1992–93 in English football

The 1992-1993 season was the 113th season of competitive football in England.

Overview

This season saw the birth of the FA Premier League. This meant a break-up of the 104-year-old Football League that had operated until then with four divisions.

In 1992 all of the First Division Clubs resigned from the football league and, on 27 May 1992, the FA Premier League was formed as a limited company, which worked out of an office at the then Football Association's headquarters, Lancaster Gate.

The three divisions which remained in the Football League were renamed. The old Division Two was now called Division One. The old Division Three was now called Division Two, and the old Division Four was now Division Three.

Successful players

Manchester United winger Ryan Giggs, 19, was voted PFA Young Player of the Year for the second year running after helping his employers win their first league title for 26 years.

Teddy Sheringham was the new Premier League's top scorer with 22 goals. He scored once for Nottingham Forest and was then transferred to Tottenham Hotspur, opening his goalscoring account with the club by scoring 21 league goals.

Chris Waddle was voted Player of the Year by the FWA after helping Sheffield Wednesday reach both domestic cup finals.

Guy Whittingham scores a club record 42 league goals during the season for Portsmouth. He was on target 46 times in all competitions.

The PFA Player of the Year award went to experienced Aston Villa centre-back Paul McGrath.

Coventry signed Newcastle striker Mick Quinn for a nominal fee in November, and he responded by scoring 17 Premier League goals (the first 10 in 6 games) to keep the Sky Blues clear of relegation.

Striker Les Ferdinand established himself as one of the country's top marksmen with more than 20 goals in all competitions for Queens Park Rangers.

Alan Shearer scored 16 goals in his first 21 Premier League games for Blackburn Rovers before a serious knee injury ended his season.

David Kelly scored 25 Division One goals to help Newcastle win promotion to the Premier League, but surprisingly he spurned the chance of Premier League football to sign for Wolves as strike-partner for the ever-prolific Steve Bull.

Andy Cole scored 12 goals in his first 12 games for Division One champions Newcastle.

Successful managers

Alex Ferguson took Manchester United to title success in the new Premier League, ending their 26-year wait for the league title.

George Graham guided Arsenal to a unique double of winning both domestic cups in the same season.

Mike Walker pulled off one of the surprises of the season by taking Norwich City to a club best finish of third in the Premiership and helping them achieve European qualification for the first time in their history.

Gerry Francis helped Queens Park Rangers finish highest out of all the London-based clubs in the new Premier League as they finished fifth.

Kevin Keegan restored success to Newcastle United by guiding them to the Division One title.

Glenn Hoddle guided Swindon Town to success in the Division One playoffs to achieve promotion to the Premiership - and top flight football for a club who had never played at that level before.

Lou Macari won the Division Two title with Stoke City.

Bruce Rioch continued the revival at Bolton Wanderers by gaining automatic promotion to Division One.

Alan Little had a dream start in management by winning the Division Three playoff with York City, just two months after he had taken over from John Ward.

A then little known Martin O'Neill took Wycombe Wanderers into the Football League as Conference champions.

Events

The Premier League is born

The FA launched its new Premier League of 22 elite clubs, which broke away from the Football League. The new league was backed up by a £305million exclusive TV rights deal with BSkyB. This paved the way for the Premier League's members to spend heavily on new players and also to convert their stadia into an all-seater format, which was necessary as a result of the Taylor Report's requirement that top division stadia should be all seater from the start of the 1994-95 season.

United's 26-year title wait ends

Manchester United won the first Premier League championship to end their 26-year wait for the league title. They fought off stiff competition from runners-up Aston Villa, third-placed Norwich City and fourth-placed Blackburn Rovers to finish top of the league. Brilliant young winger Ryan Giggs was PFA Young Player of the Year for the second year running, while Alex Ferguson received the Manager of the Year award. Other significant players in the title winning side were top goalscorer Mark Hughes, temperamental but brilliant French striker Eric Cantona, reliable centre back Gary Pallister and confident midfielder Paul Ince. Manchester United would go on further to dominate the Premier League till the present day, with challenges coming from Arsenal, Newcastle United, Aston Villa, Blackburn and Chelsea for the title.

The Fall of Forest

Brian Clough retired after 18 years as manager of Nottingham Forest. In his final season as manager they were relegated from the Premier League, but earlier in his reign he had brought league championship and European Cup glory to the previously unfashionable club. There had even been some success in the final few years of his reign, as Forest were League Cup winners in 1989 and 1990. They were losing finalists in the 1991 FA Cup and 1992 League Cup, but finally bowed out of the top flight after the sale of key players like Des Walker and Teddy Sheringham who proved impossible to replace.

Bobby Moore dies

Bobby Moore died of cancer aged 51. He is best remembered for captaining England to World Cup glory in 1966. He also won the FA Cup and Cup Winners' Cup with West Ham United. Just over a week before his death, Moore had given radio commentation on an England game.

Morrow crocked as Arsenal crack the cup double

Arsenal became the first team to win the FA Cup and League Cup in the same season, beating Sheffield Wednesday 2-1 in both finals. Steve Morrow scored the winning goal in the League Cup final, but was accidentally dropped by captain Tony Adams during the post-match celebrations, broke his arm and missed the FA Cup triumph. Arsenal's double gave them two places in UEFA competitions, meaning that Norwich City were awarded a UEFA Cup place for finishing third in the League. Norwich had never qualified for Europe before, due to the ban on English clubs following the Heysel stadium disaster.

