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The 1988–89 season was the 109th season of competitive football in England. The season saw Arsenal win their first league title for 18 years, in dramatic fashion, as they beat defending champions

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

2–0 at

Anfield Anfield is a football stadium in Anfield, Liverpool, Merseyside, England, which has a seating capacity of 53,394, making it the seventh largest football stadium in England. It has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since their formation in 189 ...

to clinch the title on number of goals scored. Liverpool had won the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

six days earlier and for the second season running missed out on a unique second

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * ...

. Third placed

Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...

lifted both the Football League Cup and

Full Members' Cup The Full Members' Cup was an association football cup competition held in English football from 1985 to 1992. It was also known under its sponsored names of the Simod Cup from 1987 to 1989 and the Zenith Data Systems Cup from 1989 to 1992. Th ...

. The ban on English clubs, following the

Heysel Stadium disaster The Heysel Stadium disaster ( it, Strage dell'Heysel ; german: link=no, Katastrophe von Heysel ; french: Drame du Heysel ; nl, Heizeldrama ) was a crowd disaster that occurred on 29 May 1985 when mostly Juventus fans escaping from a breach by L ...

, was now in its fourth season and

UEFA Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...

then voted for it to continue for a fifth season. In April 1989, fourteen Liverpool supporters were convicted of manslaughter relating to the disaster. The season was overshadowed by the Hillsborough disaster on 15 April 1989, which resulted in the deaths of 97 Liverpool fans in a crowd crush at the FA Cup semi-final.

Overview

Hillsborough disaster

On 15 April, a crowd crush at the FA Cup semi-final between

and

at Hillsborough killed 94 people and injured more than 300. A 95th Liverpool supporter died in hospital four days later. The death toll became 96 in March 1993, when

Tony Bland Anthony David Bland (21 September 1970 – 3 March 1993) was a supporter of Liverpool F.C. injured in the Hillsborough disaster. He suffered severe brain damage that left him in a persistent vegetative state as a consequence of which the hospita ...

died after being in a coma for nearly four years, and 97 in July 2021. A subsequent inquiry into the tragedy led to the

Taylor Report The Hillsborough Stadium Disaster Inquiry report is the report of an inquiry which was overseen by Lord Justice Taylor, into the causes of the Hillsborough disaster in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, on 15 April 1989, as a result of which, ...

, in which Lord Justice Taylor of Gosforth ordered that all top division clubs should have

all-seater stadium An all-seater stadium is a sports stadium in which every spectator has a seat. This is commonplace in professional association football stadiums in nations such as the United Kingdom, Spain, and the Netherlands. Most association football a ...

s from the 1994–95 season onwards.

Changes to football on television

One of the biggest changes in the history of football on television began in this season, as ITV gained exclusive rights to show Football League matches, both in live and highlights form. The rights cost £11m, up from £5.2m in 1983. Most of their coverage was of live matches on Sunday afternoons of top-flight games. They would hold the exclusive rights until 1992, when they lost coverage of the newly formed

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Fo ...

Sky The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from outer space. In the field of astronomy, ...

. It ended a long-term partnership with the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

...

, who in turn struck up a partnership with the FA for exclusive coverage of the

. The BBC did not show another live English football league match until 2009 and would not show another live top-flight football league match until 2020.

Scunthorpe's new stadium

Scunthorpe United relocated from the

Old Showground The Old Show Ground was a football stadium in Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, England, that was the original home of Scunthorpe United F.C. from 1899 until 1988, when they moved to Glanford Park – the first newly constructed Football League stadium s ...

Glanford Park Glanford Park is a football stadium in Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, England, and is the current home of team Scunthorpe United. Opened in 1988 at a construction cost of £2.5 million, it was the first new purpose-built Football League stadi ...

in the first relocation of a Football League team since

Southend United Southend United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. As of the 2022–23 season, the team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of English football. Southend are known as ...

moved to

Roots Hall A root is the part of a plant, generally underground, that anchors the plant body, and absorbs and stores water and nutrients. Root or roots may also refer to: Art, entertainment, and media * ''The Root'' (magazine), an online magazine focusing ...

in 1955.

Change in playoff format

The play-off system was slightly altered, they were now contested by the four sides just missing out on promotion, with one fewer team automatically promoted. The system has stayed in place since then (although it was not until the following season that

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 2002 to 2003. The stadium ...

began hosting finals).

Diary of the season

15 June 1988 – Everton pay £850,000 for

Bradford City Bradford City Association Football Club is an English professional football club in Bradford, West Yorkshire. The team competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system and are currently managed by Mark Hughes. ...

and

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

midfielder Stuart McCall. 17 June 1988 – Newcastle United buy Scottish striker John Hendrie from Bradford City for £500,000. 21 June 1988 –

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English football. The team has playe ...

pay a club record £1.7 million for Manchester City striker Paul Stewart. 4 July 1988 – Uruguayan

Danny Bergara Daniel Alberto Bergara de Medina (24 July 1942 – 25 July 2007) was a Uruguayan footballer and manager. Playing career Born in Montevideo, Uruguay, Bergara began his playing career at the age of 16, playing for Racing Club in the Uruguaya ...

, 46, becomes the first foreign manager in English football when he takes over at Fourth Division club

Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, at the foothills of the South Pennines in the dale on the River Roch, northwest of Oldham and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough ...

. 5 July 1988 – After three years in Italy with Bari, former Aston Villa striker

Paul Rideout Paul Rideout (born 14 August 1964) is an English former professional footballer and youth team coach of Major League Soccer side Sporting Kansas City. As a player, he was a striker from 1980 until 2002, notably in the Premier League with Ever ...

returns to England in a £430,000 move to

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

. 7 July 1988 – Tottenham Hotspur complete a British transfer record £2 million deal for 21-year-old Newcastle United midfielder Paul Gascoigne. Gascoigne signs a contract at

White Hart Lane White Hart Lane was a football stadium in Tottenham, North London and the home of Tottenham Hotspur Football Club from 1899 to 2017. Its capacity varied over the years; when changed to all-seater it had a capacity of 36,284 before demolition. ...

until the end of the 1992–93 season. 12 July 1988 – The long hunt for a new

Wales national football team ) , Association = Football Association of Wales (FAW) , Confederation = UEFA (Europe) , Coach = Rob Page , Captain = Gareth Bale , Most caps = Gareth Bale (111) , Top scorer = Gareth ...

manager ends when Swansea City manager Terry Yorath is appointed on a part-time basis. 13 July 1988 –

Gordon Cowans Gordon Sidney Cowans (born 27 October 1958) is an English retired football player and coach. Cowans started his career at Aston Villa as an apprentice in 1974, and signed as a professional in 1976. During his time at Aston Villa, he won the Le ...

ends his three-year spell at Bari to rejoin Aston Villa in a £250,000 deal, while Everton strengthen their midfield in a £925,000 move for

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

and Scotland midfielder

Pat Nevin Patrick Kevin Francis Michael Nevin (born 6 September 1963) is a Scottish former professional footballer who played as a winger. In a 20-year career, he appeared for Clyde, Chelsea, Everton, Tranmere Rovers, Kilmarnock and Motherwell. He wo ...

. 19 July 1988 – England defender Gary Stevens moves to Scotland in a £1 million move from Everton to Rangers in the costliest transfer involving a British defender. He is replaced at

Goodison Park Goodison Park is a association football, football stadium in the Walton, Liverpool, Walton area of Liverpool, England. It has been the home stadium of Premier League club Everton F.C. since its completion in 1892. Located in a residential area ...

by Newcastle United's Neil McDonald. 20 July 1988 – After two seasons at

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

Mark Hughes Leslie Mark Hughes (born 1 November 1963) is a Welsh football coach and former player who is the manager of Bradford City. During his playing career he usually operated as a forward or midfielder. He had two spells at Manchester United, an ...

returns to Manchester United for a club record £1.8 million, breaking the previous record of £1.75 million that the club paid for

Bryan Robson Bryan Robson OBE (born 11 January 1957) is an English football manager and former player. He began his career with West Bromwich Albion in 1972, where he amassed over 200 appearances and was club captain before moving to Manchester United in ...

seven years ago.Mark Hughes: Career statistics
''soccerbase''. Retrieved 13 June 2013 25 July 1988 – Less than three weeks after Tottenham broke the national transfer record, a new record is set when Everton complete the signing of West Ham United's 23-year-old striker

Tony Cottee Antony Richard Cottee (born 11 July 1965) is an English former professional footballer and manager who now works as a television football commentator. As a player, he was a striker from 1982 until 2001, notably playing in the top flight of En ...

for £2.2 million. 28 July 1988 –

Billy Bonds William Arthur Bonds (born 17 September 1946) is a former professional footballer and manager, who is most often associated with West Ham United with whom he spent 27 years as player and manager. He played 799 first-team games for West Ham in a ...

, the oldest player in the Football League at 41, announces his retirement as a player but will remain with West Ham United as youth team coach. 1 August 1988 – West Ham United sign striker David Kelly from

Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands County, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east of Wolverhampton and from Lichfield. Walsall is th ...

for £600,000. Newcastle United sign defender Andy Thorn from

winners Wimbledon for a club record £850,000. 8 August 1988 –

Graham Roberts Graham Paul Roberts (born 3 July 1959) is an English retired footballer and manager who played as a defender for numerous clubs including Tottenham Hotspur (where he won the FA Cup and the UEFA Cup), Rangers (where he won the Scottish League ...

returns to England in a £470,000 move to Chelsea from Rangers. 13 August 1988 – The first

North London derby The North London derby is the meeting of the association football clubs Arsenal F.C. and Tottenham Hotspur F.C., both of which are based in North London, England. Fans of both clubs consider the other to be their main rivals, and the derby is co ...

to be held at

ends in a 4–0 victory for Arsenal in the friendly

Wembley International Tournament The Wembley International Tournament, known as the Makita International Tournament for sponsorship reasons from 1989, was an association football pre-season friendly tournament held annually in England between 1988 and 1994. Originally organised b ...

; Gunners' goalscorers are

Paul Merson Paul Charles Merson (born 20 March 1968) is an English former professional footballer, manager, commentator and sports television pundit for Sky Sports. Originally a forward, Merson found success as an attacking midfielder and playmaker later ...

