Thirty years to the day, Kevin Keegan’s Newcastle held a six-point lead at the head of the Premier League table, with Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United trailing in second, having played a game more (27).
Nicknamed ‘The Entertainers’ by an adoring media, the Geordies earned nine wins from their opening 10 league fixtures, spearheaded by the summer arrivals of David Ginola and Les Ferdinand.
Keegan’s men had built what many believed to be an unassailable 12-point advantage at the end of January, showcasing a brand of attacking football befitting a side with title aspirations.
In contrast, United started with a 3-1 defeat away to Aston Villa and without the services of a suspended Eric Cantona, famously followed by Alan Hansen’s claim that “you can’t win anything with kids”.
The Reds were licking their wounds, having surrendered their domestic crown to Blackburn Rovers, and a summer without any notable arrivals spread further doubt about their pedigree.
Still, despite this now-legendary claim from Liverpool’s former captain, United would go on to claim a domestic double during the 1995/96 campaign, with a barrage of iconic talking points forever tattooed into Premier League folklore.
From a 12-point collapse to an outrageous interview, the 1995/96 title race had it all.
Having watched an Alan Shearer-inspired Blackburn end an 81-year wait for England’s top honours the previous season, the Old Trafford faithful were eager for a meaningful response.
Instead, they said goodbye to a trio of experienced stars in Mark Hughes, Andrei Kanchelskis, and Paul Ince, with a crop of youngsters entering the fray in Nicky Butt, David Beckham, Paul Scholes and the Neville brothers, Gary and Phil.
Furthermore, fan-favourite Cantona was to miss the opening seven outings while serving the remainder of his suspension following the events of an altercation with Matthew Simmons at Selhurst Park in January.
Needless to say, there was more than a hint of apprehension within certain subsections of support.
Newcastle had finished 16 points behind United months previously, before John Hall invested £16 million into first-team recruits, with ambitious plans to capitalise on a potentially wounded powerhouse.
With Keegan at the helm, the two-time Ballon d’Or winner promised to unleash an attacking onslaught on the division in an attempt to claim a first title since 1927.
His side raced out of the blocks with a 3-0 win at home to Coventry City, while Fergie’s new-look squad began by enduring a disappointing defeat at Villa Park.
“The trick is always buy when you’re strong, so he needs to buy players,” Hansen stated on Match of the Day afterwards. “You can’t win anything with kids.”
With widespread doubts surfacing regarding United’s title credentials, the same could be said about a disjointed Rovers, led by Ray Harford after Kenny Dalglish stepped aside to become the club’s Director of Football.
The reigning champions lost four of their opening six outings, including a 2-1 home defeat against an attractive-looking United side, courtesy of Lee Sharpe and Beckham.
On October 1st, Old Trafford erupted with Cantona’s return for the arrival of Liverpool, as the charismatic Frenchman completed an eight-month suspension following the events at Crystal Palace.
Typically, he scored United’s second from the spot in a 2-2 draw with their fiercest rivals, signalling his long-awaited standing at the centre of the Theatre of Dreams.
But with 10 games played, Newcastle had built a four-point lead on Fergie’s side, solidifying their status as contenders with nine victories, including a 6-1 mauling of Wimbledon on October 21st.
Furthermore, the Reds, struggling to adapt with a somewhat out-of-sorts Eric in the side, endured a five-game winless run between November and December, including gruelling defeats to Liverpool and Leeds.
By Christmas Day, Newcastle were 10 points clear of United and considered, by many, to be an already deserving winner of the fourth installation of the recently formed Premier League. The lead increased to 12 in the following weeks.
Disregard the Reds at your peril, though.
Against the formbooks, United collected a welcome win against Keegan on December 27th, with Andy Cole and Roy Keane sending the majority of a 42,024 crowd into delirium.
They followed that with a promising victory against Queens Park Rangers, before dropping five points against Spurs and Villa in back-to-back fixtures. Newcastle saw off Arsenal and Coventry to add salt to the wound.
But you know what they say about iconic footballers and their ability to take matters into their hands. Well, King Eric is the living, breathing definition of just that, and he wasn’t willing to stand by quietly.
United’s number seven netted twice and played a starring role in a run of five consecutive victories, including scoring the only goal in a tricky 1-0 win in East London against West Ham.
