli remains to be seen and that could be a stumbling block for a man who likes to do things his own way, but he may welcome a ready-made scouting network that would help him settle into the job at Liverpool.
While I have some sympathy for Hodgson as his brief and troubled reign as Liverpool boss ended so quickly, the facts do not make good reading for a man who has never been fully accepted by the Anfield fans.
Liverpool reached the turn of the year with their lowest points total since the early 1950's, a goal difference in negative territory and a set of performances that have been as poor as I can remember.
Given those circumstances, the manager is always going to take some of the blame and yet the current crisis at Liverpool is not all down to Hodgson, as he inherited a difficult situation from Rafael Benitez.
Roy spent the little bit of money he was given last summer on Paul Konchesky and Christian Poulsen, but neither have made the sort of impact he would have been hoping for and his two flop signings have not helped his cause.
The team have been a shambles defensively all season, they are not scoring enough goals and even though Roy is a nice man who came to Liverpool with the best of intentions, you have to accept that some things are not meant to be.
Moving
Now the club has to make the right decisions to get things moving in the right direction and while things look a little bleak at the moment, Liverpool remain one of the true giants of English football and the club will rise again.
I saw former Wimbledon hacker Lawrie Sanchez trying to get himself a bit of publicity by claiming Liverpool are no longer a big club, but that's total nonsense as the name alone will see a list of top managers throwing their hat in the ring for this job.
Frank Rijkaard is bound to come into the mix because he did a good job with a very gifted Barcelona squad, but I hope the owners take some advice from people in the know and hand the keys of power to O'Neill.
Whoever takes over now will face a tough task to get the Liverpool ship sailing in the right direction once again, because it has veered dramatically off course in the last 18 months and fixing things overnight would not be possible.
In many ways, today's game against the old enemy at Old Trafford is perfect for Liverpool because a trip to a lower league club in the FA Cup third round had the potential to deepen the gloom that has descended over the club.
The way Liverpool played at Ewood Park the other night, I wouldn't have fancied them taking on a League Two opponent this weekend, but the players are bound to raise themselves for a fixture that will always mean so much to the fans.
United boss Alex Ferguson will pick a strong team as he will want to grind Liverpool into the ground at a moment when they are on their knees, but I have a feeling my old club will defy the odds and find a way to earn a replay this afternoon.
Taking United back to Anfield would not be what Ferguson or United want as they prepare for a hectic second half of the season, but this is the kind of occasion when Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard could just come to life.
Messy
Liverpool's recent history has been littered with messy chapters and another of those came to a close yesterday, so here's hopingthe players go out at Old Trafford this afternoon and turn in a display that puts some pride back into the shirt.
After the debacle at Blackburn on Wednesday, they certainly owe the fans a performance.
It's a real shame that a good man like Hodgson has been unable to find the answers the club needs, but I firmly believe that O'Neill would be more successful in that task."
Jesus christ. Still bitter because Kenny 'did the dirty' on him.
Although Kenny Dalglish has been put in charge of the team until the end of the season and many supporters would like to see the Anfield legend get the job on a full-time basis, I'm not sure that would be the right move for the club's long term future.
Kenny would probably relish the chance to return to the top job at Liverpool and if he does well in the next few months, then the clamour for him to get the job would put the club's American owners under pressure to hand him the post full-time.
Suited
However, Kenny has been out of the game for many a year now and I feel he would be better suited to the ambassadorial role he has been working in to good effect for the last few years.
It would also be terribly sad to see Kenny's fantastic Liverpool legacy tarnished by a disastrous second spell as manager, which is possible if he takes over now.
That's why I believe the board need to look to an outsider to revive a team that has collapsed horribly this season.
I hope Kenny does a decent job in the coming months and maybe he will prove he has what it takes to move the team forward in the long term.
He should get the players playing with a bit of pride again as everyone in that dressing room will respect him for what he has achieved in the game.
Yet after weighing all options up, I'm convinced that O'Neill would be a most suitable candidate to take the team forward in the long term and if he does get the job at Anfield, it would not be before time.
I wanted Martin to get the job when Gerard Houllier left Anfield in 2004 and the Reds could have gone for him again last summer when it was clear that his time at Aston Villa was coming to an end.
However, everything is right for the Irishman to take over now as he is out of work and ready for the biggest challenge of his career.
Liverpool need a manager with real passion, a motivator who can lift the club out of its slump. O'Neill fits the bill as he ticks a lot of the boxes we need right now at Anfield.
I've always liked his management style and he appreciates the need to have a British/Irish influence in a Premier League team. That is something that has been lost at Liverpool after a decade, when foreign signings have become the trend.
Whether Martin would be willing to work with Sporting Director Damien Comolli remains to be seen and that could be a stumbling block for a man who likes to do things his own way, but he may welcome a ready-made scouting network that would help him settle into the job at Liverpool.
While I have some sympathy for Hodgson as his brief and troubled reign as Liverpool boss ended so quickly, the facts do not make good reading for a man who has never been fully accepted by the Anfield fans.
Liverpool reached the turn of the year with their lowest points total since the early 1950's, a goal difference in negative territory and a set of performances that have been as poor as I can remember.
Given those circumstances, the manager is always going to take some of the blame and yet the current crisis at Liverpool is not all down to Hodgson, as he inherited a difficult situation from Rafael Benitez.
Roy spent the little bit of money he was given last summer on Paul Konchesky and Christian Poulsen, but neither have made the sort of impact he would have been hoping for and his two flop signings have not helped his cause.
The team have been a shambles defensively all season, they are not scoring enough goals and even though Roy is a nice man who came to Liverpool with the best of intentions, you have to accept that some things are not meant to be.
Moving
Now the club has to make the right decisions to get things moving in the right direction and while things look a little bleak at the moment, Liverpool remain one of the true giants of English football and the club will rise again.
I saw former Wimbledon hacker Lawrie Sanchez trying to get himself a bit of publicity by claiming Liverpool are no longer a big club, but that's total nonsense as the name alone will see a list of top managers throwing their hat in the ring for this job.
Frank Rijkaard is bound to come into the mix because he did a good job with a very gifted Barcelona squad, but I hope the owners take some advice from people in the know and hand the keys of power to O'Neill.
Whoever takes over now will face a tough task to get the Liverpool ship sailing in the right direction once again, because it has veered dramatically off course in the last 18 months and fixing things overnight would not be possible.
In many ways, today's game against the old enemy at Old Trafford is perfect for Liverpool because a trip to a lower league club in the FA Cup third round had the potential to deepen the gloom that has descended over the club.
The way Liverpool played at Ewood Park the other night, I wouldn't have fancied them taking on a League Two opponent this weekend, but the players are bound to raise themselves for a fixture that will always mean so much to the fans.
United boss Alex Ferguson will pick a strong team as he will want to grind Liverpool into the ground at a moment when they are on their knees, but I have a feeling my old club will defy the odds and find a way to earn a replay this afternoon.
Taking United back to Anfield would not be what Ferguson or United want as they prepare for a hectic second half of the season, but this is the kind of occasion when Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard could just come to life.
Messy
Liverpool's recent history has been littered with messy chapters and another of those came to a close yesterday, so here's hopingthe players go out at Old Trafford this afternoon and turn in a display that puts some pride back into the shirt.
After the debacle at Blackburn on Wednesday, they certainly owe the fans a performance.
It's a real shame that a good man like Hodgson has been unable to find the answers the club needs, but I firmly believe that O'Neill would be more successful in that task."
Jesus christ. Still bitter because Kenny 'did the dirty' on him.
He's such an idiot.
from now on I will skip talking about our finances. That is a promise and will save myself from looking like a 
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