, Alan Smith, and Brian Marwood (2). 14 August 1988 – Arsenal beat FC Bayern Munich 3–0 to win the Wembley International Tournament on goal difference. 17 August 1988 – Nottingham Forest sign England midfielder

Steve Hodge Stephen Brian Hodge (born 25 October 1962) is an English retired footballer who played as a midfielder. He enjoyed a high-profile club and international career in the 1980s and 1990s, the high point being reaching the 1986 World Cup quarter fin ...

from Tottenham Hotspur for £550,000. 18 August 1988 – After an unhappy season at Juventus,

Ian Rush Ian James Rush (born 20 October 1961) is a Welsh former professional footballer who played as a forward. At club level Rush played for Liverpool from 1980–1987 and 1988–1996. He is the club's all-time leading goalscorer, having scored a t ...

returns to

for £2.8 million. It is the third time in two months that the national transfer fee record has been broken. 20 August 1988 – Liverpool gain revenge for their FA Cup final defeat by Wimbledon in May by beating them 2–1 in the Charity Shield.

John Aldridge John William Aldridge (born 18 September 1958) is a former football player and manager. He was a prolific, record-breaking striker best known for his time with English club Liverpool in the late 1980s. His tally of 330 Football League goals is ...

, who missed a penalty in the FA Cup final, scores both goals for Liverpool, and

John Fashanu John Fashanu (, born 18 September 1962) is an English television presenter and former professional footballer. In his former career, he was a centre-forward from 1978 until 1995, most notably in an eight-year spell at Wimbledon in which he w ...

scores for Wimbledon. 23 August 1988 – Kevin Moran leaves Manchester United on a free transfer after 10 years and joins Spanish side

Sporting Gijón Sporting may refer to: *Sport, recreational games and play * Sporting (neighborhood), in Alexandria, Egypt Sports clubs *AC Sporting, a football club from Beirut, Lebanon * Alexandria Sporting Club, a sports club from Alexandria, Egypt *Real Sport ...

on a free transfer. 26 August 1988 – Alan Ball prepares Portsmouth's challenge for an immediate return to the First Division by paying Aston Villa £315,000 for striker

Warren Aspinall Warren Aspinall (born 13 September 1967) is an English former footballer who played as a midfielder or forward in the Football League, most notably for Portsmouth and Carlisle United. He began his career with hometown club Wigan Athletic, earn ...

. 27 August 1988 –

Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Limehouse, north of Greenwich and Deptford, eas ...

begin their life as a First Division side by drawing 2–2 at Aston Villa. Forwards

, Alan Smith, and

score opening day

hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...

s as Liverpool beat

Charlton Athletic Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in ...

3–0, Arsenal move to top position by thrashing FA Cup holders Wimbledon 5–1, while Everton thump Newcastle United 4–0. Tottenham Hotspur's opening fixture at home to

Coventry City Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. The club is nicknamed t ...

was postponed following the Londoners' failure to obtain a safety certificate for

. 31 August 1988 –

Norwich City Norwich City Football Club (also known as The Canaries or The Yellows) is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. The club competes in the EFL Championship following their relegation from the Premier League in the 20 ...

sign Irish midfielder

Andy Townsend Andrew David Townsend (born 23 July 1963) is a former professional footballer and sports co-commentator for Premier League Productions and CBS Sports. As a player he was a midfielder who notably played in the Premier League for Chelsea, Aston ...

from

for £300,000. Chelsea defender Steve Wicks retires from playing due to a back injury. 1 September 1988 –

Brighton & Hove Albion Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club (), commonly referred to simply as Brighton, is an English professional football club based in the city of Brighton and Hove. They compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league ...

, newly promoted back to the Second Division, sign Barnet defender Nicky Bissett for £115,000, a record fee for a non-league player. Richard Thompson, 24, becomes the youngest chairman in the Football League when he takes over at

Queens Park Rangers Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England, which compete in the . After a nomadic early existence, they have played home matches at Loftus Ro ...

in place of David Bulstrode. 10 September 1988 – In the North London derby at

, Arsenal beat Tottenham 3–2. Southampton go top of the First Division after three games with a 2–1 home win over Luton. Norwich hold the First Division other remaining 100% record by beating QPR 1–0 at Carrow Road.

helps Manchester United achieve their first goal and win of the season with a 1–0 home win over Middlesbrough. 12 September 1988 –

David Rocastle David Carlyle Rocastle (2 May 1967 – 31 March 2001) was an English professional footballer who played as a midfielder in the roles of a playmaker and a winger. He spent the majority of his career at Arsenal where he was nicknamed "Rocky". Ro ...

, Paul Gascoigne and Tony Cottee win their first international caps for

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

in a 1–0 friendly win over

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

Wembley Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" often refers to the secondary urban centres of a city. Wembley is not a suburb in the American sense, i.e. a single-family residential area outside of the city itself. in north-west Londo ...

. Nearly a decade after leaving them for Sunderland, goalkeeper Chris Turner returns to

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot ...

in a £175,000 move from Manchester United. 16 September 1988 – Andy Gray returns to his native Scotland after 13 years to sign for Rangers. 17 September – Southampton drop points for the first time this season with a 2–2 draw against Arsenal at

Highbury Highbury is a district in North London and part of the London Borough of Islington in Greater London that was owned by Ranulf brother of Ilger and included all the areas north and east of Canonbury and Holloway Roads. The manor house was sit ...

, enabling Norwich to go top with a 2–0 win at Newcastle, who go bottom of the table. Southampton midfielder Glenn Cockerill suffers a broken jaw in a clash with Arsenal midfielder Paul Davis in a First Division match at

which ends in a 2–2 draw. Liverpool goalkeeper

Bruce Grobbelaar Bruce David Grobbelaar (born 6 October 1957) is a Zimbabwean former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper, most prominently for English team Liverpool between 1981 and 1994, and for the Zimbabwean national team. He is remembered fo ...

is hospitalised with meningitis and is expected to be out of action until the new year. 24 September – Norwich drop points for the first time this season but remaining top of the First Division with a 2–2 draw at home to third placed Millwall. 28 September 1988 – Wimbledon sign Nottingham Forest goalkeeper

Hans Segers Johannes "Hans" Segers (born 30 October 1961) is a Dutch football coach and former professional player who played as a goalkeeper. As a player, he notably spent eight years with Wimbledon where he featured in the Premier League. He also played ...

for £180,000.

Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road ...

, fourth from bottom in the Second Division, sack manager Billy Bremner after three years at the helm. 29 September 1988 – Paul Davis is fined a record £3,000 and banned for nine matches. 30 September 1988 – The month ends with Norwich City as surprise leaders of the First Division, two points ahead of Liverpool and newly promoted Millwall. FA Cup holders Wimbledon occupy bottom place. The Second Division promotion race is headed by

Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. Th ...

and

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, and ...

Ipswich Town Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. They play in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The club was founded in 1878 but did not turn profession ...

, Portsmouth, Bradford City and

Oldham Athletic Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is a professional football club in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The history of Oldham Athletic be ...

occupy the promotion play-off places, while pre-season promotion favourites Leeds United occupy a lowly 18th place. 1 October 1988 – Millwall go top of the league in their first season in the First Division 3–2 win over Queens Park Rangers. Norwich's 3–1 home defeat to Charlton pushes them down to second place. West Ham go bottom of the division with a 4–1 home defeat to Arsenal. Ipswich go top of the Second Division with a 2–1 away win over West Bromwich Albion. Bottom-of-the-table Birmingham lose a thrilling game at home to Barnsley 5–3. 2 October 1988 – Aston Villa sell defender Neale Cooper to Rangers for £300,000. 7 October 1988 –

Derby County Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group. Founded in 188 ...

manager Arthur Cox dismisses speculation that he will take over at Leeds United. 8 October 1988 – Norwich return to the top of the First Division with a 1–0 win over Derby at the Baseball Ground. Second Division promotion challengers Blackburn beat Crystal Palace 5–4 in a nine-goal thriller at Ewood Park. 9 October 1988 –

Jackie Milburn John Edward Thompson "Jackie" Milburn (11 May 1924 – 9 October 1988) was a football player principally associated with Newcastle United and England, though he also spent four seasons at Linfield. He was also known as Wor Jackie (particularly ...

, Newcastle's record goal scorer who helped them win three

s during the 1950s, dies of cancer aged 64. 10 October 1988 –

Howard Wilkinson Howard Wilkinson (born 13 November 1943) is an English former footballer and manager. Despite having a low-profile playing career, Wilkinson embarked on a successful managerial career. He won the First Division championship in 1992 with Leeds ...

ends six years as Sheffield Wednesday manager by agreeing to drop down a division to join Leeds United, while

Willie McFaul William Stewart McFaul (born 1 October 1943), known as Willie or Iam McFaul, is a Northern Irish former football player and now coach. He spent most of his career with Newcastle United. McFaul was born in Coleraine. He joined Newcastle Unit ...

ends his 22-year association with Newcastle United when he is sacked as manager. Reserve team coach Colin Suggett is put in charge, with the club's board saying that he will stay in the role until the end of the season. 13 October 1988 –

Ron Atkinson Ronald Frederick Atkinson (born 18 March 1939), commonly known as "Big Ron" or "Mr. Bojangles", is an English former football player and manager. In the 1990s and early 2000s, he was regarded as one of Britain's best-known football pundits. Nic ...

steps down as West Bromwich Albion manager for the second time, taking over at Atlético Madrid in Spain, in a contract worth £250,000 per year. 15 October 1988 – Millwall miss the chance to go back to the top of the First Division when Coventry hold them to a goalless draw at

Highfield Road Highfield Road was a football stadium in the city of Coventry, England. It was the home ground for Coventry City F.C. for 106 years. History It was built in 1899 in the Hillfields district, close to the city centre, and staged its final game ...

. A West Midlands derby at St Andrew's sees West Bromwich Albion beat their local rivals Birmingham City 4–1. Chelsea boost their hopes of an immediate return to the First Division by beating Oldham 4–1 at

Boundary Park Boundary Park is a football stadium in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. Its name originates from the fact that it lies at the northwestern extremity of Oldham, with Royton and Chadderton lying immediately north and west respectively. Bound ...