Swindon in the big time at last

Swindon Town finally reached the top flight of English football by beating Leicester City 4-3 in the Division One playoff final. They had been denied promotion three years earlier because of financial irregularities.

Manager of the jubilant Swindon side was 36-year-old Glenn Hoddle, the former Tottenham and England midfielder, who had built a formidable squad containing players like Shaun Taylor, Micky Hazard and Craig Maskell. Shortly after achieving promotion glory with Swindon, Hoddle agreed to become manager of Chelsea and was replaced at the County Ground by his assistant John Gorman.

Wycombe reach the league

Martin O'Neill, who played in the great Nottingham Forest team of the late 1970s and early 1980s, achieved his first success in management by getting Wycombe Wanderers promoted to the Football League as well as completing the double by winning the FA Trophy. They replaced Halifax Town, who finished bottom of Division Three. Wycombe's fortunes had been looking good since they moved into their new Adams Park ground in 1990, and the Conference and FA Trophy double all but erased memories of the previous year when they went through the agony of missing out on promotion on goal difference to their bitter rivals Colchester United.

Barclays pull out

Barclays bank ended their six-year sponsorship of the Football League. They were replaced by Endsleigh Insurance, who put pen to paper in a three-year sponsorship deal.

Barnet come out on top against all the odds

Controversial chairman Stan Flashman quit Barnet after a season of turmoil in which he regularly sacked and reinstated manager Barry Fry, but the club still managed to win promotion from Division Three despite spending months on the verge of oblivion due to a mounting financial crisis. They had banned from the transfer market for most of the season because they were unable to afford their player's wages.

Maidstone go under

Maidstone United, struggling in the league's basement division with huge debts, no registered stadium and just two registered players, had their first game of the 1992-93 season cancelled and were given two days to guarantee that they would be able to fulfill their fixtures. Unable to comply with these requirements, the club resigned from the league on 17 August 1992. The club was soon reformed and applied to join the Kent County League for the following season. The League decided that Maidstone would not be replaced by another club, so the top four tiers of the English league pyramid would revert to the 92-club format which it had adopted until 1991.

Famous debutants

5 September 1992: Andy Turner, midfielder aged 17 years and 166 days, becomes the youngest Premier League scorer when he scores on his competitive debut for Tottenham Hotspur against Everton.

16 September 1992: Gary Neville, 17-year-old defender, makes his debut for Manchester United against Torpedo Moscow in the UEFA Cup first round first leg tie at Old Trafford, which ends in a goalless draw.

23 September 1992: David Beckham, 17-year-old midfielder, comes on as a substitute for Manchester United as they draw 1-1 at Brighton in the Football League Cup second round first leg.

27 September 1992: Nick Barmby, 18-year-old attacking midfielder, makes his debut for Tottenham Hotspur in a 2-0 Premier League defeat at Sheffield Wednesday.

21 November 1992: Nicky Butt, 17-year-old midfielder, comes on a substitute for Manchester United in their 3-0 home win over Oldham Athletic in the Premier League.

5 December 1992: Sol Campbell, 18-year-old defender, scores on his debut for Tottenham Hotspur as they lose 2-1 at home to Chelsea in the Premier League.

Honours

Competition	Winner
FA Cup	Arsenal
League Cup	Arsenal
FA Premier League	Manchester United
Football League First Division	Newcastle United
Football League Second Division	Stoke City
Football League Third Division	Cardiff City
Autoglass Trophy	Port Vale
Charity Shield	Leeds United

English national team

Date	Opposition	Venue	Competition	Result	Score
9 September 1992	Spain	El Sardinero, Santander	Friendly	Lost	0-1
14 October 1992	Norway	Wembley Stadium	World Cup Qualifier	Drew	1-1
18 November 1992	Turkey	Wembley Stadium	World Cup Qualifier	Won	4-0
17 February 1993	San Marino	Wembley Stadium	World Cup Qualifier	Won	6-0
31 March 1993	Turkey	Atatürk Stadyumu, Izmir, Turkey	World Cup Qualifier	Won	2-0
28 April 1993	Netherlands	Wembley Stadium	World Cup Qualifier	Drew	2-2
29 May 1993	Poland	Stadion S'la;ski, Chorzów, Poland	World Cup Qualifier	Drew	1-1
2 June 1993	Norway	Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo, Norway	World Cup Qualifier	Lost	0-2
9 June 1993	U.S.A.	Foxboro Stadium, Foxboro, Massachusetts, USA	US Cup	Lost	0-2
13 June 1993	Brazil	R. F. Kennedy Stadium, Washington DC, USA	US Cup	Drew	1-1
19 June 1993	Germany	Silverdome, Pontiac, Michigan, USA	US Cup	Lost	1-2

