Andy Robertson never got to see Sir Kenny Dalglish in a Liverpool shirt, but when the left-back signed for the Reds in 2017, the weight of that legacy was impossible to miss. Arriving from Hull City for £8 million, Robertson joined a club with a unique cultural thread binding it to Scotland—a connection that stretches back to the era of Bill Shankly and runs through some of football's greatest names. Within weeks of his arrival, Robertson said, the names came tumbling out: Dalglish, Alan Hansen, Graeme Souness. The message was clear: Scottish players don't just play for Liverpool. They help define what it means to wear the shirt.
That legacy mattered. Robertson had spent his early career in obscurity, playing for Queen's Park in Scotland's fourth tier just four years before joining Liverpool. But under Jurgen Klopp's guidance, he became something special—not just a defender, but a midfielder's assist-maker in disguise. His 60 Premier League assists rank second among defenders, behind only Trent Alexander-Arnold, his teammate. Nine major trophies followed: two league titles, a Champions League trophy, and a collection of silverware that few players ever touch. Yet for all that success, Robertson remained grounded by something deeper than medals. Dalglish, now 75, called him "a great credit" to Liverpool—praise that seemed to resonate as much as any trophy might.
The bond between Robertson and Dalglish extends beyond football's bright moments. Both men have carried the weight of tragedy. Dalglish guided Liverpool through the Hillsborough disaster of 1989, which claimed 97 lives, and he was present during the 1985 European Cup final tragedy at Heysel, where 39 people died. Last summer, after Liverpool claimed their 20th league title, Robertson lost his close friend and teammate Diogo Jota in a car crash. Speaking to BBC interviewer Kelly Cates—Dalglish's daughter—Robertson reflected on how his team pushed forward through grief. "We have no option," he said. "The players have to continue because everyone still wants to see a Liverpool team on the pitch and sometimes that helps people get over the tragedy, but you're the ones who have to go out and do it."
Robertson's final match for Liverpool comes on Sunday, after nine years that contained both ecstatic triumph and heartbreaking near-misses. Twice under Klopp, the Reds finished a single point behind Manchester City. Robertson watched a 97-point campaign fall short. He played in two Champions League finals that slipped away to Real Madrid—until the third one didn't. That 2019 victory proved cathartic, but it was the Premier League title won the following year that truly moved him. After 30 years without a top-flight trophy, Robertson felt the desperation in Liverpool's fanbase. "I think that was the one thing I really felt when I signed," he reflected.
At 32, Robertson now turns his focus to Scotland's first men's World Cup in 28 years. He sits just 10 caps short of matching Dalglish's record of 102. The two men have become modern keepers of a flame lit long ago on the Kop, proof that the finest Scottish footballers don't just pass through Liverpool—they become part of its soul.