Alan Smith: Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish is profiting from picking a sensible system to suit his players

In truth, it has not been about formations or formulas, more about his ability to pick the best players in a sensible system and, in the finest Liverpool traditions, inspire them to get the ball down and play.

If that sounds easy, I can tell you that it is not, as the unfortunate Roy Hodgson found to his cost.

But take a glance at the team Hodgson picked for what turned out to be his last match in charge, the lame 3-1 defeat at Blackburn Rovers. Now compare it with the starting XI at Chelsea on Sunday. A few points immediately crop up.

There is the shape for a start. As soon as he took over, Dalglish ditched 4-4-2 in favour of one up front. Hodgson had tried that same system, with Steven Gerrard or Dirk Kuyt supporting Fernando Torres but the results were sporadic and he eventually changed it.

Perhaps a more telling distinction is their choice of player. David Ngog, for instance, has hardly had a kick under the new regime, having started seven of the previous nine.

Then there is Paul Konchesky, who had become the whipping boy for many Liverpool fans. If Dalglish had rated the left-back, he would have stuck by him, rather than loaning him to Nottingham Forest.

Different managers, different opinions. Nothing new there. It happens all the time with a change of boss.

A more interesting aspect is Dalglish’s decision to go with three centre-halves in the past two games, first against Stoke City and then at Stamford Bridge. Interesting because he might well have done this for different reasons each time.

Last Tuesday, for instance, the Scot may have wanted three big centre-halves to cope with Stoke City’s aerial threat.

Against Chelsea, Dalglish may have opted for the extra man to handle the pace and power of Messrs Drogba and Torres. Three against two, after all, always feels safer.

The by-product of this system is that it gives the team the kind of natural width they lack when playing four at the back. With the club short of orthodox wingers, Dalglish has used Martin Kelly and Glen Johnson in the wing-back roles and encouraged them to join attacks.

It is a clever ploy, which has worked very well, allowing the team to get plenty of men forward in support of the loan striker. The main beneficiary has been Raul Meireles, his four goals in five games have been invaluable.

As to whether Dalglish will stick with this shape when Anfield welcomes Wigan on Saturday, we shall have to wait and see. For now, it is enough that confidence is skyhigh. When that is the case, you can play pretty much any system and it will succeed.