league games. He permanently signed Scottish striker Duncan Ferguson, who was at Everton on loan. Ferguson would go on to play a big part in Everton's success after Royle's arrival, and would remain loyal to the team after retiring as a player in 2005 (taking a position as a trainer at Everton and even having an interim spell as manager in the 2019–20 season when he took over as temporary manager for two games before the arrival of Carlo Ancelotti). Everton's league form improved under Royle, and they achieved Premier League survival at the beginning of May, finally achieving a 15th-place finish. After defeating Tottenham Hotspur 4–1 in the FA Cup semi-final, they went on to beat Manchester United 1–0 in the final, which remains their most recent major trophy to date. That summer, Royle signed Manchester United's top scorer Andrei Kanchelskis for a club record £5 million, and Everton progressed further in 1995–96 as they finished sixth in the league, although they only reached the second round of the European Cup Winners' Cup, their first European campaign for 11 years. He then signed winger Gary Speed from Leeds United for £3.5 million in the summer of 1996, and paid a club record £5.75 million for Middlesbrough forward Nick Barmby later in 1996, but Everton's form in 1996–97 was less convincing and on transfer deadline day in 1997 he was not permitted to sign Norwegians Tore André Flo and Claus Eftevaag by chairman Peter Johnson, which led to his resignation. Everton were just four points above the relegation zone when Royle resigned, their form having dipped since the sale of Andrei Kanchelskis to Fiorentina two months earlier. Royle was named an Everton Giant in 2004 for his successes as both a player and a manager for the team. Manchester City After 11 months out of the game, he accepted the challenge to manage Manchester City in February 1998. When Royle arrived the club was battling against relegation from Division One. They won their final game of the season 5–2 away to Stoke City, but both teams were relegated due to the other three relegation-threatened teams all winning. Royle's services were retained and he delivered an instant promotion the following season, as City beat Gillingham on penalties in the Division Two play-off final after drawing 2–2 in open play. A year later, he delivered City a second successive promotion as they