Newcastle were unable to repeat the trick, enduring a 2-0 loss against the Hammers before dropping two points in a 3-3 draw with relegation-bound Manchester City.
That set the tone for a mouthwatering clash at St James’ Park on March 4th, with a rampant-looking Manchester outfit closing the gap on a disgruntled Geordie army.
Truth be told, United were battered throughout the opening half and had Peter Schmeichel to thank for a scoreless setting heading into the changing rooms at the break.
Inevitably, Keegan’s men huffed and puffed to no avail, with Cantona again supplying the telling blow after 52 minutes, earning an invaluable 1-0 win and adding further doubt to an already fragile-looking Newcastle.
The Frenchman netted his side’s only goal with a 90th-minute 1-1 draw away to QPR next, before scoring in back-to-back victories against Arsenal and Spurs to earn six points in consecutive 1-0 wins.
It was March, and the majesty of Cantona and Fergie had now overtaken Keegan in the title race with six games remaining.
Newcastle briefly returned to winning ways against West Ham before suffering a 2-0 loss at Highbury in another damaging display.
As previously discussed, transfer dealings played a significant role in the fortunes of many teams throughout the season, and plenty had questioned the club’s decision to land Faustino Asprilla in February.
But one of the more keenly discussed topics around the league was the battle between Liverpool’s purchase of Stan Collymore and Arsenal’s capture of Dennis Bergkamp during the summer.
Although history stands firmly on the Dutchman’s side, Collymore supplied another telling blow to Keegan in a game that was awarded the Match of the Decade in 2003 on behalf of the Premier League for its tenth anniversary.
The former Anfield striker netted the game’s sixth to level proceedings at 3-3 before hitting a memorable winner in the 92nd minute, leaving the Newcastle chief slumped over the advertisement board in the aftermath.
United were already unbeaten in 10 (8 wins, 2 draws) and occupying top spot before adding a further six points against City and Coventry.
Nonetheless, the upcoming events between April 13th and 17th offered two further memorable moments during an already breathtaking campaign.
Ferguson’s side continued to mesmerise and looked unbeatable in the process until a trip to Southampton ended in a 3-1 defeat.
Hilariously, the great Scot instructed his side to remove their grey kit at the interval, citing difficulty for his players to see each other in the bright sun against the ‘invisible’ complexion of the strip.
United were unable to recover from a 3-goal deficit and were fined £10,000 for the bizarre switch. Unsurprisingly, the infamous grey kit was never seen again.
Four days later, his side returned to winning ways with a 1-0 triumph against Leeds in Manchester.
The visitors were forced to play defender Lucas Radebe as a goalkeeper for 73 minutes after Mark Beeney’s dismissal. Radebe was praised for his outstanding display between the sticks.
Ferguson later questioned why 10-man Leeds produced such an impressive showing against his side.
He suggested they would perform differently against Newcastle, while also implying that Nottingham Forest might go easy on their title rivals.
Keegan, infuriated by the comments and bearing the pressure of an intense title run-in, was unable to hold his tongue, unleashing an iconic rant during a Sky Sports interview.
“When you do that with footballers, like he said about Leeds, and when you do things like that about a man like Stuart Pearce – I’ve kept really quiet, but I’ll tell you something, he went down in my estimation when he said that.
“We have not resorted to that. But I’ll tell you – you can tell him now, he’ll be watching it – we’re still fighting for this title, and he’s got to go to Middlesbrough and get something.
“And I’ll tell you, honestly, I will love it if we beat them. Love it!”
Inevitably, United demolished Forest 5-0 in Manchester before earning a 3-0 victory in Middlesbrough, winning the title by four points ahead of a Newcastle side that drew their final two fixtures.
The Reds would go on to add the FA Cup to their trophy cabinet with another Cantona-inspired victory, seeing off Liverpool by a goal to nil at Wembley.
It was a season that will be forever remembered for its majesty and anarchy, from a Geordie collapse to the never-ending bravado from the King.
Sir Alex showcased why he is the greatest manager to ever partake in the game, while embracing the club’s proud traditions of entrusting the academy.
Not to forget that City were relegated on the final day of the season following a 2-2 draw at home to Liverpool.
The rest, as they say, is history. Who knows, maybe we may see a similar storyline in the not-so-distant future.
Let us know your fondest memories of the 1995/96 campaign in the comments or across our social channels.
Photo by operations@newsimages.co.uk via depositphotos.com.
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