1995–96 Manchester United F.C. season

The 1995–96 season was Manchester United's fourth season in the Premier League, and their 21st consecutive season in the top division of English football.[1] United finished the season by becoming the first English team to win the Double (league title and FA Cup) twice. Their triumph was made all the more remarkable by the fact that Alex Ferguson had sold experienced players Paul Ince, Mark Hughes and Andrei Kanchelskis before the start of the season, and not made any major signings. Instead, he had drafted in young players like Nicky Butt, David Beckham, Paul Scholes and the Neville brothers, Gary and Phil.

Manchester United
1995–96 season
ChairmanMartin Edwards
ManagerAlex Ferguson
Premier League1st
FA CupWinners
League CupSecond round
UEFA CupFirst round
Top goalscorerLeague:
Eric Cantona (14)

All:
Eric Cantona (19)
Highest home attendance53,926 vs Nottingham Forest (28 April 1996)
Lowest home attendance31,966 vs West Ham United (23 August 1995)
Average home league attendance41,681

Eric Cantona returned from his eight-month suspension at the beginning of October, and finished the season as the club's top scorer with 19 goals in all competitions, the last one being the winner against Liverpool in the FA Cup Final. He also picked up a Premier League winner's medal and the FWA Player of the Year award. The Premier League title was sealed on the final day of the season with a 3–0 win at Bryan Robson's Middlesbrough.

Season overview

Having started the season without a major summer signing, the critics were ready to pounce on United, and made no apologies for writing United's chances of success off as they lost their first game of the season 3–1 at Aston Villa, a side who by contrast had spent heavily on players in recent months after a difficult period of transition. United hit back by winning their next five league games and were soon second to Newcastle United, spearheaded by multimillion-pound new signings Les Ferdinand and David Ginola. They actually went top of the league after a goalless draw at Sheffield Wednesday towards the end of September, only for the Tynesiders to return to the top of the table soon after. Then came Cantona's comeback on 1 October, when he scored a penalty to equalise and hold Liverpool to a 2–2 draw at Old Trafford.

The autumn saw United suffer first-hurdle exits to York City in the League Cup and Rotor Volgograd in the UEFA Cup, although United did preserve their 39-year home unbeaten record in European competitions thanks to a late equaliser by goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel in the second leg of the European tie. On the domestic scene, the 3–0 defeat they suffered at home to the Division Two strugglers in the first leg of the League Cup second round was their only home defeat of the season. A 3–1 win in the return leg at Bootham Crescent was not enough and United suffered a humiliating exit, although at least these disappointments meant that United only had the league to concentrate on until after Christmas, unlike some of their fellow title contenders.

United remained unbeaten throughout October and November, although they remained second behind Newcastle in the league. Then came a five match winless run which saw them 10 points behind Newcastle by Christmas. On 27 December, they hosted Newcastle at Old Trafford and won 2–0, with one of the goals coming from Andy Cole, the former Newcastle goal machine who had arrived at Old Trafford the previous winter, and the gap was down to seven points. A 2–1 win over QPR briefly cut the gap to four points. Making his debut in that game was French defender William Prunier signed on a trial contract following an injury to Gary Pallister. Prunier also appeared in the United team at Tottenham on New Year's Day, but United crashed 4–1 at White Hart Lane and Prunier was soon gone. United's title hopes appeared to be fading, and when they went 2–1 down at Old Trafford in the FA Cup third round to Division One promotion challengers Sunderland, it looked as though this season could prove to be another trophyless season for United. But an Eric Cantona equaliser with 10 minutes remaining forced a replay at Roker Park, where Sunderland once again took the lead before United finally won 2–1. There was more frustration in the league as United's second league game of 1996 saw them draw 0–0 at home to Aston Villa. The last league game of the month was won 1–0 at West Ham, and then came an easy 3–0 win over Reading in the FA Cup fourth round at Elm Park.

