"every game but one over the season, and Alan Buckley was the club's top scorer with 8 goals, all scored in the league. Jim Smith, in his first full season as Birmingham's manager, brought Argentina's World Cup-winning full-back Alberto Tarantini to the club. Trevor Francis, who joined Birmingham as a 15-year-old, became the first British footballer to be transferred for a fee of at least £1 million when Brian Clough signed him for league champions Nottingham Forest in February 1979. The basic fee was below £1m – Clough claimed in his autobiography to have set the fee at £999,999 because"
"to Derby County for £24,000 in March 1949. The record was broken seven further times between 1949 and 1961, when Luis Suárez was sold by Barcelona to Inter Milan for £152,000, becoming the first ever player sold for more than £100,000. In 1968, Pietro Anastasi became the first £500,000 player when Juventus purchased him from Varese, which was followed seven years later with Giuseppe Savoldi becoming the first million pound player when he transferred from Bologna to Napoli. In English football, the first £1 million fee occurred in 1979, when Nottingham Forest signed striker Trevor Francis from Birmingham City. Later"
"in 1978 and the UEFA Cup in 1981. They also came second in the league in 1981 and 1982. During this period transfer fees began to rise rapidly as more money entered the game; Trevor Francis became Britain's first million-pound footballer in February 1979 when he signed for Nottingham Forest, whose full-back Viv Anderson had just become England's first black international player, a landmark which reflected the growing number of non-white players in the English game. In October 1981, Bryan Robson became England's first £1.5million footballer with his transfer from West Bromwich Albion to Manchester United. However, hooliganism continued to"
"within a few months of each other in mid-1992, this plan was abandoned. The issues creating the uncertainty in the game all centred on money. The increasing influence of money in English football was evident with such events as the first £1m transfer in the game, that of Trevor Francis from Birmingham City to Nottingham Forest in February 1979. The first £2million player transferred between English clubs was Tony Cottee, who moved from West Ham United to Everton in July 1988 – although several players had already been sold by English clubs to foreign clubs for even higher fees. Before"
"were played, West Bromwich Albion and Everton have moved above Liverpool at the top of the table, although the Reds have played fewer games. 3 February 1979: Liverpool beat West Bromwich Albion 2–1 at Anfield to reclaim top spot in the First Division table as Everton suffer just their second League defeat of the season, 1–0 at relegation-threatened Wolverhampton Wanderers. 7 February 1979: England move to the top of their European Championship qualifying group with an emphatic 4–0 win over Northern Ireland at Wembley. 9 February 1979: Trevor Francis becomes Britain's first £1million footballer when he is transferred from Birmingham"
"making him top scorer that season. He retained that title the next season. In December 1976, Mills asked for a move and so was transfer listed at a value of £200,000, but nobody came in for him. Two years later, his form had again caught the attention of other managers, and so in 1979, Ron Atkinson paid £516,000 to take him to West Bromwich Albion, breaking the English transfer record and making Mills Britain's first half million pound footballer. Mills scored on his first full appearance for West Brom, but despite the huge sum of money invested in him he"
"with Francis famously being introduced to the media by a manager impatient to play squashClough was in his red gym kit and carrying a racquet as he addressed the press conference. While recognised as the first British million-pound player, the actual transfer fee for the player was £1,150,000, including 15% commission to the Football League. Clough wrote in his autobiography that the fee was £999,999, as he wanted to ensure the million-pound milestone did not go to the player's head, although Francis says that was a tongue-in-cheek remark by Clough. Nottingham Forest retained the League Cup shortly afterwards (though Francis"
"national transfer record fee is broken for the second time in four days when Wolverhampton Wanderers pay almost £1,500,000 for Aston Villa and Scotland striker Andy Gray. 30 September 1979: September ends with newly promoted Crystal Palace, unbeaten after eight games, topping the First Division on goal difference from Manchester United and Nottingham Forest. After losing twice this month, Liverpool occupy ninth place. Derby County, champions in 1972 and 1975, are bottom of the table, joined in the relegation zone by Stoke City and Tottenham Hotspur. 3 October 1979: Liverpool are knocked out of the European Cup 4–2 on aggregate"
"Trevor Francis Trevor John Francis (born 19 April 1954) is a former footballer who played as a forward, with most games for Birmingham City (1971–1979). Throughout his playing career, he played for several clubs in England, and also had spells in the United States, Italy, and Scotland. He became England's first £1 million player following his transfer from Birmingham City to Nottingham Forest in 1979, and later won two consecutive European Cups with the club in 1979 and 1980. At international level, he played for England 52 times between 1976 and 1986, scoring 12 goals, and played at the 1982"
