Kenny Dalglish will have been left "shocked and distraught" by his sacking as Liverpool manager, according to former Anfield team-mate and close friend Alan Hansen.
Dalglish was dismissed after one full season in his second spell at Liverpool in which they won the Carling Cup and finished eighth in the Premier League.
But Hansen insists that should have been enough to guarantee 61-year-old Dalglish at least another year at Anfield and believes there was genuine cause for optimism about further improvement next year.
Hansen told BBC Sport: "Kenny will be shocked and distraught because he loved Liverpool Football Club and their supporters. Just walking through the door at Anfield gave him an extra spring in his step and he will feel fragile today about not being able to do that again as manager.
"And as his friend I know how much he put into the job. Even when he went back to work at the academy before becoming the manager again he put his heart and soul into it. I'd ring him for a chat on a Sunday and he would be down there. He just loved being at Liverpool.
"He was so enthusiastic about working with those kids and what he could pass on to them and how he could improve them and nobody could have worked harder when he was manager because he loved Liverpool so much."
Hansen added: "The American owners have set the bar high by sacking him because they are saying only the Champions League matters. This is increasingly true but you have to remember where Liverpool were when he came back. If you went into Anfield in January 2011 it was the worst it had been in 30 years - the club was on its knees, so you were not going to get straight back into the Champions League."
Dalglish's signings have been criticised but Hansen insists there was enough evidence to suggest they would flourish under his fellow Scot had he stayed.
"No-one would suggest all of Kenny's signings have been rip roaring successes", said Hansen, "but I still think Jordan Henderson will develop into