. 17 October 1988 – Liverpool midfielder Jan Molby is found guilty of reckless driving and driving under the influence of alcohol, and is sentenced to three months in prison. 19 October 1988 – England begin their World Cup qualifying campaign with a goalless draw in

Group 2 The term Group 2 may refer to: * Alkaline earth metal, a chemical element classification * Astronaut Group 2, also known as The New Nine, the second group of astronauts selected by NASA in 1962 * Group 2 (racing), an FIA classification for cars in ...

against Sweden at Wembley. 20 October 1988 – Liverpool sign 20-year-old defender David Burrows from

West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pl ...

for £550,000. 21 October 1988 – Wimbledon pay a club record £500,000 for

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of letters, symbols, etc., especially by sight or touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process involving such areas as word recognition, orthography (spelling ...

defender

Keith Curle Keith Curle (born 14 November 1963) is an English football manager and former professional player, who is the current manager of League Two side Hartlepool United. He played as a centre back from 1981 to 2005, notably in the Premier League for ...

. 22 October 1988 – Southampton make history by fielding three brothers in the same team in their 2–1 league defeat to Sheffield Wednesday: 24-year-old Danny Wallace lines up alongside twin brothers Rod and Ray. Norwich maintain their lead of the First Division with a 3–1 home win over Tottenham, which sends the visitors into the bottom three. West Ham remain in the bottom three despite a 2–0 win over Newcastle, which sends the

Tyneside Tyneside is a built-up area across the banks of the River Tyne in northern England. Residents of the area are commonly referred to as Geordies. The whole area is surrounded by the North East Green Belt. The population of Tyneside as publishe ...

rs back to the bottom of the table. Chelsea's Second Division surge continues with a 5–0 home win over Plymouth. 25 October 1988 – Tottenham remain in the bottom three after losing 2–1 at home to Southampton, who climb from tenth place to fifth. Arsenal's title hopes are dented when they are held to a 1–1 draw by Luton at

Kenilworth Road Kenilworth Road is an association football stadium in Luton, Bedfordshire, England. It has been the home ground of Luton Town Football Club since 1905. The stadium has also hosted women's and youth international matches, including the second ...

. Watford go top of the Second Division with a 4–0 home win over Barnsley. 26 October 1988 – Norwich strengthen their lead of the First Division with a 2–1 win over Manchester United at Old Trafford. Newcastle climb off the bottom of the division with a 3–0 home win over local rivals Middlesbrough. Liverpool are seventh after a 2–1 defeat to Nottingham Forest at the

City Ground The City Ground is a football stadium in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England, on the banks of the River Trent. It has been home to Nottingham Forest Football Club since 1898 and has a capacity of 30,445. The stadium was a venue when En ...

. 27 October 1988 – Manchester United pay

Luton Town Luton Town Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of Luton, Bedfordshire, England, that competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1885, it is nicknam ...

£650,000 for 31-year-old full-back

Mal Donaghy Malachy Martin Donaghy (born 13 September 1957 in Belfast) is a former Northern Ireland national football team, Northern Ireland international Association football, footballer who played for Luton Town F.C., Luton Town and Manchester United F.C. ...

. 28 October 1988 – Derby County pay a club-record £1million for

Oxford United Oxford United Football Club is a professional football club in the city of Oxford, England. The team plays in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The chairman is Grant Ferguson, the manager is Karl Robinson and t ...

and Wales striker

Dean Saunders Dean Nicholas Saunders (born 21 June 1964) is a Welsh football manager and former professional footballer. As a player, he was a striker in a career which lasted from 1982 until 2001. He played for Liverpool and Aston Villa in the 1990s, and s ...

. 29 October 1988 –

Mark Lawrenson Mark Thomas Lawrenson (born 2 June 1957) is a former professional footballer who played as a defender for Liverpool, among others, during the 1970s and 1980s. After a short career as a manager, he then became a radio, television and internet pun ...

is sacked as Oxford United manager after a dispute with the club's board over the sale of Dean Saunders. His assistant

Brian Horton Brian "Nobby" Horton (born 4 February 1949) is an English former footballer and manager. He spent 16 years as a professional player and 22 years as a manager, making 689 appearances and managing 1,098 matches. In addition to this he spent four ...

, the former Hull City manager, is appointed as his successor. First Division leaders Norwich draw 1–1 at home to Southampton, while Arsenal climb into second place with a 2–0 home win over Coventry. Liverpool get back on track with a 2–0 win at West Ham. The biggest action in the Second Division comes in the shape of a seven-goal thriller at the Manor Ground, where Bradford beat Oxford 4–3. 30 October 1988 – Everton and Manchester United draw 1–1 in a First Division encounter at

. Both teams were among the pre-season title favourites but have so far been disappointing in the league, with Everton 14th and United 10th. Tottenham, another team widely expected to challenge for the title this season, are currently second from bottom. In contrast, a Norwich side which battled against relegation last season are top of the league and Millwall are third in their first season as a First Division club. 31 October 1988 – Norwich City are back at the top of the First Division table at the end of the month, now with a six-point lead over nearest rivals Arsenal, who have a game in hand, while Millwall are still third. The bottom three places are occupied by Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United.

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...

, who two seasons ago were in the Third Division and threatened with closure due to financial problems, finish the month in a creditable seventh place. Watford lead the Second Division by five points over Blackburn Rovers. The playoff zone is occupied by West Bromwich Albion, Portsmouth, Chelsea and Manchester City. Leeds United continue to struggle, only being out of the relegation zone on goal difference. 1 November 1988 – Out-of-favour Manchester United striker

Peter Davenport Peter Davenport (born 24 March 1961) is an English former professional footballer and manager who has managed teams in both the Welsh and English leagues. He has also managed classes as a substitute teacher. Born in Birkenhead, Cheshire, he won ...

becomes Middlesbrough's record signing in a £750,000 deal. Former Tottenham Hotspur manager

Keith Burkinshaw Harry Keith Burkinshaw (born 23 June 1935) is an English former professional footballer and football manager. He is one of the most successful managers of Tottenham Hotspur, winning 3 major trophies for the club as manager there. Playing career ...

takes over as manager of Third Division strugglers Gillingham. 5 November 1988 – In the Second Division,

win at league-leaders Watford through goals from

Gordon Durie Gordon Scott Durie (born on 6 December, 1965 in Paisley) is the Scottish former professional footballer, a utility player who usually played as a striker. He played for East Fife, Hibernian, Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur, Rangers and Hearts. ...

and

Kerry Dixon Kerry Michael Dixon (born 24 July 1961) is an English retired professional footballer who played as a forward. His club career was spent most notably at Chelsea, where he won the Second Division twice. His 193 goals for the club across all ...

, Tommy Tynan fires four for Plymouth Argyle against

, and John Sheridan scores the only goal as

pick up an away win at

. Norwich continue to head the First Division title race with a 2–0 win over Wimbledon at

Plough Lane Plough Lane – named The Cherry Red Records Stadium for sponsorship reasons – is a football stadium in Wimbledon, south-west London, which has been the home of AFC Wimbledon since 3 November 2020. A groundshare with rugby league side London ...

. Millwall go second with a 3–1 home win over Luton. Tottenham are bottom after a 3–1 home defeat to Derby, which sees the East Midlanders bounce from 13th to sixth in the table. Manchester United's frustrating form continues when they are held to a 1–1 draw at home to Aston Villa, meaning that they have now drawn five out of 10 First Division games this season. 6 November 1988 – Arsenal go second in the First Division with a 4–1 away over Nottingham Forest. They are now Norwich's nearest challengers, six points behind with a game in hand. 11 November 1988 – Ralph Milne, the 27-year-old winger with

Bristol City Bristol City Football Club is a professional football club based in Bristol, England, which compete in the , the second tier of English football. They have played their home games at Ashton Gate since moving from St John's Lane in 1904. The ...

in the Third Division, makes a surprise £170,000 move to Manchester United. 12 November 1988 – Norwich are still top of the First Division but draw 1–1 at home to Sheffield Wednesday, with Arsenal winning 1–0 at Newcastle to cut Norwich's lead to four points. Southampton go third win a 3–1 home win over Aston Villa. Manchester United make it six draws from their first 11 games with a 2–2 stalemate away to Derby. 15 November 1988 – Everton striker

Adrian Heath Adrian Paul Heath (born 11 January 1961) is an English football manager and former player. He currently serves as head coach of Major League Soccer club Minnesota United FC. As a player, he is best known for his six seasons at Everton, where h ...

is sold to

Espanyol Reial Club Deportiu Espanyol de Barcelona (; "Royal Spanish Sports Club of Barcelona"), commonly known as Espanyol, is a professional sports club based in Barcelona, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top tier of the Spanish football league sy ...

of Spain for £600,000. 16 November 1988 – England draw 1–1 with

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

in a friendly in

Riyadh Riyadh (, ar, الرياض, 'ar-Riyāḍ, lit.: 'The Gardens' Najdi pronunciation: ), formerly known as Hajr al-Yamamah, is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of th ...

, with goalkeeper

David Seaman David Andrew Seaman (born 19 September 1963) is an English former footballer who played as a goalkeeper. In a career lasting from 1981 to 2004, he is best known for his time playing for Arsenal. He won 75 caps for England, and is the country's ...

making his international debut. Manchester United sell winger

Jesper Olsen Jesper Olsen (born 20 March 1961) is a Danish former professional footballer who played as a left winger. He is best remembered for representing Ajax of the Netherlands and Manchester United of England. He was a regular player for the Danish na ...