"in the same year, the English record fee was broken twice, with fees of close to £1.5 million being paid by Manchester City to Wolverhampton Wanderers for Steve Daley, and by Wolverhampton Wanderers to Aston Villa for Andy Gray. This was during a time when transfer fees were rapidly growing in English football, and the £1.5 million mark was finally reached in 1981 when Manchester United signed Bryan Robson from West Bromwich Albion. However, a change in transfer regulations around this time meant that all fees had to be paid in full within 12 months of the transfer being completed,"
"to £142 million with various clauses being met. Progression of the British football transfer fee record The progression of the British football transfer fee record tracks the increases in the record for the highest transfer fee paid or received by British association football clubs. A transfer fee is the sum of money paid by one club to purchase the contract, and therefore the playing services, of a professional footballer. Fees are not generally formally disclosed by the clubs involved, and discrepancies can occur in figures quoted in the press. Trevor Francis, for example, is regarded as Britain's first £1m player"
"with Norwich City, who have never even finished in the top five of the First Division, leading the League alongside 1978 champions Nottingham Forest, after both teams win their first three matches. Middlesbrough are one point behind the leaders. At the bottom, Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton & Hove Albion have yet to gain a point. 5 September 1979: Manchester City sign midfielder Steve Daley from Wolverhampton Wanderers for a national record fee of £1,437,500. In the League Cup second round, braces for Ian Bowyer and John Robertson contribute to Nottingham Forest firing six past Blackburn Rovers. 8 September 1979: The"
"1979–80 Aston Villa F.C. season 8 September 1979: The national transfer record fee is broken for the second time in four days when Wolverhampton Wanderers pay almost £1,500,000 for Aston Villa and Scotland striker Andy Gray. October 1979: John Gidman is sold to Everton for £650,000 (""2013: £"") in a deal which sees midfielder Pat Heard move the other way at a valuation of £100,000. Heard would make nine appearances in his first season at Villa Park. 8 March 1980: Second Division West Ham United beat Aston Villa 1–0 in the FA Cup sixth round. 28 April 1980: Arsenal and"
"The ""Today"" newspaper cancels its sponsorship of the Football League after just one year, and less than two weeks before the new season is due to begin. 6 August 1987 – Peter Beardsley becomes the most expensive player to move between British clubs when he joins Liverpool in a £1.9 million deal from Newcastle United. Britain's first million-pound player, Trevor Francis, returns to Britain when Graeme Souness signs him for Rangers in a £70,000 deal from Atalanta of Italy. 7 August 1987 – Portsmouth midfielder Mick Kennedy is fined £5,000 for claiming in a national newspaper that he was ""the"
"Progression of the British football transfer fee record The progression of the British football transfer fee record tracks the increases in the record for the highest transfer fee paid or received by British association football clubs. A transfer fee is the sum of money paid by one club to purchase the contract, and therefore the playing services, of a professional footballer. Fees are not generally formally disclosed by the clubs involved, and discrepancies can occur in figures quoted in the press. Trevor Francis, for example, is regarded as Britain's first £1m player but was officially transferred for £975,000. The generally"
"Liverpool require another replay after drawing 1–1 again in their FA Cup semi-final second replay at Villa Park. 3 May 1980: Liverpool clinch the league title in their penultimate league game of the season by beating Aston Villa 4–1 at Anfield. 1979–80 Aston Villa F.C. season 8 September 1979: The national transfer record fee is broken for the second time in four days when Wolverhampton Wanderers pay almost £1,500,000 for Aston Villa and Scotland striker Andy Gray. October 1979: John Gidman is sold to Everton for £650,000 (""2013: £"") in a deal which sees midfielder Pat Heard move the other"
"the Express were then knocked out by the Fort Lauderdale Strikers at the Silverdome in a mini-game overtime after going 1–1 in the conference semi-finals. Back in England, Francis made history as the first player in the UK to command a £1 million transfer when he was purchased by Nottingham Forest from Birmingham City. Forest was not keen to allow their new asset to return to the States, but they relented and Francis returned just past the midway point of the 1979 season. He drew large crowds and contributed 14 goals and 8 assists in 14 games, tying Keith Furphy"
"told. Back in February, Brian Clough had elected to spend the money that Forest had made from winning the league title in 1978 on a forward from Birmingham City. Clough made Trevor Francis Britain’s first £1 million footballer when he took him to Nottingham, but UEFA rules stipulated that he could not play European football for another three months.Therefore, the first game that Francis was eligible for was the final itself and, with Martin O'Neill injured and Archie Gemmill not selected by Clough, Francis was picked to play his first ever European club game, albeit out on the right wing."