League tables

FA Premier League

• For more detail on the Premiership this season see FA Premier League 1992-93

Pos.	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Pts
1.	Man Utd	42	24	12	6	67	31	84
2.	Aston Villa	42	21	11	10	57	40	74
3.	Norwich	42	21	9	12	61	65	72
4.	Blackburn	42	20	11	11	68	46	71
5.	Q.P.R.	42	17	12	13	63	55	63
6.	Liverpool	42	16	11	15	62	55	59
7.	Sheffield Wed	42	15	14	13	55	51	59
8.	Tottenham	42	16	11	15	60	66	59
9.	Man City	42	15	12	15	56	51	57
10.	Arsenal	42	15	11	16	40	38	56
11.	Chelsea	42	14	14	14	51	54	56
12.	Wimbledon	42	14	12	16	56	55	54
13.	Everton	42	15	8	19	53	55	53
14.	Sheffield Utd	42	14	10	18	54	53	52
15.	Coventry	42	13	13	16	52	57	52
16.	Ipswich	42	12	16	14	50	55	52
17.	Leeds United	42	12	15	15	57	62	51
18.	Southampton	42	13	11	18	54	61	50
19.	Oldham Ath	42	13	10	19	63	74	49
20.	Crystal Palace	42	11	16	15	48	61	49
21.	Middlesbrough	42	11	11	20	54	75	44
22.	Nottingham F	42	10	10	22	41	62	40

League Division One

Newcastle United's first full season under the management of Kevin Keegan ended in Division One championship glory and promotion to the Premiership. They have not looked back since. Following the Geordies into football's big-money league were West Ham United and Swindon Town. West Ham had suffered relegation just one season earlier, and had been many people's favourites for an automatic return to the elite. Swindon, meanwhile, had finally reached the top flight after 73 years of trying - they had actually won promotion via the playoffs three years earlier, but promotion had been denied a few weeks later due to financial irregularities.

Going down were Cambridge United (who had just missed out on promotion a year earlier), Brentford and Bristol Rovers. Brentford, newly promoted a season earlier, had stood in 10th place at the turn of 1993, but a sharp decline in form during the final few months of the season saw them relegated on the final day of the season.

Third-placed Portsmouth had opened up a 9-point gap over fourth-placed Tranmere Rovers, but lost to Leicester City in the playoff semi-finals and this ended any promotion hopes for a club who had begun the season as favourites for promotion, and ended it with 88 points.

Pos.	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Pts
1.	Newcastle	46	29	9	8	92	38	96
2.	West Ham	46	26	10	10	81	41	88
3.	Portsmouth	46	26	10	10	80	46	88
4.	Tranmere	46	23	10	13	72	56	79
5.	Swindon	46	21	13	12	74	59	76
6.	Leicester	46	22	10	14	71	64	76
7.	Millwall	46	18	16	12	65	53	70
8.	Derby	46	19	9	18	68	57	66
9.	Grimsby	46	19	7	20	58	57	64
10.	Peterborough	46	16	14	16	55	63	62
11.	Wolves	46	16	13	17	57	56	61
12.	Charlton	46	16	13	17	49	46	61
13.	Barnsley	46	17	9	20	56	60	60
14.	Oxford	46	14	14	18	53	56	56
15.	Bristol City	46	14	14	18	49	67	56
16.	Watford	46	14	13	19	57	71	55
17.	Notts C	46	12	16	18	55	70	52
18.	Southend	46	13	13	20	54	64	52
19.	Birmingham	46	13	12	21	50	72	51
20.	Luton	46	10	21	15	48	62	51
21.	Sunderland	46	13	11	22	50	64	50
22.	Brentford	46	13	10	23	52	71	49
23.	Cambridge	46	11	16	19	48	69	49
24.	Bristol Rovers	46	10	11	25	55	87	41

League Division Two

Lou Macari guided Stoke City to their first successful season in years as they were crowned Division Two champions. Bruce Rioch brought some long-awaited success to Bolton Wanderers as they occupied the division's second promotion place. Osvaldo Ardiles guided West Bromwich Albion to promotion via the playoffs, bringing some long-awaited success to another club who had once enjoyed better times.

Preston North End, Wigan Athletic, Mansfield Town and Chester City occupied Division Two's four relegation places. Mansfield were newly promoted, while the other three teams had been established at this level for no less than six years.

Pos.	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Pts
1.	Stoke	46	27	12	7	73	34	93
2.	Bolton	46	27	9	10	80	41	90
3.	Port Vale	46	26	11	9	79	44	89
4.	West Brom	46	25	10	11	88	54	85
5.	Swansea	46	20	13	13	65	47	73
6.	Stockport	46	19	15	12	81	57	72
7.	Leyton Orient	46	21	9	16	69	53	72
8.	Reading	46	18	15	13	66	51	69
9.	Brighton	46	20	9	17	63	59	69
10.	Bradford City	46	18	14	14	69	67	68
11.	Rotherham	46	17	14	15	60	60	65
12.	Fulham	46	16	17	13	57	55	65
13.	Burnley	46	15	16	15	57	59	61
14.	Plymouth	46	16	12	18	59	64	60
15.	Huddersfield	46	17	9	20	54	61	60
16.	Hartlepool	46	14	12	20	42	60	54
17.	Bournemouth	46	12	17	17	45	52	53
18.	Blackpool	46	12	15	19	63	75	51
19.	Exeter	46	11	17	18	54	69	50
20.	Hull	46	13	11	22	46	69	50
21.	Preston	46	13	8	25	65	94	47
22.	Mansfield	46	11	11	24	52	80	44
23.	Wigan	46	10	11	25	43	72	41
24.	Chester	46	8	5	33	49	102	29

League Division Three

Cardiff City and Wrexham continued their good progress by occupying Division Three's top two places. They were joined in third place by Barnet, who had spent most of the season on the brink of expulsion from the league due to financial problems. The final promotion place went to York City, who won the playoffs just weeks after Alan Little was appointed manager.

