Alan Shearer season. Speculation of a transfer to Liverpool, who finished the season as FA Cup winners, also came to nothing. During the middle of 1992, Southampton's manager, Ian Branfoot, became "the most popular manager in English football", as he took telephone calls from clubs "trying to bargain with players they don't want plus cash". Although Branfoot accepted that a sale was inevitable, he claimed that "whatever happens, we are in the driving seat". In July 1992, Shearer was sold to Blackburn Rovers for a fee of £3.6 million, with David Speedie reluctantly moving to The Dell as part of the deal.
Chris Sutton was being linked with some of the biggest clubs in the country, including Blackburn Rovers, Arsenal and Manchester United. Sutton became the most expensive player in English football in July 1994, when he was transferred from Norwich City to Blackburn Rovers for £5 million. In his first season at Ewood Park he developed a strong partnership (known as 'SAS') with Alan Shearer (who scored 34 times that season) and scored fifteen Premier League goals to help secure the club's first league title since 1914. A succession of injuries, combined with a loss of form, saw him make just 13 Premier