Former Scottish professional player Paul Dalglish will lead the Ottawa Fury FC in 2016, the soccer club announced Friday afternoon.

Dalglish, the son of Scottish football legend Kenny Dalglish, takes the reins from Marc Dos Santos, who announced in the fall he would be leaving for a position with Major League Soccer.

Dalglish will also be the team's general manager, said Fury FC president John Pugh.

"He has the contacts and reputation within soccer to attract players worldwide," said Pugh at a press conference Friday afternoon.

'Unique' opportunity

In only their second year in the North American Soccer League, Fury FC surprised many fans by finishing first in the league's fall season and making it all the way to the league final. They lost that match 3-2 to the New York Cosmos.

Paul Dalglish will take the reins of Ottawa Fury FC for the 2016 season, the team announced Friday afternoon. (Andrew Foote/CBC)

Dalglish said Friday the chance to take over a team coming off such recent success was "unique" in the soccer world.

"I know there's not many opportunities you can get in this game [to] follow success," said Dalglish.

"You're either starting at an expansion team...or you've got to rebuild. Well, this is pretty unique opportunity."

Dalglish also promised to bring more offense to a team he described as "the best defensive team in the country."

Played in top English, Scottish leagues

The 38-year-old spent more than a decade playing professional soccer for teams like Blackpool, Hibernian and Newcastle United.

In addition to stints in the English Premier League and the Scottish Premier League, Dalglish also played for two seasons in Major League Soccer from 2006-2007 with the Houston Dynamo.

His father Kenny is considered one of the best footballers in Scottish history, having played more than 200 international games for the country. He also scored more than 200 goals for top-flight clubs Celtic and Liverpool during a career that spanned two decades.