During 14 glorious years at Liverpool, he won seven championships, three European Cups, two FA Cups and four League Cups, often forming a rock-solid partnership in the centre of defence with pundit pal Mark Lawrenson.
He was less successful with Scotland.
Stangely overlooked for much of his career, Hansen was capped only 26 times.
He did go to the 1982 World Cup in Spain, but was unable to prevent the Scots' early exit, when many tipped them to do well.
Since retiring as a player in 1991, Hansen has made a name for himself as an astute football analyst.
He joined the Match of the Day team in 1992 and has been involved in major domestic and international coverage for the BBC ever since.
Hansen lives in Southport with his wife and two children.