United narrowed the gap between themselves and leaders Newcastle once again in February, winning all four of their league games that month. A 4–2 away win over Wimbledon was followed by a home clash with Blackburn, who were mid-table in a disappointing defence of their league title. Lee Sharpe was on the scoresheet as United won 1–0, and their next game was a 2–0 home win over Everton. The month was completed with a 6–0 away win over Bolton, which pushed their hosts closer to eventual relegation but also gave United's goal difference a major boost as well as putting United just four points behind Newcastle. United had also defeated Manchester City 2–1 in the FA Cup fifth round at Old Trafford, and so a unique second double was suddenly looking like a very serious possibility.

March began with a visit to Tyneside, for what was billed by many as the title decider. United kept their hosts, who had yet to drop points at home, at bay in the first half of the game, thanks largely to the goalkeeping heroics of Schmeichel. The deadlock was finally broken in the second half with a Cantona goal, and the gap was now down to a single point. United briefly went top the following weekend with a 1–1 draw at struggling QPR, and after another Cantona goal gave them a 1–0 home win over Arsenal on 20 March, United went top of the table and stayed there for the rest of the season.

The title race went down to the wire, but United went into the last game of the season knowing that a draw at Middlesbrough would give them the title, and Newcastle needed to beat Tottenham to have any chance of depriving them of title glory. A 3–0 victory gave United the title, and the following Saturday they triumphed 1–0 over Liverpool in the FA Cup final, with a late goal from Cantona (already voted FWA Player of the Year) making them the first team to win the double twice.

Veteran defenders Steve Bruce and Paul Parker moved on at the end of the season, as did goalkeeper Tony Coton, who had only joined the club in January and never played a first team game. As the season drew to a close, speculation mounted that United would sign a world-class striker – possibly Alan Shearer – to partner Eric Cantona in the bid to bring the European Cup to Old Trafford.

The season also produced one of the most infamous moments in football shirt history, when United changed their kits at half-time during their away defeat to Southampton, with Alex Ferguson stating that it was because he felt the kit left players unable to spot each other on the pitch, as well as the fact that United had not won a single of their five games played wearing the kit.[2]

Pre-season and friendlies

Date Opponents H / A Result
F–A
Scorers Attendance
31 July 1995 Selangor A 4–1 Bruce, Butt, Pallister, Sharpe 50,000
2 August 1995 Selangor A 2–0 Bruce, Scholes 20,000
7 August 1995 Birmingham City A 0–1 13,330
9 August 1995 Bradford City A 1–0 Keane 13,457
11 August 1995 Shelbourne A 2–2 Butt, Beckham 12,500
13 August 1995 East Fife A 4–0 Beckham (2), McClair, Sharpe 5,385
15 August 1995 Oldham Athletic A 2–0 Sharpe, Jobson (o.g.) 8,766
5 December 1995 International Select N 1–2 Scholes 22,000
12 December 1995 Celtic A 1–3 Scholes 37,306

FA Premier League

Manchester United opened the 1995–96 season with a 3–1 defeat away to Aston Villa, after which their young team was written off by all the media, most famously by Alan Hansen who claimed "you'll never win anything with kids". The younger players were partnered with veterans like Steve Bruce, Roy Keane and Peter Schmeichel, and began to look a convincing outfit, particularly after a 2–1 win away to defending champions Blackburn Rovers. A 1–0 defeat at Arsenal was only their second league defeat of the campaign, but in the run-up to Christmas they endured a five-match winless run which left Newcastle United looking uncatchable with a 10-point lead. A 2–0 home win over the Tynesiders on 27 December cut the gap to seven points, but it widened again on New Year's Day when United were crushed 4–1 at Tottenham Hotspur.

United then went on a strong run of form which saw the gap between themselves and Newcastle cut to four points by the end of February, and on 4 March they won 1-0 at Newcastle to cut the gap to a single point. They went top of the league soon afterwards and went into the final game of the season at Middlesbrough only needing a point to put the title beyond all doubt. United sealed their third league title in four seasons by beating the Teessiders 3–0.

