It was neck and neck with Arsenal all the way to the last day in the League, until Andy Cole's goal beat Tottenham to ensure that United claimed their fifth title of the nineties. An epic FA Cup semi-final tie against Arsenal saw a replay at Villa Park which had everything. Roy Keane was sent off, Peter Schmeichel saved a last-minute Dennis Bergkamp penalty, and Ryan Giggs scored one of the best goals ever seen to win the tie for United. Newcastle United in the final seemed no more than a mere formality. An amazing European Cup campaign saw United past Barcelona, Inter Milan and Juventus in spectacular scenes on their way to a memorable match against Bayern Munich at the Nou Camp. The Germans took an early lead, only for Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to score the equaliser and winner in injury time at the end of the match, to spark off celebration scenes unlikely to be matched ever again. Along the way in 1998/99, we lost two dear friends. Peter Schmeichel announced that he would retire from English football at the end of the season, and it was fitting that his last action as a Manchester United player was to lift the European Cup. Brian Kidd also left Old Trafford, to take up the manager's position at Blackburn Rovers. Ironically, after a long battle against relegation, it was the goalless draw against United that finally sent Rovers down.

What a year!

League Position: 1