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefect ...

of France for £400,000, where he links up with former Tottenham Hotspur striker Clive Allen. 18 November 1988 – Oxford United captain

Tommy Caton Thomas Stephen Caton (6 October 1962 – 30 April 1993) was an English footballer who played as a centre half for Manchester City, Arsenal, Oxford United and Charlton Athletic. Caton captained both Manchester City and Oxford United and was nam ...

returns to the First Division in a £100,000 move to Charlton Athletic. Manchester United sell

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

winger

for £400,000. 19 November 1988 – The

first round kicks off with non-league

Altrincham Altrincham ( , locally ) is a market town in Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, south of the River Mersey. It is southwest of Manchester city centre, southwest of Sale and east of Warrington. At the 2011 Census, it had a population ...

and

Bognor Regis Town Bognor Regis Town Football Club is an English football club based in Bognor Regis, West Sussex. Nicknamed 'The Rocks',the club is an FA Chartered Standard Community club affiliated to the Sussex County Football Association. They currently compet ...

both seeing off Football League opposition. Norwich drop points again when they are held to a 1–1 draw at Everton, with Arsenal cutting the gap between first and second to two points with a 3–0 home win over Middlesbrough. A relegation crunch game at Kenilworth Road sees Luton beat West Ham 4–1. Bottom club Newcastle crash to a 4–0 defeat at Millwall. Portsmouth go top of the Second Division, level on points with Watford and Blackburn, with a 3–0 home win over Barnsley. 23 November 1988 – Manchester United are held to a 1–1 draw at home to Sheffield Wednesday in the First Division, and have now drawn eight of their opening 13 league games. Tottenham and Coventry draw 1–1 in a stalemate at

. Liverpool beat Arsenal 2–1 in a League Cup third round replay at

. 25 November 1988 – Wimbledon defender

Terry Phelan Terrence Phelan (born 16 March 1967) is a football coach and former professional footballer. He is the technical director of Indian I-League 2nd Division side South United FC. Nicknamed "The Scuttler", he played as a left-back from 1984 to 20 ...

is omitted from tomorrow's squad for the First Division fixture against Liverpool due to a court appearance he faces on a charge of

cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae. The number of species within the genus is disputed. Three species may be recognized: '' Cannabis sativa'', '' C. indica'', and '' C. ruderalis''. Alternative ...

possession. 26 November 1988 – Norwich are held to another draw, this time 2–2 at home to Luton, but retain their lead of the First Division. Arsenal lose 2–1 to Derby at the Baseball Ground in a match where victory would have taken them to the top of the league on goal difference. Coventry go fifth with a 2–1 home win over local rivals Aston Villa. There are thrilling victories for two promotion-chasing trams in the Second Division, with Barnsley beating AFC Bournemouth 5–2 at Oakwell and West Bromwich Albion beating Crystal Palace 5–3 at the Hawthorns. 27 November 1988 – The only professional action of the day sees Manchester United and Newcastle United grind out a goalless draw on

. Newcastle are still bottom of the First Division, having won just two of their first 14 games. Manchester United have so far lost just twice in the league, but nine draws and a mere three victories have left them rooted in mid table. 30 November 1988 – The month ends with Norwich City still top of the First Division, with Arsenal, Millwall, Liverpool,

and Southampton all in close contention. Newcastle United and West Ham United are level on points at the bottom. Watford and Blackburn Rovers lead the way in the Second Division, level on 33 points. Manchester City, Chelsea, Portsmouth and West Bromwich Albion occupy the play-off zone. 1 December 1988 – Jan Molby is released from prison after serving 45 days of his three-month prison sentence for motoring offences. 3 December 1988 – Manchester United end their long run without win in the First Division by beating Charlton Athletic 3–0 at Old Trafford. Norwich are still top of the First Division despite a 3–1 defeat at Aston Villa, but Arsenal are three points behind them with two games in hand. Chelsea go second in the Second Division with a 3–0 win over Stoke at the

Victoria Ground The Victoria Ground was the home ground of Stoke City from 1878 until 1997, when the club relocated to the Britannia Stadium after 119 years. At the time of its demolition it was the oldest operational ground in the Football League. History ...

. 4 December 1988 – Newcastle United's search for a manager ends when they recruit Jim Smith from Queens Park Rangers, who put coach Peter Shreeves in temporary charge of the first team. Arsenal miss the chance to go top of the First Division when they are held to a 1–1 draw at home to Liverpool. 7 December 1988 – Striker John Robertson returns to his native Scotland to rejoin Hearts in a £750,000 deal after just seven months at Newcastle United. 10 December 1988 – Norwich remain top of the First Division after drawing 0–0 at home with their nearest rivals Arsenal. Coventry close in on the leading pair by beating Manchester United 1–0 at Highfield Road. Manchester City go top of the Second Division with a 4–0 home win over Bradford City. 11 December 1988 – The

Merseyside derby The Merseyside derby is the association football, football matches between Everton F.C., Everton and Liverpool F.C., Liverpool, the two primary clubs in Liverpool, England. Named after the county of Merseyside, in which Liverpool is located, it ...

ends in a 1–1 draw at

. 14 December 1988 – Luton Town sign 23-year-old Northern Irish striker

Iain Dowie Iain Dowie (born 9 January 1965) is a football manager, former professional footballer and sports television pundit. He played as a striker from 1983 until 2001, notably in the Premier League for Southampton, Crystal Palace and West Ham Unit ...

from Isthmian League side Hendon for £30,000. Queens Park Rangers appoint their 34-year-old former England striker

Trevor Francis Trevor John Francis (born 19 April 1954) is an English former footballer who played as a forward for a number of clubs in England, the United States, Italy, Scotland and Australia. In 1979 he became Britain's first £1 million player foll ...

as player-manager. 17 December 1988 – Liverpool are now sixth in the First Division and eight points off the top of the table after losing 1–0 at home to Norwich, who stay top despite Arsenal's 2–1 home win over Manchester United. Derby go fourth win a 2–0 away win over Coventry. Newcastle claim a point in their battle for survival with a 3–3 draw at home to Southampton. Millwall remain third in the league with a 1–0 home win over Sheffield Wednesday. 18 December 1988 – Wimbledon climb out of the bottom three with a 1–0 away win over Nottingham Forest. Sunderland remain within touching distance of the Second Division playoffs – and the chance of a second successive promotion – by beating Plymouth 4–1 at

Home Park Home Park is a football stadium in Plymouth, England. The ground has been the home of Football League One club Plymouth Argyle since 1901.Kenny Sansom Kenneth Graham Sansom (born 26 September 1958) is a former professional footballer who played as a defender. An England international, he played for clubs such as Crystal Palace, Arsenal, Newcastle United, Coventry City, Queens Park Rangers, ...

ends eight years at Arsenal by making a £300,000 move to Newcastle United. 24 December 1988 – Aston Villa sell striker Garry Thompson to Watford for £325,000. 26 December 1988 – Arsenal go top of the First Division after beating Charlton 3–2 at Selhurst Park. Everton go fifth win a 2–1 home win over Middlesbrough. Manchester United climb two places to ninth with a 2–0 home win over Nottingham Forest. Newcastle pick up three vital points in their fight to avoid relegation by winning 2–1 at Sheffield Wednesday. Liverpool pick up three points in their bid to remain on track for the league title, beating Derby 1–0 at the Baseball Ground. Chelsea go top of the Second Division with a 3–0 home win over Ipswich. 27 December 1988 – Walsall, bottom of the Second Division, sack manager Tommy Coakley, their manager for two-and-a-half years, after an 11th successive league defeat. Norwich return to the top of the First Division with a 2–1 home win over West Ham, who are now bottom of the First Division and six points adrift of safety just three seasons after coming close to winning the league title. 31 December 1988 – Arsenal move to the top the First Division on goal difference from Norwich City after beating Aston Villa 3–0. Norwich could only manage a goalless draw at home to Middlesbrough. Wimbledon climb into 14th place with a 4–0 home win over Luton, Everton go fourth win a 3–1 home win over Coventry, and Tottenham reach ninth place with a 2–0 win over Newcastle less than two months after being bottom of the table. The Second Division leading pair of Chelsea and West Bromwich Albion remain level on goal difference after a 1–1 draw at Stamford Bridge. Watford draw level on points with them after beating AFC Bournemouth 1–0. Manchester City maintain their promotion push with a 2–1 win over Swindon at the County Ground. Leicester are just four points short of the playoffs after a 4–0 home win over Blackburn. Sunderland are just two points off the playoffs after beating Portsmouth 4–0 at

Roker Park Roker Park was a football ground in Roker, Sunderland, England, which was the home of Sunderland A.F.C. from 1898 to 1997, before the club moved to the Stadium of Light. Its final capacity was around 22,500, with only a small part being seated ...

. Barnsley climb into the playoff zone and are in strong contention for a place in the top flight of English football for the first time, beating struggling Shrewsbury 3–2 at

Gay Meadow Gay Meadow was the home ground of Shrewsbury Town football club in Shropshire, England. Just outside the town centre, on the banks of the River Severn, it opened in 1910. The ground closed at the end of the 2006-07 Football League season and t ...

. 1 January 1989 – Manchester United beat Liverpool 3–1 at Old Trafford to leave the Merseysiders nine points behind leaders Arsenal. 20-year-old midfielder

Russell Beardsmore Russell Peter Beardsmore (born 28 September 1968) is an English former footballer. Playing career Beardsmore began his senior career with Manchester United, after playing for Atherton Collieries as a schoolboy. He made his debut in September 1 ...

, starting for only the second time in the league, scored a second half equaliser for United before setting up a goal each for

Brian McClair Brian John McClair (born 8 December 1963) is a Scottish football coach and former professional footballer. As a player, he was a forward from 1980 to 1998, notable for his near 11-year spell at Manchester United where he won 14 trophies includ ...

and

to wipe out Liverpool's lead. 2 January 1989 – Luton Town thrash Southampton 6–1 in the biggest win of the First Division season. 5 January 1989 – Neil Warnock leaves

Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to: People * Scarborough (surname) * Earl of Scarbrough Places Australia * Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth * Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong * Scarborough, Queensland, su ...

to become manager of

Notts County Notts County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Nottingham, England. The team participate in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. Founded on the 25 November 1862, it is the ...

, to replace

John Barnwell John Barnwell (born 24 December 1938) is an English former football player and manager. He was the chief executive of the League Managers Association. Career Arsenal Born in Newcastle, Barnwell first played as an amateur for Whitley Bay and ...

, sacked a month ago. 6 January 1989 – Manchester City boost their Second Division promotion push with a £250,000 move for Sheffield Wednesday midfielder

Gary Megson Gary John Megson (born 2 May 1959) is an English former football player and manager. He has previously managed Norwich City, Blackpool, Stockport County, Stoke City, West Bromwich Albion, Nottingham Forest, Leicester City, Bolton Wanderers ...

