win over defending champions Everton. He put a further double over Sheffield Wednesday in the March return game at Old Trafford, and scored a hat-trick against Derby County in early April. He managed further braces in the final two games of the season (against Portsmouth and Wimbledon). Only Liverpool's John Aldridge managed more First Division goals that season. McClair managed a total of 31 goals in all competitions, but a late penalty miss in the fifth round of the FA Cup at Arsenal meant that Manchester United lost the tie 2–1 and he was denied the chance of silverware as well as building on his already highly impressive goal tally. 1988–89 was a trying season for United after the excellent progress of 1987–88. After a season playing alongside Peter Davenport, McClair now found himself paired with returning hero Mark Hughes (back at Manchester United after two years abroad) and much was expected of the newly formed partnership. By the end of November, McClair had scored just twice in the league and Hughes had found the net eight times, with Manchester United finding themselves in mid-table after a run of eight draws and one defeat. Results improved over the next couple of months as United crept to the fringes of the title challenge, but fell away in the final quarter of the season as Manchester United finished 11th. McClair and Hughes both managed 16 goals in all competitions, with Hughes being leading scorer in the league with 14 goals to McClair's 10. Having scored in both the quarter final and the replay of the semi final, he was on the winning side as Manchester United won 1–0 over Crystal Palace in the 1990 FA Cup Final replay at Wembley Stadium on 17 May 1990, five days after drawing 3–3 in the first match. In the league, however, it had been a disappointing time for McClair as he scored just five goals and Manchester United finished 13th – their lowest finish since they were relegated from the top flight 16 years earlier. He was now facing competition from highly promising young striker Mark Robins, who had scored 10 goals in 23 first team games that season. He did however score the winning goal for Manchester United in the 1991 UEFA Super Cup against Red Star Belgrade, which followed his part in their European Cup Winners' Cup triumph over Barcelona. McClair had now