1991–92 Football League First Division

Statistics of Football League First Division in the 1991–92 season.

Football League First Division
Season1991–92
ChampionsLeeds United (3rd English title)
RelegatedLuton Town
Notts County
West Ham United
Champions LeagueLeeds United
Cup Winners' CupLiverpool
UEFA CupManchester United
Sheffield Wednesday
Matches played462
Goals scored1,166 (2.52 per match)
Top goalscorerIan Wright (29 goals) [1]
Biggest home winArsenal 7–1 Sheffield Wednesday
(15 February 1992)
Biggest away winSheffield Wednesday 1–6 Leeds United
(12 January 1992)
Highest scoringOldham Athletic 3–6 Manchester United
(26 December 1991)
Longest winning run6 games
Southampton
Longest unbeaten run17 games
Arsenal
Longest losing run6 games
Norwich City

Overview
Locations of the Premier League 1992–93 teams
Greater London Premier League football clubs

Leeds United won the last ever league championship before the Premier League was born, thanks to the efforts of players like Gordon Strachan, Lee Chapman, David Batty and Gary McAllister. On 26 April 1992, Leeds beat Sheffield United 3–2 at Bramall Lane and with the news that their challengers Manchester United lost 2–0 to Liverpool at Anfield, it confirmed them as champions.

Newly promoted Sheffield Wednesday, who were quickly emerging as one of the most feared sides in England finished in third and secured UEFA Cup qualification.

The previous season's defending champions Arsenal slipped to 4th place and never made a serious threat to retain their title. The previous season’s runners-up Liverpool slipped to 6th in their first full season under the management of Graeme Souness, although they did win the FA Cup. Liverpool's Merseyside rivals Everton finished a disappointing 12th - a three-place setback on their finish the previous season.

Newly promoted West Ham United were relegated in bottom place. On 25 April 1992, West Ham's relegation was confirmed when they lost 1–0 at Coventry City. This win for Coventry also relegated Notts County — another newly promoted side — rendering their 2–0 defeat at Manchester City on the same day as academic. The last day of the season saw Luton Town lose their top flight status after ten seasons. They needed to win at Notts County and for Coventry to lose at Aston Villa. Coventry did lose 2–0 at Villa Park but unfortunately for Luton, they lost 2–1 which kept Coventry up and sent Luton down. Seventeen years later The Hatters would fall into the Conference (the 5th level of the English football system), while Notts County fell into it 10 years after them.

For much of the season, Southampton's 21-year-old striker Alan Shearer was the target of much media speculation about a move to a leading First Division club. The likes of Liverpool and Manchester United were strongly linked with his signature during the autumn, but Shearer decided to stay put on the south coast before making a decision about his future at the end of the season. Shearer was capped for the senior England side for the first time in February 1992, and scored on his debut. Another English striker who established himself as a top scorer at this level this season was the Sheffield Wednesday striker David Hirst, who had actually played in the First Division as long ago as 1986, but was now on the fringes of the England national team after scoring the goals that helped the Owls win the League Cup and an instant return to the First Division in 1990-91, and finishing among the First Division's leading scorers in 1991-92.

Manchester United's teenage winger Ryan Giggs, who had played twice for the first team the previous season, received plaudits for his outstanding performances and picked up the PFA Young Player of the Year award as well as a League Cup winner's medal, establishing himself as a regular player before his 18th birthday. Other young players who made the headlines this season were Liverpool's teenage winger Steve McManaman and new signing Rob Jones, Aston Villa's Trinidadian striker Dwight Yorke and Nottingham Forest midfielder Roy Keane.

As a wave of new names began to dominate the English game, Tottenham Hotspur's high scoring striker Gary Lineker announced in November that he would be leaving the club at the end of the season to sign for the Japanese side Grampus Eight, and also confirmed his decision to retire from the England team after the European championships that summer.

Managerial changes
Team Outgoing manager Manner of departure Date of vacancy Position in table Incoming manager Date of appointment
Aston Villa Jozef Vengloš Mutual consent 28 May 1991 Pre-season Ron Atkinson 8 June 1991
Queens Park Rangers Don Howe Sacked 31 May 1991 Gerry Francis 1 June 1991
Tottenham Hotspur Terry Venables Became general manager 1 June 1991 Peter Shreeves 1 June 1991
Sheffield Wednesday Ron Atkinson Signed by Aston Villa 8 June 1991 Trevor Francis 8 June 1991
Luton Town Jim Ryan Sacked 13 June 1991 David Pleat 15 June 1991
Wimbledon Ray Harford Signed by Blackburn Rovers 7 October 1991 14th Peter Withe 10 October 1991
Coventry City Terry Butcher Sacked 6 January 1992 17th Don Howe 7 January 1992
Wimbledon Peter Withe Sacked 19 January 1992 22nd Joe Kinnear 19 January 1992
Norwich City Dave Stringer Resigned 1 May 1992 18th David Williams 1 May 1992