Halifax Town, after 72 years of league membership, finished bottom of the league and were replaced by Conference champions Wycombe Wanderers.

Pos.	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Pts
1.	Cardiff	42	25	8	9	77	47	83
2.	Wrexham	42	23	11	8	75	52	80
3.	Barnet	42	23	10	9	66	48	79
4.	York City	42	21	12	9	72	45	75
5.	Walsall	42	22	7	13	76	61	73
6.	Crewe	42	21	7	14	75	56	70
7.	Bury	42	18	9	15	63	55	63
8.	Lincoln	42	18	9	15	57	53	63
9.	Shrewsbury	42	17	11	14	57	52	62
10.	Colchester	42	18	5	19	67	76	59
11.	Rochdale	42	16	10	16	70	70	58
12.	Chesterfield	42	15	11	16	59	63	56
13.	Scarborough	42	15	9	18	66	71	54
14.	Scunthorpe	42	14	12	16	57	54	54
15.	Darlington	42	12	14	16	48	53	50
16.	Doncaster	42	11	14	17	42	57	47
17.	Hereford	42	10	15	17	47	60	45
18.	Carlisle	42	11	11	20	51	65	44
19.	Torquay	42	12	7	23	45	67	43
20.	Northampton	42	11	8	23	48	74	41
21.	Gillingham	42	9	13	20	48	64	40
22.	Halifax	42	9	9	24	45	68	36

Transfer deals

For subsequent transfer deals see 1993-94 in English football.

Diary of the season

1 July 1992 - Chris Waddle ends three years at Marseille to sign for Sheffield Wednesday in a £1million deal.

6 July 1992 - Liverpool sign 21-year-old goalkeeper David James from Watford for £1million, with manager Graeme Souness anticipating him as an eventual long-term successor to Bruce Grobbelaar.

7 July 1992 - Southampton manager Ian Branfoot announces that highly-rated striker Alan Shearer can leave the club if the price is right. Manchester United are said to be favourites in the race to sign Shearer, who turns 22 next month.

10 July 1992 - Oldham Athletic pay a club record £600,000 for Manchester City defender Neil Pointon.

11 July 1992 - Ted Fenton, who was manager of West Ham United from 1950 to 1961, dies aged 77 after being injured in a car crash in Leicester.

14 July 1992 - Arsenal sign John Jensen, midfielder of Denmark's Euro 92 winning team, from Brondby in a £1.1million deal.

20 July 1992 - Blackburn Rovers pay £1.3million for Stuart Ripley (Middlesbrough winger) as they prepare for their first top division season since the 1960s, but the big talk at Ewood Park is that Alan Shearer will soon be joining the club for Southampton, with Manchester United also in the hunt for his signature.

23 July 1992 - David Rocastle ends nine years at Arsenal by joining Leeds United in a £2million deal.

25 July 1992 - Everton are reported to be £3.6million in debt. It is also reported that they lost £2million in the financial year ending May 1992. [1]

27 July 1992 - The new Premier League rejects sponsorship deals offered by Bass Breweries and Ford Motor Company, meaning that it will be without a sponsor in its first season.

28 July 1992 - Alan Shearer signs for newly promoted Blackburn Rovers for an English record fee of £3.5million, while Aston Villa add Ray Houghton (from Liverpool for £900,000) to their ranks as Ron Atkinson looks to build a title-winning side.

29 July 1992 - Lou Macari, former Swindon Town manager (now at Stoke City), is cleared of tax fraud offences at Winchester Crown Court. Swindon's former chairman Brian Hillier is found guilty, however, and given a one-year prison sentence. Club accountant Vince Farrar is also found guilty and receives a six-month suspended sentence.

1 August 1992 - Nottingham Forest sell defender Des Walker to Sampdoria of Italy for £1.5million.

7 August 1992 - Manchester United sign 23-year-old Cambridge United striker Dion Dublin for £1million.

8 August 1992 - Eric Cantona scores hat-trick for Leeds United who win the FA Charity Shield with a 4-3 victory over Liverpool at Wembley Stadium.

12 August 1992 - Chelsea pay a club record £2.1million for Norwich City's Scottish striker Robert Fleck.

14 August 1992 - Norwich City replace Robert Fleck with Mark Robins from Manchester United for £800,000, while Everton boost their attack with a £500,000 move for Paul Rideout.

15 August 1992 - The new FA Premier League kicks off on the opening day of the season. The honour of scoring the first Premier League goal goes to Sheffield United striker Brian Deane, who opens the scoring in a 2-1 home win over title favourites Manchester United.

16 August 1992 - Sky Sports broadcast their first live Premier League game. Teddy Sheringham scores the only goal as Nottingham Forest beat Liverpool at the City Ground.

25 August 1992 - Chester City lose 2-1 to Stockport County in the first match at their new Deva Stadium home in the Football League Cup. Manchester City equal the British national record for a defender (which they set last year when signing Keith Curle) by paying £2.5million for Wimbledon's Terry Phelan.

27 August 1992 - Tottenham Hotspur pay £2.1million for Nottingham Forest's 26-year-old striker Teddy Sheringham to take over from Gary Lineker who is now playing in Japan.