Date Opponents H / A Result
F–A
Scorers Attendance League
position
19 August 1995 Aston Villa A 1–3 Beckham 84' 34,655 19th
23 August 1995 West Ham United H 2–1 Scholes 50', Keane 68' 31,966 5th
26 August 1995 Wimbledon H 3–1 Keane (2) 28', 80', Cole 60' 32,226 4th
28 August 1995 Blackburn Rovers A 2–1 Sharpe 46', Beckham 67' 29,843 2nd
9 September 1995 Everton A 3–2 Sharpe (2) 3', 49', Giggs 74' 39,496 2nd
16 September 1995 Bolton Wanderers H 3–0 Scholes (2) 18', 86', Giggs 34' 32,812 1st
23 September 1995 Sheffield Wednesday A 0–0 34,101 3rd
1 October 1995 Liverpool H 2–2 Butt 2', Cantona 71' (pen.) 34,934 3rd
14 October 1995 Manchester City H 1–0 Scholes 5' 35,707 2nd
21 October 1995 Chelsea A 4–1 Scholes (2) 4', 10', Giggs 78', McClair 85' 31,019 2nd
28 October 1995 Middlesbrough H 2–0 Pallister 44', Cole 88' 36,580 2nd
4 November 1995 Arsenal A 0–1 38,317 2nd
18 November 1995 Southampton H 4–1 Giggs (2) 1', 4', Scholes 9', Cole 69' 39,301 2nd
22 November 1995 Coventry City A 4–0 Irwin 28', McClair (2) 48', 76', Beckham 58' 23,400 2nd
27 November 1995 Nottingham Forest A 1–1 Cantona 67' (pen.) 29,263 2nd
2 December 1995 Chelsea H 1–1 Beckham 61' 42,019 2nd
9 December 1995 Sheffield Wednesday H 2–2 Cantona (2) 18', 84' 41,849 2nd
17 December 1995 Liverpool A 0–2 40,546 2nd
24 December 1995 Leeds United A 1–3 Cole 30' 39,801 2nd
27 December 1995 Newcastle United H 2–0 Cole 6', Keane 53' 42,024 2nd
30 December 1995 Queens Park Rangers H 2–1 Cole 45', Giggs 52' 41,890 2nd
1 January 1996 Tottenham Hotspur A 1–4 Cole 36' 32,852 2nd
13 January 1996 Aston Villa H 0–0 42,667 3rd
22 January 1996 West Ham United A 1–0 Cantona 9' 24,197 2nd
3 February 1996 Wimbledon A 4–2 Cole 41', Perry 45' (o.g.), Cantona (2) 71', 81' (pen.) 25,380 2nd
10 February 1996 Blackburn Rovers H 1–0 Sharpe 15' 42,681 2nd
21 February 1996 Everton H 2–0 Keane 30', Giggs 82' 42,459 2nd
25 February 1996 Bolton Wanderers A 6–0 Beckham 5', Bruce 15', Cole 70', Scholes (2) 76', 79', Butt 90' 21,381 2nd
4 March 1996 Newcastle United A 1–0 Cantona 52' 36,584 2nd
16 March 1996 Queens Park Rangers A 1–1 Cantona 90' 18,817 2nd
20 March 1996 Arsenal H 1–0 Cantona 65' 50,028 1st
24 March 1996 Tottenham Hotspur H 1–0 Cantona 51' 50,157 1st
6 April 1996 Manchester City A 3–2 Cantona 7' (pen.), Cole 42', Giggs 78' 29,668 1st
8 April 1996 Coventry City H 1–0 Cantona 47' 50,332 1st
13 April 1996 Southampton A 1–3 Giggs 89' 15,262 1st
17 April 1996 Leeds United H 1–0 Keane 72' 48,382 1st
28 April 1996 Nottingham Forest H 5–0 Scholes 42', Beckham (2) 45', 55', Giggs 70', Cantona 90' 53,926 1st
5 May 1996 Middlesbrough A 3–0 May 14', Cole 54', Giggs 81' 29,921 1st
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Manchester United (C) 38 25 7 6 73 35 +38 82 Qualification for the Champions League group stage
2 Newcastle United 38 24 6 8 66 37 +29 78 Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
3 Liverpool 38 20 11 7 70 34 +36 71 Qualification for the Cup Winners' Cup first round[lower-alpha 1]
4 Aston Villa 38 18 9 11 52 35 +17 63 Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
5 Arsenal 38 17 12 9 49 32 +17 63
Source: Premier League
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champion.
Notes:
  1. Liverpool qualified for the Cup Winners' Cup as FA Cup runners-up, as winners Manchester United already qualified for the Champions League. They defaulted their UEFA Cup spot from league position to Arsenal.

