When was manchester united relegated

United came back, but both Andrew Hannah and McLean were playing well, and saw out the two-goal win. The Mercury focused on the tactical intricacies. Further information on his brush with death is frustratingly sparse. If that was the start of an inter-city rivalry, then this could be considered the start of the rivalry between the two football clubs; that the two aspects are so intertwined is no coincidence.

First blood went to Liverpool, but there have been plenty of opportunities for both to draw some more ever since. The title-winning team seemed to be the finished article, but they finished a disappointing fourth the following season, and exited both the FA and European Cups in the semi-finals. The season's highlight had been the away thrashing of Benfica in the European Cup quarter-finals, when Best had been in blistering form and earned the tag the 'El Beatle'.

This time, United would go all the way, beating Benfica in the final at Wembley. Jaime Graca equalised Charlton's headed goal to take the game into extra-time, but further goals from Best, Brian Kidd — on his 19th birthday — and Charlton gave United their first European Cup.

Just 10 years after Sir Matt had seen his dream team destroyed, he had delivered the ultimate prize. He was knighted soon afterwards. The following season saw the European champions finish 11th in the league and fail to win a trophy. The Reds also lost the World Club Championship on aggregate to Estudiantes in a match marred by on-field violence.

Despite the anti-climatic end to the decade, United had achieved incredible things in the s and few could begrudge Sir Matt's retirement in , after all he'd achieved. With memories of the European Cup triumph beginning to fade, Manchester United's attentions turned to their managerial vacancy.

Sir Matt Busby had led the club to the promised land but had now retired, leaving big boots to fill. Their decision was to appoint from within, by promoting one of Busby's coaches and former players, Wilf McGuinness , to the senior position.

A combination of ageing stars and the lack of overall control in team affairs meant that McGuinness struggled to impose his authority. Putting popular figures like Denis Law and Shay Brennan on the transfer list didn't help matters, neither did George Best 's distracting off-field behaviour.

Wilf wasn't allowed to struggle for too long. On Boxing Day , he was relieved of his duties and Sir Matt was put back in temporary charge. Frank O'Farrell was the next man to take over in June but, despite a promising start, United's defeat by Crystal Palace on 16 December was the Irishman's last match in charge.

The former Aberdeen captain was to become a key player for O'Farrell's successor, Tommy Docherty , who was appointed around Christmas in The Doc's first challenge was to keep the team in the top flight, while gradually replacing the legends of the s. Law, in fact, was given a free transfer in July , a move which later came back to haunt Docherty.

To Docherty's credit, the Reds bounced back very quickly. Lou Macari scored the goal that clinched promotion, at Southampton on 5 April United then reached successive FA Cup finals, losing to Southampton in , but beating Liverpool a year later.

The Doc's men rose perfectly to the task of destroying Liverpool's Treble hopes — the Merseyside club won the League Championship and the European Cup on either side of United's triumph. The joy of that win didn't last very long for the Doc, however. Just 44 days later, he was sacked following off-field revelations. Unfortunately the Reds lost there, to Arsenal in one of the most memorable finishes to an FA Cup final.

Gordon McQueen and Sammy McIlroy scored in the last five minutes to bring United back from down, only for Alan Sunderland to grab Arsenal's winner on the brink of extra-time. Those frenetic last few moments at Wembley summed up the s for United, a decade of high drama when great highs and lows were never far apart.

This time, however, only an eighth-placed finish in the table was secured — a position which the club's board could not tolerate. Sexton was sacked on 30 April , after four seasons in the hot-seat. But it was his on-field acquisitions that really excited the fans. In midfield, the new arrivals wonderfully complemented the finesse of Ray Wilkins , the ball-playing England star. But still there was something missing.

United needed a forward who could match the strike-rate of Ian Rush at Liverpool, with the Merseysiders winning the title again in , and That elusive league title remained agonisingly out of reach, however. The domestic cups offered United their best chances of silverware, and in , Wembley was reached in both competitions. Liverpool triumphed after extra-time to win the League Cup, while little-fancied Brighton and Hove Albion were beaten in two attempts in the FA Cup final.

A draw was followed up by a thumping replay win for United through goals from Robson 2 , Arnold Muhren and Norman Whiteside. United had earlier been reduced to 10 men by the dismissal of Kevin Moran , who formed a great defensive partnership with Paul McGrath.

In November , United at last appointed a proven winner. At Aberdeen, Alex Ferguson had claimed every prize that Scotland had to offer, not to mention the added bonus of the European Cup Winners' Cup when his team defied the odds to beat Real Madrid in the final. Ferguson clearly had the talent for the job, but he also needed time to turn United round.

The dawn of the s saw Alex Ferguson collect his first silverware as Manchester United manager, and Liverpool winning their last League title with an ageing team. The tide was turning…. Ferguson's first FA Cup, achieved after a replay against Crystal Palace, at the time seemed to be a stand-alone success, one that possibly saved his job after another poor season in the League.

But nine years later, it seemed that Lee Martin 's winning goal against Palace lit the fuse for an explosion of unprecedented success. First and foremost, winning the FA Cup in allowed United to make a return to European competition after an absence of five years following the Heysel disaster.

Far from being rusty, the Reds went all the way to the final of the European Cup Winners' Cup in Rotterdam where the opponents were Barcelona, the former club of United striker Mark Hughes. Two goals by Hughes sealed the match in United's favour in May , 23 years after the club's previous triumph in Europe. The other long wait, for that elusive League championship, very nearly ended in The Reds had already won the manager's third trophy in March, the League Cup, and were in a two-horse race with Leeds.

Liverpool were out of the running, but still had a say in the destiny of the title, beating United at Anfield to end their arch rival's challenge. Leeds, after all, were not the greatest of football powers in the s and their star quality was further reduced when they allowed one of their best players to cross the Pennines in December In selling Eric Cantona to Old Trafford, the Yorkshire club practically handed over the keys to the League championship. The Frenchman brought the little extra bit of magic and confidence that had been missing from United's previous campaigns and was an instant hit with the Mancunian faithful, scoring nine goals to help the Reds win their first title in 26 years.

The number one, meanwhile, was undoubtedly Peter Schmeichel , arguably the best goalkeeper ever seen in the English game. The former champions were hampered at Wembley by an injury to Steve Bruce , the brave captain who was a defensive rock in the early s, and his replacement at half-time, Ryan Giggs , was also not fully fit. The French skipper had throughout the season been an inspiration to the talented young players in the team, including David Beckham and Gary Neville.

In May , Cantona helped the club to its fourth League title of the decade. The Hammers have been in the top flight since but the prospect of relegation is a constant source of worry for most fans.

In May , Leeds were back in the big time as they were one win away from reaching the Champions League final. Three years later, they were relegated from the Premier League. It was a huge shock for those involved with a club that was at the top of English football for so long under Don Revie.

It took them an arduous 16 years to get back into the big time. After spending just one season in the Second Division, Manchester United were promoted back to the top flight in as champions. Manchester United have been relegated on four other occasions prior to the s: , , and They have never played lower than the second tier of English football, although they needed a win over Millwall on the final day of the season in to avoid relegation.

Man Utd duly beat the London club and leapfrogged the London club in the table to relegate them instead.