31 August 1992 - The first month of the league season sees Blackburn Rovers top the new Premier League in their first top division season since 1965-66. Queens Park Rangers occupy second place, with third place is occupied by a Norwich City side who were predicted to struggle this season but have started the season strongly, their best result coming with a 4-2 win over Arsenal. Bottom of the table are Tottenham Hotspur, whose acquisition of Teddy Sheringham gives fans hope of improving upon the dismal form that their team has incurred since the departure of Gary Lineker and Paul Gascoigne. [2] Charlton Athletic lead Division One, with Swindon Town standing second and the playoff zone being occupied by Leicester City, Newcastle United, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Watford.

1 September 1992 - Crystal Palace sign 21-year-old striker Chris Armstrong from Millwall for £1million.

2 September 1992 - Aston Villa pay a club record £2.5million for Liverpool striker Dean Saunders, after manager Ron Atkinson's failed bids for John Aldridge of Tranmere Rovers and Mark Hughes of Manchester United. [3]

5 September 1992 - Chester City beat Burnley 3-0 in Division Two in their first game at the new Deva Stadium, with Neil Morton scoring the first goal there.

15 September 1992 - All 22 Division Three clubs receive £10,000 compensation each from the Football League to cover the loss of gate revenue brought upon by the recent demise of Aldershot and Maidstone United. [4]

16 September 1992 - Derby County pay the record fee for a club outside the top division - and a national record for a defender - when they sign Notts County centre-back Craig Short, 24, in a 2.5million deal.

22 September 1992 - Division One leaders Newcastle United boost their promotion bid by signing Charlton Athletic midfielder Robert Lee for £700,000.

29 September 1992 - Manchester United are eliminated from the UEFA Cup on penalties after two goalless draws in their First Round contest with Torpedo Moscow of Russia.

30 September 1992 - September ends with Norwich City (a team who have never been league champions) topping the Premier League, while Blackburn Rovers are still doing well in second place and Manchester United's slow start has been improved upon as they stand fourth. Coventry City, another team predicted to struggle and another team without a top division title to their name, are defying the odds and are currently third in the league. Brian Clough's Nottingham Forest are still struggling as they prop up the top flight with just one win from their opening nine games. Crystal Palace, who came third in the league two seasons ago, are now struggling in second from bottom place with just one win from their opening 10 games. [5] Newcastle United lead Division One with a 100% record in the league stretching eight games, with Charlton Athletic occupying second place without any defeats from their opening nine games. Wolverhampton Wanderers, Leicester City, Birmingham City (in the hunt for a second successive promotion) and Millwall occupy the playoff zone. Derby County, who began the season as most people's favourites for the Division One title, are third from bottom in the table. [6]

14 October 1992 - England draw 1-1 with Norway in their disappointing opener to the World Cup qualifying series.

16 October 1992 - Tottenham Hotspur striker Gordon Durie is banned for three games after feigning an injury in order to win his team a free kick.

18 October 1992 - Cardiff City chairman Rick Wright announces that he is considering withdrawing the club from the Football League in order to transfer to the League of Wales. [7]

19 October 1992 - Chester City part company with charismatic manager Harry McNally after seven years in charge, following a poor start to the season.

22 October 1992 - Cambridge United sack controversial manager John Beck, who had guided them to successive promotions in the first two of his three seasons as manager. Cambridge had narrowly missed out on a unique third successive promotion at the end of last season, but they have struggled in the new Division One after the sale of key striker Dion Dublin.

23 October 1992 - Barclays Bank announce that they will not be renewing their sponsorship of the Football League after the end of the season. Barclays have been the league's sponsors since the start of the 1987-88 season.

31 October 1992 - October ends with Blackburn Rovers still top of the league, now leading only due to a far superior goal difference over second-placed Norwich City. Queens Park Rangers are keeping up the pressure being just two places and four points off the top. Arsenal, Coventry City, Aston Villa and Manchester United are also pushing for the title, while Nottingham Forest and Crystal Palace remain in deep trouble along with the likes of Everton. Liverpool, one of the pre-season title favourites, are just six places and three places clear of the drop zone. [8] Newcastle United remain top of Division One with 11 wins from their opening 13 games, with Swindon Town second in the table. Leicester City, West Ham United, Tranmere Rovers and Wolverhampton Wanderers occupying the playoff zone. Derby County's terrible start to the season has given way to a good recovery and they now stand 10th in the league. [9]

8 November 1992 - Mark Robins scores a hat-trick for Norwich City in their 3-2 away win over Oldham Athletic, which takes them to the top of the Premier League.

18 November 1992 - Wimbledon midfielder Vinnie Jones is fined £20,000 for his controversial appearance in the video Soccer's Hard Men. On the same day, England achieve a comfortable 4-0 win over Turkey in the second World Cup qualifying game.

26 November 1992 - Manchester United sign the dynamic Leeds United and France striker Eric Cantona in a £1.2million deal.