FA Cup

United won the FA Cup by beating Liverpool 1–0 in the final at Wembley Stadium, with the only goal coming from Eric Cantona in the 85th minute. On the way to the final, Manchester United defeated Sunderland, Reading, Manchester City, Southampton and Chelsea.

Date Round Opponents H / A Result
F–A
Scorers Attendance
6 January 1996 Round 3 Sunderland H 2–2 Butt 13', Cantona 80' 41,563
16 January 1996 Round 3
Replay
Sunderland A 2–1 Scholes 70', Cole 90' 21,378
27 January 1996 Round 4 Reading A 3–0 Giggs 37', Parker 57', Cantona 90' 14,780
18 February 1996 Round 5 Manchester City H 2–1 Cantona 39' (pen.), Sharpe 78' 42,692
11 March 1996 Round 6 Southampton H 2–0 Cantona 49', Sharpe 90' 45,446
31 March 1996 Semi-final Chelsea N 2–1 Cole 55', Beckham 59' 38,421
11 May 1996 Final Liverpool N 1–0 Cantona 86' 79,007

League Cup

As in the previous seasons, United rested many of their first-team players in the League Cup, instead using the competition to provide first team experience to the club's younger players and reserves. This proved to be a bad move, as the Red Devils fell at the first hurdle, losing in the Second Round to Second Division side York City, 4–3 on aggregate.

Date Round Opponents H / A Result
F–A
Scorers Attendance
20 September 1995 Round 2
First leg
York City H 0–3 29,049
3 October 1995 Round 2
Second leg
York City A 3–1 Scholes (2) 7', 80', Cooke 14' 9,386

UEFA Cup

Date Round Opponents H / A Result
F–A
Scorers Attendance
12 September 1995 Round 1
First leg
Rotor Volgograd A 0–0 33,000
26 September 1995 Round 1
Second leg
Rotor Volgograd H 2–2 Scholes 60', Schmeichel 89' 29,724

Squad statistics

No. Pos. Name League FA Cup League Cup Europe Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
1GK Peter Schmeichel 360601021451
2DF Paul Parker 5(1)01(1)1100(1)07(3)1
3DF Denis Irwin 311601010391
4DF Steve Bruce (c) 301501(1)02038(1)1
5MF Lee Sharpe 21(10)44(2)2202029(12)6
6DF Gary Pallister 211302020281
7FW Eric Cantona 30147510003819
9MF Brian McClair 12(10)300100013(10)3
11MF Ryan Giggs 30(3)1171202041(3)12
12DF David May 11(5)120000013(5)1
13GK Tony Coton 0000000000
15FW Graeme Tomlinson 0000000000
16MF Roy Keane 296700(1)02038(1)6
17FW Andy Cole 32(2)1172101042(2)13
18MF Simon Davies 1(5)000100(1)02(6)0
19MF Nicky Butt 31(1)271002040(1)3
20DF Gary Neville 30(1)05(1)0101037(2)0
21DF Pat McGibbon 0000100010
22MF Paul Scholes 16(10)100(2)1121(1)118(13)14
23DF Phil Neville 21(3)06(1)01(1)01029(5)0
24MF David Beckham 26(7)731202033(7)8
25GK Kevin Pilkington 2(1)01010004(1)0
26DF Chris Casper 0000000000
27MF Terry Cooke 1(3)0001(1)10(1)02(5)1
29MF Ben Thornley 0(1)00000000(1)0
30DF John O'Kane 0(1)00000101(1)0
31DF William Prunier 2000000020

