4–4–2 formation with Rush and Beardsley as first-choice strikers; however, the club accepted an offer of £1 million from La Liga side Real Sociedad in early September 1989, with Aldridge having played twice in the league for Liverpool that season. This transfer made Aldridge the first non-Basque player to sign for Sociedad in several decades as they abandoned a selective recruitment policy. Before he left Liverpool, he was given a special run-out as a substitute during the club's record-shattering 9–0 win over Crystal Palace in order to score a penalty in front of the Kop. He threw his shirt and boots into the crowd at the end and signed for Real Sociedad the next day on 13 September 1989. Aldridge scored 40 goals in 75 appearances for Sociedad over two seasons, with the club encouraged to make more signings from English football in 1990, namely Dalian Atkinson and Kevin Richardson. Despite his success, some Sociedad fans initially did not accept him because he was a foreigner. Insulting graffiti was written on the stadium, a fan spat on the ground when Aldridge passed in the street, and his family found it hard to adapt to the different lifestyle in the Basque country. Aldridge handed in a transfer request in 1991 to the newly appointed manager John Toshack – another former Liverpool striker. Tranmere Rovers Aldridge returned to Merseyside on 11 July 1991 with Tranmere Rovers, in a £250,000 deal. While there he scored a club-record 40 goals in his first season at Prenton Park – scoring his 40th goal against former club Oxford United. Tranmere, who were playing in the Second Division for the first time in more than fifty years, achieved a mid-table finish in the league. He made his debut for Rovers, aged 32, on 17 August 1991, scoring both the goals in a 2–0 victory over Brighton & Hove Albion at the Goldstone Ground. In seven years as a Tranmere player, he amassed a total of 294 appearances, scoring 174 goals, an average of one goal every 1.7 games, including 22 goals from 25 League Cup ties. Aldridge retired at the end of the 1997–98 season, scoring a brace in his final game as a professional against Wolverhampton Wanderers. Aldridge's goals helped Tranmere reach their highest position ever in the league – top-six finishes in the second tier in 1993, 1994 and 1995 – which delivered playoff places