30 November 1992 - Norwich City finish November as Premier League leaders and look well on course for a first-ever top division title, as they lead by five points ahead of second-placed Blackburn Rovers. Arsenal and Aston Villa continue to keep up the pressure, along with a resurgent Manchester United side who were tenth earlier in the month and whose title hopes had looked dead and buried. Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest continue to prop up the top flight, while Everton have climbed out of the relegation zone at the expense of Wimbledon. Liverpool, meanwhile, have improved after last month's wobbles and are homing in on the top five. [10] Newcastle United now have a 12-point lead over their nearest contenders, Tranmere Rovers (in the hunt for top flight football for the first time in their history, which would give them three promotions in just five seasons). The playoff zone is occupied by West Ham United, Swindon Town, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Millwall. A surprise promotion challenge is coming from Grimsby Town (who were playing in the old Fourth Division three years ago) who now occupy eighth place in Division One. [11]

7 December 1992 - Birmingham City are put up for sale with offers in the region of £750,000 invited for the 84% shareholding of former owner Samesh Kumar, who was recently declared bankrupt.

11 December 1992 - Ipswich Town sign Bulgarian striker Bontcho Guentchev from Sporting Lisbon of Portugal for £250,000.

18 December 1992 - Liverpool sign Norway defender Stig-Inge Bjornbye from Rosenborg for £600,000.

22 December 1992 - Chelsea sign Russian goalkeeper Dmitri Khrain from CSKA Moscow for £200,000.

26 December 1992 - One of the most thrilling Premier League games yet sees Manchester United draw 3-3 at Sheffield Wednesday after being 3-0 down at half time. United are now second in the table behind Norwich City, a side who began the season among the relegation favourites.

31 December 1992 - 1992 draws to a close with Norwich City still leading the table, though with their lead cut down to three points and their goals condeded tally equal to their goals scored tally. Manchester United's revival continue as they are Norwich City's closest contenders in second place. Fifth placed Ipswich Town are starting to look like title contenders, while Nottingham Forest remain bottom, Wimbledon have sunk deeper into relegation trouble, and Crystal Palace have jumped clear of the bottom three at the expense of Sheffield United. [12] Newcastle United enter the new year with a 12-point lead over Tranmere Rovers. West Ham United, Millwall, Portsmouth and Leicester City occupy the playoff zone. [13] Newly promoted Brentford occupy 10th place, and are just two points short of the playoff zone that would give them a real chance of reclaiming the top division place they lost in 1947. Birmingham City's early promotion challenge, however, has given way to a drastic loss of form that has pushed them to the bottom of Division One. Also facing the threat of relegation are Luton Town (who only slipped out of the top flight last season) as well as Southend United and Cambridge United who were in last season's promotion hunt. [14]

6 January 1993 - 18 months after leaving them for Aston Villa, Les Sealey returns to Manchester United on a free transfer following a goalkeeping backup crisis which saw Swindon Town's Fraser Digby join them on loan after Gary Walsh was injured.

26 January 1993 - Blackburn Rovers sign Norway defender Henning Berg (who had a trial at Manchester United six years ago) from Lillestrom in a £400,000 deal.

31 January 1993 - January ends with Norwich City still top, but with their lead over Manchester United now down to a single point. Aston Villa and Ipswich Town are continuing to keep up the pressure, but Blackburn Rovers have slumped to fifth place with Alan Shearer now out of action for the rest of the season due to injury. Nottingham Forest and Oldham Athletic are bracketed together in the bottom two places, with Sheffield United still occupying the final relegation position but Wimbledon now out of the drop zone. Shockingly, a Liverpool side expected to feature in the title race as they have done for most of the last 30 seasons are now in a relegation battle standing a mere three places and four points above the drop zone. [15] The Division One promotion chase is still led by runaway leaders Newcastle United, whose nearest challenge is from a West Ham United side who are 11 points behind them with a game in hand. Millwall, Tranmere Rovers, Portsmouth and Leicester City occupy the playoff zone. The division's bottom two clubs, Luton Town and Notts County, are under serious threat of a second successive relegation, joined in the bottom three by a Southend United side who spent much of last season challenging for promotion to the Premier League. [16]

1 February 1993 - Sunderland, struggling in Division One, sack Malcolm Crosby as manager, nine months after he led them to their first FA Cup final since 1973.

4 February 1993 - Nearly seven years after selling him to Aston Villa, Arsenal buy Martin Keown from Everton for £2million.

5 February 1993 - Terry Butcher is named as the new manager of Sunderland, one year after being sacked by Coventry City, and re-registers himself as a player nearly two years after deciding to hang up his boots.

12 February 1993 - Newcastle United sign Andy Cole from Bristol City for a club record £1.75million.

13 February 1993 - Manchester United's double hopes are ended when they lose 2-1 to Sheffield United at Bramall Lane in the FA Cup fifth round. Steve Bruce's penalty miss was seen as the lost opportunity for a United side. However, the FA Cup dream is still on for neighbouring Manchester City after their 2-0 win over Barnsley.

17 February 1993 - England's recent upturn in form continues when they achieve a third successive win in their World Cup qualifying series, triumphing 6-0 over San Marino at Wembley. Bobby Moore commentates for radio on the match, despite recently announcing that he is suffering from bowel cancer.

