Carroll was brought to Merseyside on January transfer deadline day in 2011 for 35 million pounds and will now return to the Sports Direct Arena for the first time with his new side.

The striker has played against his former club twice at Anfield with Liverpool running out as winners on both occasions.

"It's not a bad thing, is it? If you weren't nervous you'd have a bit of a problem," Dalglish said.

"In my case it was always best to be nervous rather than totally laid back.

"I don't think anyone can be laid back when they go and play at the club that gave him his opportunity in football and turned him into a professional footballer."

Dalglish is also returning to a former employer after succeeding Kevin Keegan as Newcastle boss in 1997 and he is looking forward to returning to Tyneside.

"It's not the first old club I've been back to and every club I've been at I've enjoyed. It was no different there," he said.

"I enjoyed the people I worked with, the people I worked for, and they've got fantastic supporters.

"They get right behind their side, it's a fantastic place to go and play football and it's a great city that should be proud of its football club."

The Magpies have had a surprisingly successful this season and sit in the European places above Liverpool and Dalglish has credited Alan Pardew for getting Newcastle to where they are.

"This year Alan Pardew has done a fantastic job getting to where they are in the league and I'm looking forward to going back," he said.

Despite winning the Carling Cup and reaching the semi-finals of the FA Cup, Liverpool have only won two league games in 2012 and Dalglish wants the Reds to recreate their cup form in the Premier League.

"We want to compete equally in every competition we're in," he said.

"We've done tremendously well in the cups and we've got to recreate it in the league.

"It's not been that way this season. There have been a lot of fantastic performances but we've not got the results.

"We just need to get our league results in better order and it'll be a happier story.”