In his eleven years at Old Trafford, Scottish stalwart striker McClair appeared 471 times, scoring on 127 occasions, and his best season was undoubtedly his first, in 1987-88. After scoring over forty goals at Celtic in the previous season, Ferguson brought McClair down from Scotland for a fee of £850,000. The Scottish forward would make his debut at The Dell in August 1987 in a 2-2 draw at Southampton on the opening day of the season. McClair didnt wait long until he found his first goal for United, netting at home to Watford in a 2-0 win. Following this goal he scored nine in as many matches in all competitions. The striker was fundamental in helping United to the fifth round of the League Cup as he netted five goals in four successive ties before elimination to Oxford United in January. The Scottish forward was prolific and scored twice on six different occasions, including Sheffield Wednesday both home and away in the league whilst clinching a hat-trick against Derby in April 1988. The South Yorkshire club were by far McClairs favourite opponents, netting twelve goals in nineteen games for United against them. United were fighting the ever-dominant Liverpool for the 1988 First Division title but ultimately lost out, as did McClair to John Aldridge in the scoring ranks. The Scot would score 31 goals in 48 games in all competitions.
I am an aspiring journalist with a degree in Media Studies and a passion for all things sport -- especially football and Manchester United. I am a former season ticket holder at Old Trafford and have been a Red Devil since 1998.