League standings
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Leeds United (C) 42 22 16 4 74 37 +37 82 Qualification for the UEFA Champions League first round
2 Manchester United 42 21 15 6 63 33 +30 78 Qualification for the UEFA Cup[lower-alpha 1]
3 Sheffield Wednesday 42 21 12 9 62 49 +13 75
4 Arsenal 42 19 15 8 81 47 +34 72
5 Manchester City 42 20 10 12 61 48 +13 70
6 Liverpool 42 16 16 10 47 40 +7 64 Qualification for the European Cup Winners' Cup first round
7 Aston Villa 42 17 9 16 48 44 +4 60
8 Nottingham Forest 42 16 11 15 60 58 +2 59
9 Sheffield United 42 16 9 17 65 63 +2 57
10 Crystal Palace 42 14 15 13 53 61 −8 57
11 Queens Park Rangers 42 12 18 12 48 47 +1 54
12 Everton 42 13 14 15 52 51 +1 53
13 Wimbledon 42 13 14 15 53 53 0 53
14 Chelsea 42 13 14 15 50 60 −10 53
15 Tottenham Hotspur 42 15 7 20 58 63 −5 52
16 Southampton 42 14 10 18 39 55 −16 52
17 Oldham Athletic 42 14 9 19 63 67 −4 51
18 Norwich City 42 11 12 19 47 63 −16 45
19 Coventry City 42 11 11 20 35 44 −9 44
20 Luton Town (R) 42 10 12 20 39 71 −32 42 Relegation to the Football League First Division[lower-alpha 2]
21 Notts County (R) 42 10 10 22 40 62 −22 40
22 West Ham United (R) 42 9 11 22 37 59 −22 38
Source: World Football
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored
(C) Champion; (R) Relegated.
Notes:
  1. Since the winners of the 1991–92 Football League Cup, Manchester United, qualified for the UEFA Cup by league position, the spot given to the Football League Cup winners was passed down to the third-placed team.
  2. The first tier became the Premier League from the 1992–93 season, therefore the Second Division was renamed to the First Division.