"strengthen their midfield in a £925,000 move for Chelsea and Scotland midfielder Pat Nevin. 19 July 1988 – England defender Gary Stevens moves to Scotland in a £1 million move from Everton to Rangers in the costliest transfer involving a British defender. He is replaced at Goodison Park by Newcastle United's Neil McDonald. 20 July 1988 – After two seasons at Barcelona, Mark Hughes returns to Manchester United for a club record £1.8 million, breaking the previous record of £1.75 million that the club paid for Bryan Robson seven years ago. 25 July 1988 – Less than three weeks after"
"four years later Denis Law joined Torino in the first £100,000 transaction involving a British club. The 1970s saw a rapid increase in transfer fees. Martin Peters became the first £200,000 player in 1970, but by 1977 Kevin Keegan's move to West Germany's Hamburger SV had taken the record to £500,000. In January 1979 David Mills became the first player to be purchased for £500,000 by a British club, but just one month later Nottingham Forest paid twice that amount to acquire Birmingham City's Trevor Francis. In 1981 Bryan Robson cost Manchester United £1,500,000, but fees paid by British clubs"
"on 29 February 1904. In all he won three caps, scoring two goals. Alf Common Alfred Common (25 May 1880 in Millfield – 3 April 1946 in Darlington) was an English footballer who played at inside forward or centre forward. He is most famous for being the first player to be transferred for a fee of £1,000 on his transfer to Middlesbrough from Sunderland in 1905. Common played for South Hylton and Jarrow in North East England before joining Sunderland in 1900. Sunderland finished Division One runners-up in 1900–01, after which Common transferred to Sheffield United in October 1901 for"
"completed on 1 July 2009, setting not only a new British transfer record, but also a new world record (either in pounds or euros). In turn, that record was broken on 1 September 2013 when Real announced that their £85.3 million (€100 million) purchase of Gareth Bale from Tottenham Hotspur had been completed. This record was broken on 8 August 2016, when Manchester United signed Paul Pogba from Juventus for a fee of £89 million, and again on 6 January 2018, when Philippe Coutinho moved to Barcelona from Liverpool for a reported initial fee of £106 million, which could rise"
"opener and set up the second. Due to his low morale, Greaves was transfer-listed and Brazilian attacker Dino Sani was signed as his replacement. Both Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea made £96,500 bids, which were both accepted. After he left, the club went on to win the league title in 1961–62. After protracted negotiations, Bill Nicholson signed Greaves for Tottenham Hotspur in December 1961 for £99,999 – the unusual fee was intended to relieve Greaves of the pressure of being the first £100,000 player in British football. He joined Spurs just after they became the first club in England to complete"
"They won the League Cup with a 1–0 win over Liverpool in the final replay, despite Shilton, David Needham and Archie Gemmill all being non-eligible to play as they were cup-tied. In February 1979, Taylor authorised the English game's first £1 million transfer, when Forest purchased Trevor Francis from Birmingham City. Taylor later reported that Clough had been holding out for a fee of £925,000 until Taylor rang Birmingham to confirm the deal at £1 million, before ringing Clough to say ""We've got Francis, I've just paid their price""; Clough replied simply by saying ""Good"", and then put down the"
"and Wolverhampton Wanderers are also in the relegation zone. 7 January 1979: West Bromwich Albion pay a national record £516,000 for Middlesbrough defender David Mills. 10 January 1979: High-fliers Everton are beaten 2–1 by Second Division Sunderland in the FA Cup third round. Tottenham Hotspur are held to a 1–1 draw by non-league Altrincham. 22 January 1979: After four draws, the FA Cup third round tie between Arsenal and Third Division Sheffield Wednesday is finally resolved when the Gunners win the fourth replay 2–0. 31 January 1979: At the end of a month in which only twelve First Division matches"
