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Christmas in August

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Failing to win promotion to the Premier League last season was a difficult pill to swallow in many ways. They bowed out at in the SkyBet Championship Play-Off semi-finals against eventual winners, Nottingham Forest, after bowing out on penalties in a dramatic shoot-out at the City Ground.

Had Sheffield United succeeded in winning promotion then they would have bounced back at the first time of asking (since being relegated the previous season), since 1989 when Dave Bassett successfully guided the Blades through automatic promotion from Division Three after being relegated from Division Two, twelve months previously. It was also Bassett who would follow up with back-to-back promotions into Division One, then the top division in England, in 1990.

Football wasn’t invented in 1992, but it was rebranded and commercialised into the Premier League we know today. After months of delegation, it was decided to rebrand the top division, and eventually move from 24 teams to the 20 teams we see today.

The inaugural first day of the Premier League era, 30 years ago today on 15th August 1992, saw nine fixtures (out of eleven that weekend) taken place. The Blades were lined up to face Manchester United at Bramall Lane. Perhaps, in the act of superstition, Blades boss, Dave Bassett, prepared for the new season by celebrating Christmas in August. Under his watch, United usually had a bad start to the campaign and would take the Christmas celebrations and New Year until his side began to grind home positive results. The programme famously pictured Bassett fully dressed in a Santa outfit on the Bramall Lane pitch in front of a Christmas tree and supported by Brian Deane and Brian Gayle.

It may have seemed a ‘mad cat’ idea at the time, but it did prove fruitful. United won their opening day fixture against Alex Ferguson’s Red Devils by two goals to one. Deane netted the Premier League’s first-ever goal after he headed home from a long Tom Cowen throwing five minutes into the match. The Blades doubled their lead on 50 minutes after Deane netted from the spot after Alan Cork was bundled over by Gary Pallister in the box. The visitors reduced the arrears eleven minutes later, but the damage had already been done and the hosts held firm to secure the victory.

Opening Day Results

Arsenal 2-4 Norwich City
Chelsea 1-1 Oldham Athletic
Coventry City 2-1 Middlesbrough
Crystal Palace 3-3 Blackburn Rovers
Everton 1-1 Sheffield Wednesday
Ipswich Town 1-1 Aston Villa
Leeds United 2-1 Wimbledon
Sheffield United 2-1 Manchester United
Southampton 0-0 Tottenham Hotspur

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