24 February 1993 - Bobby Moore, captain of England's 1966 World Cup winning team, dies of bowel cancer at the age of 51.

28 February 1993 - February draws to a close with Aston Villa top of the Premier League, two points ahead of Manchester United who have a game in hand. Norwich City, Sheffield Wednesday and Blackburn Rovers complete the top five. Oldham Athletic prop up the table, with Middlesbrough (on a terrible run of form after occupying 12th place two months ago) and Sheffield United joining them in the bottom three. A slight improvement in form has lifted Nottingham Forest out of the relegation zone where they have spent most of the season, while another club accustomed to success (Everton) are just two places above the drop zone. [17] Division One leaders Newcastle United have a seven-point margin over their nearest rivals West Ham United, and the playoff zone is occupied by Millwall, Swindon Town, Portsmouth and Tranmere Rovers. Grimsby Town's unlikely promotion challenge continues as they are just three goals away from a place in the top six. An improvement in form has seen Notts County and Luton Town climb out of the bottom three and ease their fears of a second successive relegation. [18]

25 March 1993 - Blackburn Rovers sign out-of-favour Chelsea defender Graeme Le Saux for £700,000.

26 March 1993 - Norwich City sign 25-year-old AFC Bournemouth striker Efan Ekoku for £500,000 to bolster their attack in the Premier League title run-in.

3 March 1993 - The Hillsborough disaster death toll reaches 96 when Tony Bland dies after being in a coma for nearly four years since the tragedy on 15 April 1989.

31 March 1993 - England make it four wins from their first five World Cup qualifying games by beating Turkey 2-0 in Izmir. Meanwhile, the month ends with Norwich City back on top of the Premier League, though Aston Villa are just a point behind with a game in hand as well as a vastly superior goal difference. Manchester United are still close behind, while Blackburn Rovers are hoping to take advantage of their three games in hand and make a late run for the title. Nottingham Forest, however, have slipped back into the relegation zone behind Sheffield United, while Oldham Athletic are still in the relegation zone and Middlesbrough's bad run of form shows no sign of recovery as they now occupy bottom place just three months after being mid-table. [19] In Division One, Newcastle United still lead the way, though West Ham United have cut their lead down to five points. Portsmouth, Swindon Town, Millwall and Leicester City occupy the playoff zone. A dismal run of form for Tranmere Rovers has taken them from second to seventh place in just three months, and they are now six points outside the playoff zone. A dismal month for Grimsby Town has seen their promotion challenge virtually ended. [20]

3 April 1993 - Sheffield Wednesday reach their first FA Cup final in 27 years as they defeat Sheffield United 2-1 at Wembley with goals from Mark Bright and Chris Waddle. United's consolation goal came from Alan Cork.

4 April 1993 - Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur meet in the FA Cup semi-finals for the second time in three seasons. This time, however, Arsenal are victors - winning 1-0 with captain Tony Adams scoring the only goal of the game.

9 April 1993 - Norwich City's Premier League title hopes are left looking slimmer by a 5-1 defeat at Tottenham.

10 April 1993 - Centre-back and joint captain Steve Bruce scores two late goals to give Manchester United a 2-1 home win over Sheffield Wednesday and push them closer to title glory.

19 April 1993 - The Premier League title race is narrowed down to Manchester United and Aston Villa after Norwich's 3-1 defeat at Ipswich Town ends their title hopes, while the Suffolk side move closer to confirming their survival, though it is a disappointing position for a club who were still in contention for the title a couple of months ago.

26 April 1993 - Brian Clough announces that he will retire as Nottingham Forest manager at the end of the season after 18 years in charge, regardless of whether his team is relegated from the Premier League or not.

28 April 1993 - England hold Holland to a 2-2 draw at Wembley, giving them a six-match unbeaten start (four wins, two draws) to their World Cup qualifying series.

30 April 1993 - Former Manchester City, Arsenal, Oxford United and Charlton Athletic defender Tommy Caton dies in Oxfordshire at the age of 30 after suffering a heart attack.

30 April 1993 - As April draws to a close, Norwich City and Blackburn Rovers are out of the running for the title, and it's now down to Manchester United and Aston Villa. Alex Ferguson's team are four points ahead with two games remaining, and will be assured of the title if Aston Villa lose against Oldham Athletic on Sunday, and even a draw for Villa will virtually secure it for United. Oldham, meanwhile, will be eager to win that game to boost their survival bid as they remain in the bottom three along with Nottingham Forest and Middlesbrough. [21] The Division One promotion race is still wide open, with Newcastle United still top and needing just two points from their final three games to seal promotion. Portsmouth occupy second place and need four points from their final two games to get promoted, but West Ham United could still overtake them if they managed at least one win and a draw from their next two games. West Ham United, Swindon Town, Leicester City and Tranmere Rovers complete the top six. Millwall are now the only team who can prevent the Wirral side from finishing in the playoff zone and maintaining their challenge to get into the Premier League. [22]

2 May 1993 - Manchester United are confirmed as league champions of England for the first time in 26 years after their nearest contenders Aston Villa lost 1-0 at home to Oldham Athletic, who are in line for a 'great escape' from relegation.

4 May 1993 - Newcastle United seal the Division One title and promotion to the Premier League with a 2-0 win at Grimsby Town.

9 May 1993 - The first season of the Premier League ends with Manchester United as champions and European Cup entrants, with Aston Villa and Norwich City going into the UEFA Cup. The Cup Winners' Cup place will be taken by either Arsenal or Sheffield Wednesday, who play each other in next weekend's F.A Cup final. Oldham Athletic pull off a remarkable survival act by beating Southampton 4-3 away, with the three relegations places going to Crystal Palace (who came third two years ago), Middlesbrough and Nottingham Forest.

11 May 1993 - David Webb, who was appointed Chelsea manager on a trial contract in February, is told that he will not receive the job on a permanent basis.