. 7 January 1989 –

Sutton United Sutton United Football Club is a professional football club in Sutton, South London, England, who play in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. They play home games at Gander Green Lane in Sutton about 11 miles so ...

, of the Conference, knock Coventry City out of the FA Cup with a shock 2–1 win in the third round. Middlesbrough lose 2–1 at home to Fourth Division

Grimsby Town Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that in the 2022–23 season will compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system, following the victory in t ...

. 11 January 1989 – Struggling West Ham United surprisingly beat Arsenal 1–0 in an FA Cup third round replay at Highbury. 12 January 1989 – After just seven months at Newcastle United, goalkeeper

Dave Beasant David John Beasant (; born 20 March 1959) is an English football coach and former football goalkeeper. As a player, he was a goalkeeper, who notably played top-flight football for Wimbledon, Newcastle United, Chelsea, Southampton and Notting ...

signs for Second Division leaders Chelsea in a £725,000 deal which contracts him to the Stamford Bridge club until 1994. 28 January 1989 – Sutton United's FA Cup adventure ends in the Fourth Round when they are hammered 8–0 by Norwich City. Brentford beat Manchester City 3–1. 31 January 1989 – Arsenal remain top of the First Division, three points ahead of Norwich City. Coventry City are third, but Millwall have slipped to seventh. Newcastle United are back in bottom place after failing to gain a single league point this month, and are level on points with West Ham United. Chelsea continue to lead the way in the Second Division, while Watford now stand second, level on points with third placed Manchester City. West Bromwich Albion, Blackburn Rovers and Sunderland complete the top six. 2 February 1989 – Liverpool sell midfielder

Nigel Spackman Nigel James Spackman (born 2 December 1960) is an English football manager, former professional footballer and sports television pundit. As a player he was as a midfielder from 1980 to 1998, notably for Liverpool, Chelsea and Rangers. He also ...

to Queens Park Rangers for £500,000. 8 February 1989 – Midfielder

Peter Reid Peter Reid (born 20 June 1956) is an English football manager, pundit and former player. A defensive midfielder in his playing days, Reid enjoyed a long and successful career. He built his reputation as one of England's brightest midfield tale ...

moves from Everton to Queens Park Rangers on a free transfer. Watford boost their Second Division promotion challenge with a £175,000 move for Halifax Town's 19-year-old winger Lee Richardson. 9 February 1989 – Nottingham Forest manager Brian Clough is fined £5,000 and banned from the touchline for the rest of the season for punching supporters who invaded the pitch in the recent Football League Cup quarter-final victory over Queens Park Rangers. 14 February 1989 – Just three months after quitting West Bromwich Albion to take over at Spanish side Atlético Madrid, Ron Atkinson returns to England to succeed Peter Eustace as manager of First Division strugglers Sheffield Wednesday. Arsenal win a friendly against the

France national football team The France national football team (french: Équipe de France de football) represents France in men's international football matches. It is governed by the French Football Federation (FFF; ), the governing body for football in France. It is ...

2–0. 18 February 1989 – Liverpool come from behind to beat Hull City 3–2 in the FA Cup fifth round. Everton win 1–0 at Barnsley, and Third Division Brentford continue their good run by beating Blackburn Rovers. 23 February 1989 – Midfielder

Carlton Palmer Carlton Lloyd Palmer (born 5 December 1965) is an English football manager, former footballer and football television pundit whose last management role was as manager of Grantham Town. As a player, he was a midfielder from 1984 to 2005, play ...

follows Ron Atkinson to Sheffield Wednesday from West Bromwich Albion for a club record fee of £750,000. 24 February 1989 –

Roy Hattersley Roy Sydney George Hattersley, Baron Hattersley, (born 28 December 1932) is a British Labour Party politician, author and journalist from Sheffield. He was MP for Birmingham Sparkbrook for over 32 years from 1964 to 1997, and served as Depu ...

, deputy Labour Party leader, warns that the

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

government's proposed ID card scheme will increase violence outside football grounds. 27 February 1989 – Newport County, relegated from the Football League last season, are wound up in the High Court with huge debts. 28 February 1989 – Arsenal remain top of the First Division as February ends, with Norwich City still second, and Millwall back up to third. Liverpool are eighth, 19 points behind Arsenal, but with four games in hand. West Ham United are now bottom of the division, and Newcastle United and Sheffield Wednesday complete the relegation zone. Manchester City have overtaken Chelsea as Second Division leaders. The play-off zone is occupied by Blackburn Rovers, Watford, West Bromwich Albion and AFC Bournemouth. 2 March 1989 – Chelsea sign

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

defender Ken Monkou from

Feyenoord Feyenoord Rotterdam () is a Dutch professional football club (association football), football club in Rotterdam, which plays in the Eredivisie, the top tier in Dutch football. Founded as Wilhelmina in 1908, the club changed to various names bef ...

for £100,000. 3 March 1989 – Rangers sign defender Mel Sterland from Sheffield Wednesday on a free. 8 March 1989 – England achieve their first win of the World Cup qualifying series with a 2–0 win over

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

Tirana Tirana ( , ; aln, Tirona) is the capital and largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest overlooking the Adriatic Sea ...

. 9 March 1989 – Queens Park Rangers set a club record transfer by paying Southampton £800,000 for striker Colin Clarke. 14 March 1989 – Manchester City, pushing for promotion from the Second Division, pay £600,000 for Luton Town midfielder David Oldfield. 15 March 1989 – Southampton sign 18-year-old defender Jason Dodd from Conference side

Bath City Bath City Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Bath, Somerset, England. The club is affiliated to the Somerset FA and currently competes in the National League South, the sixth tier of English football. The club have ...

for £50,000. 18 March 1989 – Brentford's FA Cup dream ends in the quarter-finals when they lose 4–0 to Liverpool at

. Nottingham Forest defeat Manchester United 1–0 at Old Trafford. West Ham United and Norwich City draw 0–0 at Upton Park. 19 March 1989 – Wimbledon's defence of the FA Cup ends in a 1–0 defeat to Everton at

. 21 March 1989 – Fourth Division strugglers

Stockport County Stockport County Football Club are a professional football club in Stockport, England, who compete in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1883 as Heaton Norris Rovers, they were renamed Stockport Co ...

sack player-manager

Asa Hartford Richard Asa Hartford (born 24 October 1950) is a Scottish former football player and coach. He started his professional career with West Bromwich Albion. His early progress led to a proposed transfer to Leeds United in November 1971, but this co ...

and replace him with Rochdale manager Danny Bergera. 22 March 1989 – Norwich City move closer to their first-ever FA Cup final by defeating West Ham United 3–1 in the quarter-final replay at Carrow Road. while Southampton pay a club record £700,000 for Portsmouth midfielder Barry Horne. West Ham United also break their transfer fee record by paying £1.1million to bring striker

Frank McAvennie Francis McAvennie (born 22 November 1959) is a Scottish former footballer, who played as a striker for St Mirren, West Ham United and Celtic, having had two spells with each of these clubs. With Celtic he won the Scottish Premier Division in ...

back to the club after 18 months at Celtic. 23 March 1989 –

Gordon Strachan Gordon David Strachan ( born 9 February 1957) is a Scottish former football coach and player. He played for Dundee, Aberdeen, Manchester United, Leeds United and Coventry City, as well as the Scotland national team. He has since managed Co ...

leaves Manchester United after nearly five years to join Leeds United for £300,000. Trevor Francis bolsters the Queens Park Rangers midfield with a £350,000 move for Brentford's

Andy Sinton Andrew Sinton (born 19 March 1966) is an English football manager and former professional footballer, who is club ambassador for Queens Park Rangers. As a player, he was a left midfielder who notably played in the Premier League for Queens P ...

. 27 March 1989 – Referee Kelvin Morton awards five penalties in just 27 minutes during the

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building ...

versus

match. Crystal Palace miss three of their four penalties, while Brighton score from their only penalty. Palace eventually win the match 2–1. 31 March 1989 – Arsenal remain top of the league, three points ahead of Norwich City, while Liverpool, who won six League games this month, have moved into third place with a game in hand and a five-point deficit behind the leaders. West Ham United occupy bottom place with 22 points from 27 games, but Newcastle United are now just one point adrift of safety. Southampton have slipped into the bottom three. Chelsea have returned to the top of the Second Division, exchanging places with Manchester City, while the play-off zone is occupied by West Bromwich Albion, Blackburn Rovers, Ipswich Town and AFC Bournemouth. 4 April 1989 – Liverpool play Scottish champions Celtic in the last ever

Dubai Champions Cup The Dubai Champions Cup (originally called the Dubai Super Cup) was an annual association football match contested between the champions of the English and Scottish leagues. The competition took place for three consecutive seasons from 1986–87 ...

, an unofficial 'British Championship'.

scores for Liverpool to equalise a Mark McGhee goal for Celtic, and the game finishes 1–1. Liverpool lose 4–2 on penalty kicks. 5 April 1989 – Newport County lose a final appeal against their closure in the High Court more than a month ago; they are expelled from the GM Vauxhall Conference and their record for the season is expunged. 9 April 1989 – Nottingham Forest win the

League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...

with a 3–1 win over holders Luton Town in the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: * Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of con ...

at Wembley. 10 April 1989 – Walsall announce the sale of Fellows Park, their home since 1903, and will relocate to a new stadium at

Bescot Bescot is an area of Walsall in the West Midlands of England. It is served by Bescot Stadium railway station, adjacent to which is Bescot depot where locomotives are maintained. The Banks's Stadium was built in 1990 for Walsall F.C. The area ...

from the start of the 1990–91 season. 15 April 1989 – English football endures its greatest ever tragedy with the death of 94

supporters, and injury of some 300 others, at the FA Cup semi-final clash with Nottingham Forest at Hillsborough. Some of the injured are in a serious condition and there are fears that the death toll could rise even higher. The match is abandoned, while the other semi-final sees Everton beat Norwich City 1–0 at

Villa Park Villa Park is a football stadium in Aston, Birmingham, England, with a seating capacity of 42,682. It has been the home of Premier League side Aston Villa since 1897. The ground is less than a mile from both Witton and Aston railway station ...

. 17 April 1989 – Within 48 hours of the tragedy at Hillsborough,

Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national s ...

