Alan Shearer Despite Branfoot's claim to be "in the driving seat", "Saints" failed to include a "sell-on clause" in the contract. Shearer, less than a month off his 22nd birthday, was the most expensive player in British football. In his four years in the Southampton first team, Shearer made a total of 158 appearances in all competitions, scoring 43 goals. Despite making just one goalless appearance as England failed to progress past the Euro 1992 group stages, Shearer was soon subject to an English transfer record-breaking £3.6million bid from Blackburn Rovers. Although there was also interest from Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson,
2000–01 Blackburn Rovers F.C. season club's top scorer with 23 Division One goals. Rovers also re-signed Henning Berg just after the start of the season, three years after they sold him to Manchester United. Berg was one of the club's last remaining links with the 1995 title winning side. "Blackburn Rovers' score comes first" 2000–01 Blackburn Rovers F.C. season During the 2000–01 English football season, Blackburn Rovers F.C. competed in the Football League First Division (known as the Nationwide Division One for sponsorship reasons). Blackburn returned to the top flight of English football, thanks to a second-place finish in Division One which came two seasons