15 May 1993 - Arsenal and Sheffield Wednesday draw 1-1 in the FA Cup final. Ian Wright opened the scoring for the North Londoners in the 20th minute, but David Hirst equalised for Trevor Francis's men after 61 minutes. It is the first time that squad numbers, rather than the traditional 1-11 shirt numbering system, have been used in a competitive English game. Squad numbering will be a mandatory introduction in the Premier League next season, and will also be optional for Football League clubs.

20 May 1993 - Arsenal beat Sheffield Wednesday 2-1 in the FA Cup final replay. Once again, Ian Wright opened the scoring, with a goal in the 34th minute. Chris Waddle equalised in the 68th minute, leaving the scores level after 90 minutes. With just one minute remaining and a penalty shoot-out looking certain, Andy Linighan won the match with a goal for Arsenal.

20 May 1993 - Steve Coppell resigns after nine years manager of Crystal Palace.

27 May 1993 - Striker Nigel Clough agrees to join Liverpool from Nottingham Forest in a £2.75million deal. He is expected to take over from the disappointing Paul Stewart as Ian Rush's strike partner.

29 May 1993 - England endure a disappointing 1-1 draw with Poland in Katowice, although their unbeaten run in the World Cup qualifiers is extended to seven games. On the same day, York City win the Division Three playoff final on penalties over Crewe Alexandra after a 1-1 draw, just two months into the management of Alan Little.

30 May 1993 - West Bromwich Albion win the Division Two playoff final and secure promotion to Division One with a 3-0 win over Port Vale. While Albion are preparing for Division One football, another side preparing for life at this level - Nottingham Forest, who have been relegated from the Premier League - are reportedly on the verge of selling midfielder Roy Keane to Blackburn Rovers for what would be a national transfer fee record of £3.6million.

31 May 1993 - Swindon Town are promoted to the top division of English football after 73 years of trying thanks to a 4-3 win over Leicester City in the Division One playoff final. They join champions Newcastle United and runners-up West Ham United in the FA Premier League.

1 June 1993 - Media reports suggest that Glenn Hoddle has accepted an offer to become Chelsea manager, but chairman Ken Bates refuses to comment on these reports.

2 June 1993 - England suffer their first defeat of this World Cup qualifying series, after a seven-match unbeaten start, by crashing 2-0 to Norway in Oslo.

3 June 1993 - Following the resignation of Steve Coppell after nine years manager, former assistant manager Alan Smith is promoted to role of manager at Crystal Palace. On the same day, Barnsley recruit 36-year-old defender Viv Anderson from Sheffield Wednesday to become their new player-manager. Anderson, who was the first black full England international, is now the first black manager of a Football League club.

4 June 1993 - After nearly a month of speculation, Glenn Hoddle is named as Chelsea's new manager. Hoddle, 36, will also be registered as a player with the club.

6 June 1993 - Arsenal join the race for Nottingham Forest and Ireland midfielder Roy Keane, putting forward a £4million bid.

7 June 1993 - Nottingham Forest sell striker Nigel Clough to Liverpool for £2.275million; he is expected to displace the disappointing Paul Stewart in the first XI at Anfield.

9 June 1993 - Paul Ince becomes England's first black captain in their 2-0 defeat against the USA in Foxboro.

14 June 1993 - Arsenal pay Crystal Palace £1million for Ireland winger Eddie McGoldrick, filling the position on the left wing which Kevin Campbell had adapted to since the sale of Perry Groves to Southampton last year.

17 June 1993 - Manchester United break the national transfer record by paying Nottingham Forest £3.75million for Roy Keane. Manager Alex Ferguson is expected to partner Keane with Paul Ince in midfield, seeing him as a long-term successor to the ageing Bryan Robson.

18 June 1993 - Relegated Crystal Palace sell winger Eddie McGoldrick to Arsenal for £1million.

23 June 1993 - Peter Beardsley signs for Newcastle United in a £1.5million deal from Everton, six years after he left Tyneside in a then national record £1.9million move to Liverpool. Meanwhile, Nottingham Forest prepare for their promotion push by paying £2.5million for Southend United striker Stan Collymore.

29 June 1993 - Merthyr Fydfil decide against joining the League of Wales and opt to remain in the GM Vauxhall Conference.

Deaths

• 17 February 1993 – Jack Froggatt, 70, forward who won the league with Portsmouth in 1948 and 1949, and was capped 13 times by England.
• 24 February 1993 – Bobby Moore, 51, who captained England to World Cup glory in 1966 as well as winning an F.A Cup and Cup Winners Cup with West Ham, died after a two-year battle against bowel cancer.
• April 1993 – Roy Bailey, 60, former Crystal Palace and Ipswich goalkeeper. Kept goal for Ipswich when they won the league in 1962. Father of Manchester United and England goalkeeper Gary Bailey.
• 30 April 1993 – Tommy Caton, 30, who played for Manchester City, Arsenal, Oxford United and Charlton Athletic. Was on the losing side for Manchester City in the 1981 F.A Cup final. Died following a heart attack in April 1993.
• 30 May 1993 – Mel Rees, 26, Sheffield United goalkeeper, died of cancer. Had previously played for Cardiff City and West Bromwich Albion.
• 9 June 1993 – John Atyeo, 61, who played for Bristol City during the postwar years, scored a total of 350 goals in nearly 600 games for his club - a club record which remains to this day.