Douglas Hurd Douglas Richard Hurd, Baron Hurd of Westwell, (born 8 March 1930) is a British Conservative Party politician who served in the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major from 1979 to 1995. A career diplomat and political secretary to P ...

promises to pass new legislation which will force all Football League teams to remove standing accommodation from their stadiums. The Football Association gives the go-ahead for the FA Cup to continue, with the re-staged match to take place at Old Trafford on 7 May, despite calls for the final not to be played. 18 April 1989 – The Hillsborough disaster death toll reaches 95 when 14-year-old Lee Nichol dies in hospital from his injuries.Lee Nicol,14: A tribute to 14-year-old Lee Nicol who died at Hillsborough
''Liverpool Echo''. Retrieved 17 June 2013 Many more of the injured are still in hospital, and there are fears that six spectators who had to be resuscitated have suffered brain damage. 19 April 1989 – ''The Sun'' newspaper posts a front-page article about the Hillsborough disaster, headlined "The Truth", with lurid and untrue allegations about Liverpool fans' conduct, from sources including South Yorkshire Police and

Irvine Patnick Sir Cyril Irvine Patnick OBE (11 October 1929 – 30 December 2012) was a British businessman and Conservative Party politician. He was knighted in 1994.Martin WainwrighObituary: Irvine Patnick ''The Guardian'', 31 December 2012 Early life ...

. The claims were later disproved by the Hillsborough inquest, and caused an ongoing boycott of ''The Sun'' in Liverpool. 26 April 1989 – England beat Albania 5–0 at Wembley in their third World Cup qualifying game. Substitute Paul Gascoigne scores his first international goal. 28 April 1989 – Of the 25 Liverpool fans who were extradited in connection with the

Heysel disaster The Heysel Stadium disaster ( it, Strage dell'Heysel ; german: link=no, Katastrophe von Heysel ; french: Drame du Heysel ; nl, Heizeldrama ) was a crowd disaster that occurred on 29 May 1985 when mostly Juventus fans escaping from a breach by L ...

of May 1985, in which 39 spectators died at the European Cup final, 14 are found guilty of voluntary manslaughter; they went on to serve one year in prison. 30 April 1989 – Arsenal remain top of the league as April draws to a close, but are now just three points ahead of a Liverpool side who have superior goal difference and a game in hand. Norwich City are now eight points behind the leaders. At the other end of the table West Ham United are ten points from safety, and occupy the relegation zone with Newcastle United and Luton Town. Chelsea have sealed an immediate return to the First Division as Second Division champions, while Manchester City are just five points away from returning as runners-up after a two-year exile. Watford and Crystal Palace are now the only other teams who can go up automatically, while Blackburn Rovers and

Swindon Town Swindon Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club has played home matches at the County Ground sin ...

complete the top six. Nottingham Forest beat Everton 4–3 in the

Full Members Cup The Full Members' Cup was an association football cup competition held in English football from 1985 to 1992. It was also known under its sponsored names of the Simod Cup from 1987 to 1989 and the Zenith Data Systems Cup from 1989 to 1992. Th ...

final at Wembley to become the first club in English football to win two domestic cups in the same season. Liverpool travelled to

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

to play their first game since the Hillsborough disaster. 60,000 attend at

Parkhead Parkhead ( sco, Pairkheid) is a district in the East End of Glasgow. Its name comes from a small weaving hamlet at the meeting place of the Great Eastern Road (now the Gallowgate and Tollcross Road) and Westmuir Street. Glasgow's Eastern Necrop ...

to watch them beat Celtic 4–0 in a match arranged to raise money for the disaster fund. An estimated £500,000 is raised. 1 May 1989 – Arsenal thrash Norwich City 5–0 at

to effectively end the Canaries' title challenge. Maidstone United clinch the Conference title and are promoted to the Football League, giving them a clash next season with fellow

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

club Gillingham, who are relegated to the Fourth Division on the same day. 2 May 1989 – Manchester United beat Wimbledon 1–0 in a league game at Old Trafford which is watched by 23,2368, the club's lowest home crowd in the league since August 1971. 3 May 1989 – Liverpool play their first match since the Hillsborough tragedy, a 0–0 draw with Everton. Newcastle United are relegated from the First Division after losing 2–1 to West Ham United, whose victory keeps their own slim survival hopes alive. 6 May 1989 – Darlington are relegated from the Football League after 68 years when they lose 5–1 to Scunthorpe United at

. 7 May 1989 – Three weeks after the Hillsborough disaster, Liverpool's FA Cup semi-final clash with Nottingham Forest is replayed at Old Trafford. Liverpool win 3–1 to keep their dream of a second double alive. 10 May 1989 – England striker Gary Lineker collects a

European Cup Winners' Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tournam ...

medal as Barcelona beat

Sampdoria Unione Calcio Sampdoria, commonly referred to as Sampdoria (), is an Italian professional football club based in Genoa. The club was formed in 1946 from the merger of two existing sports clubs whose roots can be traced back to the 1890s, ...

2–0 in the final. 13 May 1989 – Middlesbrough join Newcastle United in being relegated from the First Division after they lose a relegation showdown 1–0 away to Sheffield Wednesday and Luton Town beat Norwich City 1–0. The result ensures Wednesday's survival, and West Ham United must now win their last two games to stay up at the expense of Aston Villa. At the top, Arsenal suffer a 2–1 defeat at home to Derby County, while Liverpool beat Wimbledon 2–1 to move within two points of the Gunners with a game in hand. 16 May 1989 – Liverpool move to the top of the First Division for the first time this season after beating Queens Park Rangers 2–0. 17 May 1989 – Arsenal draw 2–2 with Wimbledon in their last home League game of the season. They are level on points with Liverpool having played one game more. 20 May 1989 – Liverpool lift the FA Cup with a 3–2 win over Everton after extra time. Ian Rush scores twice for Liverpool while

scores the other goal, and Stuart McCall scores twice for Everton. 23 May 1989 – West Ham United are relegated after eight successive seasons of First Division football as they lose 5–1 to Liverpool at Anfield. The result moves Liverpool three points clear of Arsenal at the top of the table with one game remaining. 26 May 1989 – Arsenal win the league title in the final moments of the season thanks to a late goal from Michael Thomas against Liverpool which gives them a 2–0 away win. First Division top scorer Alan Smith had put Arsenal ahead earlier in the second half. Their triumph gives them their first league championship trophy for 18 years, having scored more goals than their rivals, their points tallies and goal differences being identical. Former Leeds United and England manager

Don Revie Donald George Revie OBE (10 July 1927 – 26 May 1989) was an England international footballer and manager, best known for his successful spell with Leeds United from 1961 until 1974, which immediately preceded his appointment as England manage ...

dies of

motor neuron disease Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or Lou Gehrig's disease, is a neurodegenerative disease that results in the progressive loss of motor neurons that control voluntary muscles. ALS is the most comm ...

at the age of 61. 27 May 1989 –

Steve Bull Stephen George Bull (born 28 March 1965 in Tipton, Dudley) is an English former professional footballer who is best remembered for his 13-year spell at Wolverhampton Wanderers. He played there from 1986 until his retirement from playing in 19 ...

, who scored 52 goals in all competitions for Third Division

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club's ...

this season, scores on his debut for England against Scotland at Hampden Park. England win 2–0 to take the

Rous Cup The Rous Cup was a short-lived football competition in the second half of the 1980s, contested between England, Scotland and, in later years, a guest team from South America. Overview The Rous Cup arose from the ashes of the British Home Cha ...

. 28 May 1989 – Bolton Wanderers claim their first major trophy since the 1958 FA Cup by beating

Torquay United Torquay United Football Club is a professional football club based in Torquay, Devon, England. The team currently compete in the , the fifth tier of English football. They have played their home matches at Plainmoor since 1921 and are nicknamed ...

4–1 in the Associate Members' Cup final. 1 June 1989 –

Trevor Steven Trevor McGregor Steven (born 21 September 1963) is an English former professional footballer who played as a right-sided midfielder. He progressed through the ranks at Burnley, making his debut in 1981 and becoming a regular supplier of goals o ...

, the Everton winger, becomes the latest Englishman to sign for Rangers when he agrees terms for a £1.5 million transfer. Kenny Sansom leaves Newcastle United to return to

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

in an exchange deal to Queens Park Rangers, with Wayne Fereday moving in the opposite direction. 3 June 1989 – England make it three wins from their opening four World Cup qualifying games with a 3–0 win over

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

at Wembley. The domestic season draws to a close when Crystal Palace overhaul a 3–1 deficit to defeat Blackburn Rovers 4–3 on aggregate to win promotion to the First Division after an eight-year exile. 5 June 1989 – John Lyall, the longest-serving manager currently employed in the Football League, is sacked after 15 years in charge of relegated West Ham United. He had been with the club for 34 years, since joining them as an apprentice on leaving school in 1955 at the age of 15. 7 June 1989 – Sheffield Wednesday sign 20-year-old striker

Dalian Atkinson Dalian Robert Atkinson (21 March 1968 – 15 August 2016) was an English professional footballer who played as a striker. During his club football career, he played in England for Ipswich Town, Sheffield Wednesday, Aston Villa and Manchester Ci ...

from Ipswich Town for £450,000. 20 June 1989 – Leeds United sign midfielder

Vinnie Jones Vincent Peter Jones (born 5 January 1965) is a British actor, presenter, and former professional footballer. Jones played professionally as a defensive midfielder from 1984 to 1999, notably for Wimbledon, Leeds United, Sheffield United, Chels ...

from Wimbledon for £650,000. 21 June 1989 – Gary Lineker ends three years in Spain with Barcelona to return to England in a £2 million move to Tottenham Hotspur.Gary Lineker: Career statistics
''soccerbase''. Retrieved 17 June 2013 30 June 1989 – Billy Bremner is appointed manager of

Doncaster Rovers Doncaster Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. The team compete in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club play their home games at ...

for the second time succeeding caretaker manager

Joe Kinnear Joseph Patrick Kinnear (born 27 December 1946) is an Irish former football manager and player. Kinnear played as a defender, spending the majority of his career—ten seasons—with Tottenham Hotspur. With Tottenham he won the FA Cup, the EFL ...

