saw them finish third and earn a place in the next season's UEFA Cup. Despite success on the field, Collymore became an unpopular figure among his teammates, to the point that they refused to celebrate with him when he scored a goal. Midway through the season, his impressive goalscoring record had attracted attention from Manchester United, who were looking to replace ageing striker Mark Hughes with a younger talent. Collymore spent almost the entirety of late 1994 linked with a move to Old Trafford, with himself and Newcastle United's Andy Cole named as Sir Alex Ferguson‘s most wanted targets. Eventually, Cole was signed by United for an English transfer record deal worth £7 million, while Collymore stayed at Forest for the remainder of the season; by the end of the campaign, however, he had received offers from Liverpool, Everton and Newcastle, with all three battling to earn his signature in the summer of 1995. Liverpool (1995–1997) 1995–96 Roy Evans would sign the deal to bring Collymore to Liverpool on 3 July 1995 for £8.5 million, shattering the English transfer record set earlier in the year by Andy Cole's move to Manchester United. Collymore was initially placed in a forward partnership with veteran Ian Rush, though Rush was soon replaced with the younger Robbie Fowler early in the season. The up front pairing of Collymore and Fowler proved to be successful, as they scored a combined 55 goals in 1995/96 and established Evans' Liverpool side as serious contenders for that year's Premiership trophy. On 3 April 1996, with the title still very much up for grabs, Liverpool met league leaders Newcastle in a thrilling 4-3 win at Anfield, with Collymore scoring the winner in the second minute of stoppage time to severely weaken Newcastle's grip on first place and eventually play a part in them falling to second as Manchester United would take the trophy on the final day. This was later voted as the best match of the decade by the Premier League in 2003. Along with a strong league finish, Collymore was part of the Liverpool side that reached the 1996 FA Cup Final, played against Manchester United on 11 May 1996. Though he started the game, Collymore failed to get on the scoresheet and was subbed off in the 74th minute for Ian Rush, in what went on to be Rush's final appearance for the club. Collymore watched