"from Newcastle United for Crystal Palace for £650,000. 6 December 1989 – Chelsea bolster their title challenge with a £300,000 move for Bayern Munich and Norway defender Erland Johnsen. Howard Kendall is confirmed as the new Manchester City manager. 10 December 1989 – Roy Wegerle, the American international striker, joins Queens Park Rangers from Luton Town for a club record £1million. 19 December 1989 – 18–year–old Trinidadian striker Dwight Yorke signs for Aston Villa. 26 December 1989 - Tottenham win 3–1 over Millwall at White Hart Lane: goals from Spurs' Vinny Samways and Gary Lineker coming either side of an"
"Alf Common Alfred Common (25 May 1880 in Millfield – 3 April 1946 in Darlington) was an English footballer who played at inside forward or centre forward. He is most famous for being the first player to be transferred for a fee of £1,000 on his transfer to Middlesbrough from Sunderland in 1905. Common played for South Hylton and Jarrow in North East England before joining Sunderland in 1900. Sunderland finished Division One runners-up in 1900–01, after which Common transferred to Sheffield United in October 1901 for £325. Neither Sunderland nor Sheffield United had cause to regret the deal in"
"iconic one, was followed by the best season of the players career in 1976-77. A man of the match performance against Ajax in the UEFA Cup came in a strong start to the season, where he also became a regular at the heart of the defence in the England national team. In the 1977 FA Cup Final, it is commonly agreed that Greenhoff was the man of the match. Greenhoff left for Leeds United in 1979 for £350,000, which at the time was a record transfer for anyone leaving Manchester United. He was given a free transfer when Leeds were"
"£1.2million. 4 July 1990 - England's World Cup hopes are ended in a semi-final defeat by West Germany, with Chris Waddle and Stuart Pearce both missing penalties. 16 July 1990 - Graham Taylor, manager of Aston Villa, is appointed as successor to Bobby Robson as the England manager. 18 July 1990 - Derby County sign defender Paul Blades from Norwich City for £700,000. 19 July 1990 - England striker Mark Hateley ends six years overseas and joins Scottish league champions Rangers in a £1million move from AS Monaco. He had played on the continent since his move from Portsmouth to"
"£750,000. 19 July 1989 – Former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Ossie Ardiles, 37 next month, is appointed player–manager of Swindon Town. 21 July 1989 – A tribunal orders Manchester United to pay £1.5 million to Nottingham Forest for 26–year–old midfielder Neil Webb. 24 July 1989 – Aston Villa sign Manchester United defender Paul McGrath for £400,000. 26 July 1989 – Norman Whiteside moves from Manchester United to Everton for £750,000. 27 July 1989 – Everton pay Leicester City £1.1 million for striker Mike Newell. 28 July 1989 – Maidstone United prepare for their first Football League season with a £10,000 move"
"Professionals Bolton Wanderers Arsenal David Jack David Bone Nightingale Jack (3 April 1898 – 10 September 1958) was an English footballer who played as an inside forward. He scored 267 goals from 521 appearances in the Football League playing for Plymouth Argyle, Bolton Wanderers and Arsenal. He was the first footballer to be transferred for a fee in excess of £10,000, was the first to score at Wembleyin the 1923 FA Cup Finaland was capped nine times for England. After retiring as a player he managed Southend United, Middlesbrough and Shelbourne. Jack was born in Bolton, Lancashire, in 1898, the"
"fingers to make fake glasses. A permanent transfer was arranged in May. The first player to ever be transferred for a fee of over £100 was Scottish striker Willie Groves when he made the switch from West Bromwich Albion to Aston Villa in 1893, eight years after the legalisation of professionalism in the sport. It took just 12 years for the figure to become £1,000, when Sunderland striker Alf Common moved to Middlesbrough. It was not until 1928 that the first five-figure transfer took place. David Jack of Bolton Wanderers was the subject of interest from Arsenal, and in order"
"David Jack David Bone Nightingale Jack (3 April 1898 – 10 September 1958) was an English footballer who played as an inside forward. He scored 267 goals from 521 appearances in the Football League playing for Plymouth Argyle, Bolton Wanderers and Arsenal. He was the first footballer to be transferred for a fee in excess of £10,000, was the first to score at Wembleyin the 1923 FA Cup Finaland was capped nine times for England. After retiring as a player he managed Southend United, Middlesbrough and Shelbourne. Jack was born in Bolton, Lancashire, in 1898, the son of Scottish footballer"