Results
Home \ Away ARS AST CHE COV CRY EVE LEE LIV LUT MCI MUN NWC NOT NTC OLD QPR SHU SHW SOU TOT WHU WDN
Arsenal 0–0 3–2 1–2 4–1 4–2 1–1 4–0 2–0 2–1 1–1 1–1 3–3 2–0 2–1 1–1 5–2 7–1 5–1 2–0 0–1 1–1
Aston Villa 3–1 3–1 2–0 0–1 0–0 1–4 1–0 4–0 3–1 0–1 1–0 3–1 1–0 1–0 0–1 1–1 0–1 2–1 0–0 3–1 2–1
Chelsea 1–1 2–0 0–1 1–1 2–2 0–1 2–2 4–1 1–1 1–3 0–3 1–0 2–2 4–2 2–1 1–2 0–3 1–1 2–0 2–1 2–2
Coventry City 0–1 1–0 0–1 1–2 0–1 0–0 0–0 5–0 0–1 0–0 0–0 0–2 1–0 1–1 2–2 3–1 0–0 2–0 1–2 1–0 0–1
Crystal Palace 1–4 0–0 0–0 0–1 2–0 1–0 1–0 1–1 1–1 1–3 3–4 0–0 1–0 0–0 2–2 2–1 1–1 1–0 1–2 2–3 3–2
Everton 3–1 0–2 2–1 3–0 2–2 1–1 1–1 1–1 1–2 0–0 1–1 1–1 1–0 2–1 0–0 0–2 0–1 0–1 3–1 4–0 2–0
Leeds United 2–2 0–0 3–0 2–0 1–1 1–0 1–0 2–0 3–0 1–1 1–0 1–0 3–0 1–0 2–0 4–3 1–1 3–3 1–1 0–0 5–1
Liverpool 2–0 1–1 1–2 1–0 1–2 3–1 0–0 2–1 2–2 2–0 2–1 2–0 4–0 2–1 1–0 2–1 1–1 0–0 2–1 1–0 2–3
Luton Town 1–0 2–0 2–0 1–0 1–1 0–1 0–2 0–0 2–2 1–1 2–0 2–1 1–1 2–1 0–1 2–1 2–2 2–1 0–0 0–1 2–1
Manchester City 1–0 2–0 0–0 1–0 3–2 0–1 4–0 2–1 4–0 0–0 2–1 2–1 2–0 1–2 2–2 3–2 0–1 0–1 1–0 2–0 0–0
Manchester United 1–1 1–0 1–1 4–0 2–0 1–0 1–1 0–0 5–0 1–1 3–0 1–2 2–0 1–0 1–4 2–0 1–1 1–0 3–1 2–1 0–0
Norwich City 1–3 2–1 0–1 3–2 3–3 4–3 2–2 3–0 1–0 0–0 1–3 0–0 0–1 1–2 0–1 2–2 1–0 2–1 0–1 2–1 1–1
Nottingham Forest 3–2 2–0 1–1 1–0 5–1 2–1 0–0 1–1 1–1 2–0 1–0 2–0 1–1 3–1 1–1 2–5 0–2 1–3 1–3 2–2 4–2
Notts County 0–1 0–0 2–0 1–0 2–3 0–0 2–4 1–2 2–1 1–3 1–1 2–2 0–4 2–0 0–1 1–3 2–1 1–0 0–2 3–0 1–1
Oldham Athletic 1–1 3–2 3–0 2–1 2–3 2–2 2–0 2–3 5–1 2–5 3–6 2–2 2–1 4–3 2–1 2–1 3–0 1–1 1–0 2–2 0–1
Queens Park Rangers 0–0 0–1 2–2 1–1 1–0 3–1 4–1 0–0 2–1 4–0 0–0 0–2 0–2 1–1 1–3 1–0 1–1 2–2 1–2 0–0 1–1
Sheffield United 1–1 2–0 0–1 0–3 1–1 2–1 2–3 2–0 1–1 4–2 1–2 1–0 4–2 1–3 2–0 0–0 2–0 0–2 2–0 1–1 0–0
Sheffield Wednesday 1–1 2–3 3–0 1–1 4–1 2–1 1–6 0–0 3–2 2–0 3–2 2–0 2–1 1–0 1–1 4–1 1–3 2–0 0–0 2–1 2–0
Southampton 0–4 1–1 1–0 0–0 1–0 1–2 0–4 1–1 2–1 0–3 0–1 0–0 0–1 1–1 1–0 2–1 2–4 0–1 2–3 1–0 1–0
Tottenham Hotspur 1–1 2–5 1–3 4–3 0–1 3–3 1–3 1–2 4–1 0–1 1–2 3–0 1–2 2–1 0–0 2–0 0–1 0–2 1–2 3–0 3–2
West Ham United 0–2 3–1 1–1 0–1 0–2 0–2 1–3 0–0 0–0 1–2 1–0 4–0 3–0 0–2 1–0 2–2 1–1 1–2 0–1 2–1 1–1
Wimbledon 1–3 2–0 1–2 1–1 1–1 0–0 0–0 0–0 3–0 2–1 1–2 3–1 3–0 2–0 2–1 0–1 3–0 2–1 0–1 3–5 2–0
Source:
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Top scorers
Rank Player Club Goals
1 Ian Wright Crystal Palace/Arsenal 29
2 Gary Lineker Tottenham Hotspur 28
3 John Fashanu Wimbledon 18
David Hirst Sheffield Wednesday
Brian McClair Manchester United
David White Manchester City
7 Mark Bright Crystal Palace 17
8 Lee Chapman Leeds United 16
9 Peter Beardsley Everton 15
10 Robbie Earle Wimbledon 14

Hat-tricks
PlayerForAgainstResultDateRef
Carlton PalmerSheffield WednesdayQueens Park Rangers4–1 (H)31 August 1991
Peter BeardsleyEvertonCoventry City3–0 (H)21 September 1991
Gary Lineker (4)Tottenham HotspurWimbledon5–3 (A)21 September 1991
Ian WrightArsenalSouthampton4–0 (A)28 September 1991
Tony CotteeEvertonTottenham Hotspur3–1 (H)5 October 1991
Ian Wright (4)ArsenalEverton4–2 (H)21 December 1991
Dennis BaileyQueens Park RangersManchester United4–1 (A)1 January 1992[2]
Lee ChapmanLeeds UnitedSheffield Wednesday6–1 (A)12 January 1992
Lee ChapmanLeeds UnitedWimbledon5–1 (H)14 March 1992
Darren BeckfordNorwich CityEverton4–3 (H)21 March 1992
Gordon DurieTottenham HotspurCoventry City4–3 (H)28 March 1992
Gary LinekerTottenham HotspurWest Ham United3–0 (H)1 April 1992
Paul MersonArsenalCrystal Palace4–1 (H)11 April 1992
Graeme Sharp (4)Oldham AthleticLuton Town5–1 (H)11 April 1992
David WhiteManchester CityOldham Athletic5–2 (A)2 May 1992
Ian WrightArsenalSouthampton5–1 (H)2 May 1992
Frank McAvennieWest Ham UnitedNottingham Forest3–0 (H)2 May 1992
Note: (H) – Home; (A) – Away

References
  1. "English League Leading Goalscorers". RSSSF. Retrieved 31 October 2010.
  2. Hat-trick hero still going strong, BBC Sport, 3 February 2006
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