National team

FA Cup

Liverpool won the Cup by beating Everton 3–2 at Wembley.

, who had returned to Anfield after a year at Juventus the previous summer, scored twice. This year's FA Cup featured a famous upset as First Division

, who had won the competition two years earlier, sunk to a 2–1 loss in the third round at lowly

. The joy of the non-leaguers was ended emphatically though in the next round as they were thumped 8–0 by Norwich City. Also, Third Division Brentford went on an impressive run to the quarter-finals before losing to Liverpool at Anfield.

Football League silverware

Brian Clough Brian Howard Clough ( ; 21 March 1935 – 20 September 2004) was an English football player and manager, primarily known for his successes as a manager with Derby County and Nottingham Forest. He is one of four managers to have won the Engl ...

's Nottingham Forest ended their nine-year trophy drought by beating holders

3–1 in the final to win the League Cup. Nottingham Forest also won the Full Members' Cup, beating Everton 4–3 in the final after extra time, having come twice from behind. Garry Parker scored a brilliant goal for Nottingham Forest, running nearly the full length of the Wembley pitch, before beating

Neville Southall Neville Southall (born 16 September 1958) is a Welsh former international footballer. He has been described as one of the best goalkeepers of his generation and won the FWA Footballer of the Year award in 1985. He joined Bury from Winsford ...

in the Everton goal. This is arguably one of the best goals scored in a Wembley final. Like

the previous season, Bolton Wanderers announced their intentions to return to the big time by winning the Associate Members' Cup at Wembley against

4–1.

Football League

First Division

An exciting League season was eventually won by Arsenal, who clinched the title on number of goals scored with a late goal from midfielder Michael Thomas on the final day of the season at

, six weeks after the death of more than 90 fans at the FA Cup semi-final at Hillsborough, which delayed the end of the league season by two weeks and meant that the last games were played six days after the

FA Cup Final The FA Cup Final, commonly referred to in England as just the Cup Final, is the last match in the Football Association Challenge Cup. It has regularly been one of the most attended domestic football events in the world, with an official atten ...

, in which Liverpool beat

Merseyside Merseyside ( ) is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in North West England, with a population of 1.38 million. It encompasses both banks of the Mersey Estuary and comprises five metropolitan boroughs: Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Wi ...

rivals Everton 3–2. It was Arsenal's first league title for 18 years. Nottingham Forest's title challenge was over by the end of April, by which time it was a two-horse race between Arsenal and Liverpool, but compensated for this by winning the Football League Cup and

to end nine years without a major trophy. Fourth placed

mounted the first serious top flight title challenge of their history and although their challenge was over some weeks before the season's end, their final position was their best until they finished third in the inaugural Premier League season. They also reached the FA Cup semi-finals for only the second time.

completed the top five to secure their best finish since winning the league title in 1975. Everton's eighth-place finish was their lowest since 1981, while newly promoted Millwall's 10th-place finish was the lowest standing they had occupied at any stage during their first season in the top flight. Another big club to endure a disappointing season was Manchester United, who finished 11th a year after being runners-up. A disastrous season for Newcastle United saw them relegated in bottom place after five years back in the First Division. They were relegated alongside local rivals

and a

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...

side who had almost won the league title three years earlier, and who then sacked their manager John Lyall after 15 years in charge. Aston Villa,

(who went through three managers in the season) and

all had narrow escapes from relegation.

Second Division

sealed an instant return to the First Division by topping the Second Division with 99 points, giving them a 17-point lead over second-placed Manchester City. The final promotion place went to

, whose manager Steve Coppell had gradually rebuilt the club since taking over as manager five years earlier. They overcame

in the two-legged final by overhauling a two-goal deficit and prolonging the

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancash ...

club's absence from the First Division into its 24th season.

West Bromwich West Bromwich ( ) is a market town in the borough of Sandwell, West Midlands, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is north-west of Birmingham. West Bromwich is part of the area known as the Black Country, in terms of geography, c ...

had looked all set for promotion as late as February, only for a late season collapse to drag them down to ninth in the final table – not even enough for a playoff place.

suffered an instant return to the Third Division after winning just five league games all season, while Birmingham City's decline continued as they fell into the Third Division for the first time. The last club to go down were

Shrewsbury Town Shrewsbury Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of English football. The club plays its home games at the New Meadow, having mo ...

, whose luck finally ran out after defying the odds at this level for a whole decade, while some of the game's most illustrious clubs had gone down before them.

Second Division playoffs

Third Division

continued to thrive after a traumatic few seasons which had almost put the club out of business, as they sealed a second successive promotion and a second successive title thanks largely to prolific striker

, who became the first player in senior football to reach the 50-goal mark in consecutive seasons. They were joined in the Second Division by runners-up

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...

, whose manager

Dave Bassett David Thomas Bassett (born 4 September 1944 in Stanmore) is an English football manager and a former player. During his career he has managed Wimbledon, Watford, Sheffield United, Crystal Palace, Nottingham Forest, Barnsley, Leicester City a ...

secured his fifth promotion in nine seasons as a manager.

Port Vale Port Vale Football Club are a professional football club based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England, which compete in . Vale are the only English Football League club not to be named after a place; their name being a reference to the valley o ...

compensated for missing out on automatic promotion on goal difference by winning the playoffs.

Northampton Town Northampton Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Northampton, England. The team plays in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1897, the club competed in the Midland ...

, promotion contenders the previous season, only survived on goal difference.

were relegated instead, on 54 points – more than any other Football League team ever to have been relegated, until

Peterborough United Peterborough United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Peterborough have a long-standing ...

were relegated from

the Championship The English Football League Championship (often referred to as the Championship for short or the Sky Bet Championship for sponsorship purposes) is the highest division of the English Football League (EFL) and second-highest overall in the En ...

2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

having also finished the season with 54 points. Gillingham, Chesterfield and

Aldershot Aldershot () is a town in Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme northeast corner of the county, southwest of London. The area is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Alder ...

completed the bottom four.

Third Division playoffs

Fourth Division

Rotherham United Rotherham United Football Club, nicknamed The Millers, is a professional football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The club's colours were initially yellow and black, but changed to red and white around 1 ...

secured an instant return to the Third Division as Fourth Division champions.

Tranmere Rovers Tranmere Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The team compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1884 as Belmont Football Club, they ado ...

finished runners-up to end the decade on a high by winning promotion from a division where they had spent most of the decade.

Crewe Alexandra Crewe Alexandra Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Crewe, Cheshire, that competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Railwaymen' because of ...

finally made it out of the Fourth Division at the right end after being there continuously for over 20 years.

Leyton Orient Leyton Orient Football Club is a professional football club based in Leyton, East London, England, who compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. They are the second oldest football club in London to play at a profession ...

triumphed in the playoffs less than three months after they had been 15th in the league and seemingly out of the promotion race. Darlington slipped out of the Football League after a late rally by

Colchester United Colchester United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Colchester, Essex, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1937, the club spent its earl ...

under

Jock Wallace John Martin Bokas Wallace (6 September 1935 – 24 July 1996) was a Scottish professional footballer and manager. Wallace played as a goalkeeper, and has the unique distinction of being the only player ever to play in the English, Welsh and Sco ...

. Darlington themselves had enjoyed a late improvement in form after Brian Little's appointment as manager, but were unable to recover from an abysmal run that saw them win just two league games prior to Little's appointment in mid-February.

Fourth Division playoffs

Top goalscorers

First Division * Alan Smith (Arsenal) – 22 goals Second Division * Keith Edwards (Hull City) – 26 goals Third Division *

(Wolverhampton Wanderers) – 37 goals Fourth Division * Phil Stant (Hereford United) – 28 goals

Non-league football

In their first season after relegation from the Football League, Newport County went out of business on 27 February. They were then expelled from the Conference for failing to fulfill their fixtures but reformed three months later. The divisional champions of the major non-League competitions were:

Star players

Manchester United striker

, who had returned to the club after two unhappy seasons with Barcelona in Spain and Bayern Munich in Germany was voted

PFA Players' Player of the Year The Professional Footballers' Association Men's Players' Player of the Year (often called the PFA Men's Players' Player of the Year, the Players' Player of the Year, or simply the Player of the Year) is an annual award given to the player who is ...

. The

PFA Young Player of the Year The Professional Footballers' Association Young Player of the Year (often called the PFA Young Player of the Year, or simply the Young Player of the Year) is an annual award given to the young player who is adjudged to have been the best of the s ...

award went to Arsenal's winger

, who helped his side win their first league title for 18 years.

FWA Footballer of the Year The Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year (often called the FWA Footballer of the Year, or in England simply the Footballer of the Year) is an annual award given to the player who is adjudged to have been the best of the season in ...

was Liverpool captain

Steve Nicol ''yes'Steve is a masculine given name, usually a short form (hypocorism) of Steven or Stephen Notable people with the name include: steve jops * Steve Abbott (disambiguation), several people * Steve Adams (disambiguation), several people * Steve ...

, while a special award was credited to the Liverpool players for their compassion shown to families bereaved by the Hillsborough disaster. In the Third Division, 24-year-old Wolves striker

scored 53 goals in all competitions and made a scoring debut for the

England national football team The England national football team has represented England in international football since the first international match in 1872. It is controlled by The Football Association (FA), the governing body for football in England, which is affilia ...

Star managers

George Graham George Graham (born 30 November 1944), nicknamed "Stroller", is a Scottish former Association football, football player and manager (association football), manager. In his successful playing career, he made 455 appearances in England's Football ...

's three years of rebuilding Arsenal paid off as he ended their 18-year title drought with the last goal of the season. He received the Manager of the Year award for his efforts. * Kenny Dalglish compensated for Liverpool's title disappointment with victory over neighbours Everton in the FA Cup final. *

guided Nottingham Forest to a hard-earned League Cup triumph and also victory in the Full Members Cup after they had gone nine years without a trophy. *

Dave Stringer David Stringer (born 15 October 1944 in Great Yarmouth) is an English former footballer and manager of Norwich City. As a player, he won the fans' vote to be Norwich City player of the year in 1972, the same year that they won promotion to the ...

pulled off one of the shocks of the season by taking unfancied Norwich City to fourth place in the First Division. * Steve Coppell's five years of outstanding effort at Crystal Palace paid off as he got them promoted to the First Division as playoff winners. *

Graham Turner Graham John Turner (born 5 October 1947) is an English former footballer who became a manager. His son Mark was also a professional footballer. He is third behind only Alex Ferguson and Arsène Wenger in terms of most games managed. After a ...