Transfers

United's first departure of the 1995–96 season was Matthew Barrass, who joined San Diego Nomads on 1 July. A day later, David Gardner was released, Paul Heckingbottom joined Sunderland, Patrick Lee joined Middlesbrough, and Paul Lyons joined Rochdale. Richard Irving signed for Nottingham Forest on 19 July, while a week later, Ashley Westwood departed for Crewe Alexandra. Gary Walsh signed for Middlesbrough on 11 August, Andrei Kanchelskis joined Everton, while in late September, Elliott Dickman joined Sunderland, and Stephen Hall was released. John Hudson was released on 5 November.

United's only summer arrival of the 1995–96 season was Nick Culkin, who signed from York City on 25 September.

United's only winter departure was Matthew Wicks, who joined Arsenal on a free transfer on 23 January. Former captain Steve Bruce left for Birmingham City on 22 May, while on 30 June, Dessie Baker, Daniel Hall, Paul Parker, and Phillip Whittam left the club.

United's only winter arrival was Tony Coton, who signed from United's rivals Manchester City on 31 January. Raimond van der Gouw joined United from Vitesse Arnhem on 25 June 1996.

In

Date Pos. Name From Fee
25 September 1995 GK Nick Culkin York City £250k
31 January 1996 GK Tony Coton Manchester City £500k
25 June 1996 GK Raimond van der Gouw Vitesse Arnhem Free

Out

Date Pos. Name To Fee
1 July 1995 MF Matthew Barrass San Diego Nomads Free
2 July 1995 MF David Gardner Released Free
2 July 1995 DF Paul Heckingbottom Sunderland Free
2 July 1995 MF Patrick Lee Middlesbrough Free
2 July 1995 MF Paul Lyons Rochdale Free
19 July 1995 FW Richard Irving Nottingham Forest £75k
26 July 1995 DF Ashley Westwood Crewe Alexandra £40k
11 August 1995 GK Gary Walsh Middlesbrough £250k
25 August 1995 MF Andrei Kanchelskis Everton £5m
27 September 1995 DF Elliott Dickman Sunderland Free
30 September 1995 FW Stephen Hall Released Free
5 November 1995 MF John Hudson Released Free
23 January 1996 DF Matt Wicks Arsenal Free
22 May 1996 DF Steve Bruce Birmingham City Free
30 June 1996 FW Dessie Baker Released Free
30 June 1996 DF Daniel Hall Released Free
30 June 1996 DF Paul Parker Derby County Free
30 June 1996 DF Phillip Whittam Released Free

Loan in

Date from Date to Pos. Name From
29 December 1995 1 March 1996 DF William Prunier Bordeaux

Loan out

Date from Date to Pos. Name To
1 July 1995 1 August 1995 MF Michael Appleton Wimbledon
15 September 1995 15 October 1995 MF Michael Appleton Lincoln City
6 November 1995 15 February 1996 MF Ben Thornley Stockport County
11 January 1996 11 April 1996 DF Chris Casper Bournemouth
29 January 1996 29 February 1996 MF Terry Cooke Sunderland
2 February 1996 20 March 1996 GK Kevin Pilkington Rochdale
22 February 1996 18 May 1997 MF Ben Thornley Huddersfield Town
22 March 1996 22 May 1996 FW Graeme Tomlinson Luton Town

References

  1. "Manchester United Season 1995/96". StretfordEnd.co.uk. Retrieved 12 November 2007.
  2. Lee Sharpe (15 April 2006). "13.04.96 Manchester United's grey day at The Dell". The Guardian. Guardian News and Media. Retrieved 15 April 2006.
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