Dalglish in final warning to stars

KENNY DALGLISH will send his troops into battle against Brighton's bogeymen with a Wembley warning ringing in their ears.

Liverpool are red-hot favourites to dump the Championship side in their FA Cup fifth round clash tomorrow.

And that will take them a step closer to another domestic final.

Yet after being blown out by the Seagulls twice in successive seasons during his own playing days, the Kop boss is aware of the danger.

He is equally aware of the perils of looking too far ahead, something painfully proved last month with a woeful defeat at Bolton.

Liverpool crashed 3-1 at the Reebok, before Carling and FA Cup glories against both Manchester clubs.

So if anyone in a red shirt gets sidetracked by next week's Carling Cup showdown with Cardiff, they could find themselves watching it from the stands.

Dalglish insisted: "There's no one here who enjoyed what happened at Bolton and I wouldn't see any reason why anyone would want to repeat that.

"If someone does well in any game it never does them any harm. So if someone plays well against Brighton, it gives you a problem for the team the following week.

"I've no idea what my team will be for then. The only target for us is to progress into the next round of the FA Cup. We've no great injury problems, everyone is vying to play.

"The most important thing for us is the strength of the squad we have and then it's a problem for us — or myself — to pick a team."

Liverpool have had a nightmare time in the past week, with the Luis Suarez controversy tarnishing the whole club's reputation.

Yet on the field there is no doubt they are heading in the right direction, with Arsenal and Chelsea's woes opening the door to a Champions League slot.

Dalglish added: "We are in a better position than a year ago, when we were out of the FA Cup and Carling Cup and tailed off in the league.

"Now we're four points off fourth spot, the fifth round of the cup's coming up and we are in the Carling Cup final. We still have an awful lot to play for."

Dalglish certainly will not be taking a place in the last eight for granted, having seen Brighton KO the Reds twice from the FA Cup in the 1980s.

In 1983 Bob Paisley's last chance to lift the one trophy which eluded him as player and manager was foiled by a shock 2-1 setback at Anfield that wrecked dreams of a domestic treble.

A year later Brighton roared to a 2-0 triumph at the Goldstone Ground and shattered hopes of glory in every available tournament that season.

Even when Liverpool did edge past the Seagulls, in the 1991 fourth round, it needed a replay. And they were pushed close when the sides met in the Carling Cup in September.

Dalglish added: "We must concentrate and not give them any presents."