's rejuvenated Wolves side reached the Second Division with a second successive championship and promotion triumph. *

celebrated his first full season as Sheffield United manager by winning promotion to the Second Division. *

John Rudge John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

took Port Vale to their highest point in decades by guiding them to success in the Third Division promotion playoffs. *

Dario Gradi Dario Gradi, MBE (born 8 July 1941) is an Italian-English former amateur football player, coach and manager. He was associated for more than 36 years with Crewe Alexandra, where he was variously manager, director of football and director of t ...

took Crewe Alexandra to third place in the Fourth Division and earned them promotion after years in the league's lowest division. * Frank Clark inspired a late run of excellent form for his Leyton Orient side who won promotion to the Third Division as Fourth Division playoff winners.

Famous debutants

24 September 1988:

, 19-year-old midfielder, makes his debut for Manchester United in their First Division 2–0 home win over

. 15 October 1988: Ian Olney, 18-year-old winger, makes his debut for Aston Villa in their 2–2 draw with

at Selhurst Park. 22 October 1988:

Mark Robins Mark Gordon Robins (born 22 December 1969) is an English football manager and former player, who is the current manager of Coventry City in the EFL Championship. As a player, he was a striker and is best known for his time in the Premier Leagu ...

, 18-year-old striker, makes his debut for Manchester United as a substitute in their First Division 1–1 draw with Wimbledon at

. 26 October 1988:

Mark Crossley Mark Geoffrey Crossley (born 16 June 1969) is a football coach and former professional footballer. As a player, he was a goalkeeper from 1988 until 2011 and he has previously played for numerous clubs in England's top flight, notably for Notti ...

, 19-year-old goalkeeper, makes his debut for

in 2–1 home win over

in First Division at the

. 6 November 1988: Gary Charles, 18-year-old defender, makes his debut for

in their 4–1 home defeat by Arsenal in the First Division at the City Ground. 4 February 1989:

John Ebbrell John Keith Ebbrell (born 1 October 1969) is an English football coach and former professional footballer who is Assistant Manager at Oldham Athletic F.C. As a player he was a midfielder who played 207 times in the league for Everton between ...

, 19-year-old midfielder, makes his debut for Everton in their First Division 1–1 draw with Wimbledon at Plough Lane. 1 April 1989: David May, 18-year-old defender, makes his debut for

in a 1–1 Second Division draw with fellow promotion rivals

at the County Ground. 6 May 1989:

Gary Speed Gary Andrew Speed (8 September 1969 – 27 November 2011) was a Welsh professional footballer and manager. As manager of Wales, Speed is often credited as being the catalyst for the change in fortunes of the national team and as setting t ...

, 19-year-old Welsh midfielder, makes his debut for

in 0–0 Second Division draw with

at Elland Road. 13 May 1989: Steve Howey, 17-year-old defender, makes his debut as a substitute for relegated Newcastle United on the final day of the First Division season, when they lose 2–0 to Manchester United at Old Trafford.

Graeme Le Saux Graeme Pierre Le Saux ( ; born 17 October 1968) is an English former professional footballer and television pundit. As a versatile left sided player he played most of his career at left back with two spells at Chelsea, Blackburn Rovers, Southamp ...

, 20-year-old

Jersey Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label= Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west France. It is the l ...

born defender, makes his debut for Second Division champions

in 3–2 win against

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

at Fratton Park.

Retirements

* May 1989: Andy Gray, 33-year-old Rangers and

striker who spent most his career in England. Retired from professional football but returned to England to play non-league football with

Cheltenham Town Cheltenham Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England. From the 2021–22 season, the club compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league sy ...

. * June 1989: Arnold Muhren, 38-year-old

winger who played in England for

and Manchester United before returning to the Netherlands in 1985 to complete his playing career. * June 1989:

Remi Moses Remi Mark Moses (born 14 November 1960) is an English former footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. He broke into the first team at West Bromwich Albion under the management of Ron Atkinson in the late 1970s, when Albion were enjoying ...

, 28-year-old Manchester United midfielder who had been out of action for more than a year due to ongoing injury problems.

Deaths

* 24 July 1988 – John Harris, 71, born in Glasgow, was Chelsea's centre-half in their league championship winning side of 1955. Later managed Sheffield United and took them into the First Division in 1971. * 1 August 1988 – Steve Mills, 34, who died after a two-year battle against

leukaemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ...

, starting his playing career with

and later playing for

. His career was ended by injury at the age of 23. * 3 August 1988 –

Vic Watson Victor Martin Watson (10 November 1897 – 3 August 1988) was an English professional footballer who played most of his club football for West Ham United. Playing career Watson, a centre forward, played 505 times for West Ham between 1920 and ...

, 90, was West Ham United's all-time leading goalscorer with 326 goals between 1920 and 1935. * 21 August 1988 – Stuart Leary, 55, played a total of nearly 500 competitive games for

and

and was also a first-cricketer for

between 1951 and 1971. * 16 September 1988 –

Dick Pym Richard Henry Pym (2 February 1893 – 16 September 1988) was an English footballer best known for being the Bolton Wanderers goalkeeper at the first ever FA Cup final to be played at Wembley Stadium in 1923. The game, known as the '' White H ...

, 95, kept goal more than 300 times for Bolton Wanderers between 1921 and 1931 as well as three times for the England team. He collected three

winner's medals with Bolton and was the last surviving member of the team which won the first FA Cup final at

in 1923. * 7 October 1988 – George Ansell, 78, was a forward for Brighton,

and Southampton during the interwar years. * 9 October 1988 –

, 64, legendary goalscorer for Newcastle United and England during the 1950s. Was a cousin of England World Cup winners Bobby and Jack Charlton. Died of cancer. * 11 January 1989 – Len Dunderdale, 73, was a centre forward for clubs including

and

during the 1930s and 1940s. * 13 January 1989 – Stan Cribb, 83, played 125 league games during the interwar years for Southampton,

QPR Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional association football, football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England, which compete in the . After a nomadic early existence, they have played home ...

and Cardiff City. * 1 April 1989 –

George Robledo Jorge "George" Robledo Oliver (14 April 1926 – 1 April 1989) was a Chilean professional footballer. He played as a striker, and is most notable for his time spent with Newcastle United. He was the first non-British-registered foreign player ...

, 62, Chilean born striker, formerly of Newcastle United, died of a heart attack. He played for Chile at the 1950 World Cup and won the FA Cup with Newcastle in both of the two seasons that followed the World Cup. In the second final, he was playing in the same team as his brother

Ted Robledo Eduardo "Ted" Robledo Oliver (26 July 1928 – 6 December 1970) was a Chilean professional football player. He played as a left-sided defender, and is most notable for his time spent with Newcastle United. He was also part of Chile's squad ...

. * 2 April 1989 –

Les Bruton Leslie Hector Ronald Bruton (1 April 1903 – 2 April 1989) was an English footballer who played at centre-forward in the 1920s and 1930s for various clubs, having his most successful period with Blackburn Rovers. Football career Bruton was bor ...

, 86, played for clubs including Southampton,

and

during the interwar years. * 15 April 1989 – The 94 Liverpool supporters who died in Hillsborough disaster, on the day of the tragedy at the FA Cup semi-final either at the stadium, on their journey to hospital, or shortly after arrival. These included the tragedy's youngest victim, 10-year-old Jon-Paul Gilhooley, and the oldest victim, 67-year-old Gerard Baron, whose late brother

Kevin Kevin () is the anglicized form of the Irish masculine given name (; mga, Caoimhghín ; sga, Cóemgein ; Latinized as ). It is composed of "dear; noble"; Old Irish and ("birth"; Old Irish ). The variant '' Kevan'' is anglicized from , a ...

had played for Liverpool in the

1950 FA Cup Final The 1950 FA Cup Final was the 69th final of the FA Cup. It took place on 29 April 1950 at Wembley Stadium and was contested between Arsenal and Liverpool. Arsenal won the match 2–0 to win the FA Cup for the third time, with both goals scored b ...

. * 18 April 1989 – Lee Nicol, 14, the 95th victim of the Hillsborough disaster, died in hospital from his injuries having never regained consciousness. * 26 May 1989 –

, 61, manager of the great Leeds United side of the late 1960s and early 1970s who were league champions twice, FA Cup winners once, League Cup winners once and European Fairs Cup winners twice and Charity Shield Winners once. Managed England from 1974 to 1977 but walked out on them to gain a lucrative four-year deal as national coach of the United Arab Emirates. Returned to his homeland in 1985, four years before his death from motor neurone disease. * 7 June 1989 – George Roughton, 80, played at centre-half for Huddersfield Town and Manchester United in the decade preceding the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, and was Exeter City's first postwar manager, later taking charge of

Transfers

Tottenham midfielder Chris Waddle was sold to

Olympique Marseille Olympique de Marseille (, ; oc, Olimpic de Marselha, ), also known simply as Marseille or by the abbreviation OM (, ), is a French professional men's football club based in Marseille, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. Founded in 1899, the club pl ...

of France in a £4.25 million deal,Chris Waddle: Career statistics
''soccerbase''. Retrieved 17 June 2013 in the latest of big money deals which saw players desert English clubs for foreign clubs who were prepared to pay higher wages.

Gary Lineker Gary Winston Lineker (; born 30 November 1960) is an English former professional footballer and current sports broadcaster. He is regarded as having been one of the greatest English strikers. His media career began with the BBC, where he has ...

ended his three-year spell at

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football. Found ...

to join Tottenham. He had played under Tottenham manager

Terry Venables Terence Frederick Venables (born 6 January 1943), often referred to as El Tel, is an English former football player and manager, and an author. During the 1960s and '70s, he played for various clubs including Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Queen ...

during his first season at Barcelona. Lineker's strike partner

also left Barcelona and returned to his old club Manchester United in a £1.8 million deal. Hughes had been a disappointment in his first season at Barcelona but had recaptured his form during a successful season-long loan deal at Bayern Munich.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1988-89 in English football