1965–66 Manchester United F.c. Season
The 1965–66 season was Manchester United's 64th season in the Football League, and their 21st consecutive season in the top division of English football.
| 1965–66 season | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Manchester United players during their preseason tour in Finland, 21 September 1965. In front Pat Crerand carries Denis Law; middle George Best carries Tony Dunne; at back Noel Cantwell carries Pat Dunne. | ||||
| Chairman | Louis Edwards | |||
| Manager | Matt Busby | |||
| First Division | 4th | |||
| FA Cup | Semi-finals | |||
| European Cup | Semi-finals | |||
| Charity Shield | Shared | |||
| Top goalscorer | League: David Herd (24) All: David Herd (33) | |||
| Highest home attendance | 64,035 vs Benfica (2 February 1966) | |||
| Lowest home attendance | 23,039 vs Aston Villa (9 May 1966) | |||
| Average home league attendance | 41,352 | |||
| | ||||
As defending champions of the First Division title, they finished fourth and secured qualification for the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup. They lost to eventual winners Everton in the FA Cup semifinal.
In the European Cup, they were also semi-finalists, edged out by Yugoslav champions Partizan Belgrade. They had to negotiate a preliminary round of the competition before qualifying for the first round, and did so by achieving a 9–2 aggregate win over Finnish champions HJK Helsinki.
United's top scorer for this season was David Herd, with 24 league goals and 33 in all competitions.
FA Charity Shield
| Date | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 August 1965 | Liverpool | H | 2–2 | Best, Herd | 48,502 |
First Division
| Date | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 August 1965 | Sheffield Wednesday | H | 1–0 | Herd | 37,524 |
| 24 August 1965 | Nottingham Forest | A | 2–4 | Aston, Best | 33,744 |
| 28 August 1965 | Northampton Town | A | 1–1 | Connelly | 21,140 |
| 1 September 1965 | Nottingham Forest | H | 0–0 | 38,777 | |
| 4 September 1965 | Stoke City | H | 1–1 | Herd | 37,603 |
| 8 September 1965 | Newcastle United | A | 2–1 | Herd, Law | 57,380 |
| 11 September 1965 | Burnley | A | 0–3 | 30,235 | |
| 15 September 1965 | Newcastle United | H | 1–1 | Stiles | 30,401 |
| 18 September 1965 | Chelsea | H | 4–1 | Law (3), Charlton | 37,917 |
| 25 September 1965 | Arsenal | A | 2–4 | Aston, Charlton | 56,757 |
| 9 October 1965 | Liverpool | H | 2–0 | Best, Law | 58,161 |
| 16 October 1965 | Tottenham Hotspur | A | 1–5 | Charlton | 58,051 |
| 23 October 1965 | Fulham | H | 4–1 | Herd (3), Charlton | 32,716 |
| 30 October 1965 | Blackpool | A | 2–1 | Herd (2) | 24,703 |
| 6 November 1965 | Blackburn Rovers | H | 2–2 | Charlton, Law | 38,823 |
| 13 November 1965 | Leicester City | A | 5–0 | Herd (2), Best, Charlton, Connelly | 34,551 |
| 20 November 1965 | Sheffield United | H | 3–1 | Best (2), Law | 37,922 |
| 4 December 1965 | West Ham United | H | 0–0 | 32,924 | |
| 11 December 1965 | Sunderland | A | 3–2 | Best (2), Herd | 37,417 |
| 15 December 1965 | Everton | H | 3–0 | Best, Charlton, Herd | 32,624 |
| 18 December 1965 | Tottenham Hotspur | H | 5–1 | Law (2), Charlton, Herd, Beal (o.g.) | 39,270 |
| 27 December 1965 | West Bromwich Albion | H | 1–1 | Law | 54,102 |
| 1 January 1966 | Liverpool | A | 1–2 | Law | 53,790 |
| 8 January 1966 | Sunderland | A | 1–1 | Best | 39,162 |
| 12 January 1966 | Leeds United | A | 1–1 | Herd | 49,672 |
| 15 January 1966 | Fulham | A | 1–0 | Charlton | 33,018 |
| 29 January 1966 | Sheffield Wednesday | A | 0–0 | 39,281 | |
| 5 February 1966 | Northampton Town | H | 6–2 | Charlton (3), Law (2), Connelly | 34,986 |
| 19 February 1966 | Stoke City | A | 2–2 | Connelly, Herd | 36,667 |
| 26 February 1966 | Burnley | H | 4–2 | Herd (3), Charlton | 49,892 |
| 12 March 1966 | Chelsea | A | 0–2 | 60,269 | |
| 19 March 1966 | Arsenal | H | 2–1 | Law, Stiles | 47,246 |
| 6 April 1966 | Aston Villa | A | 1–1 | Cantwell | 28,211 |
| 9 April 1966 | Leicester City | H | 1–2 | Connelly | 42,593 |
| 16 April 1966 | Sheffield United | A | 1–3 | Sadler | 22,330 |
| 25 April 1966 | Everton | A | 0–0 | 50,843 | |
| 27 April 1966 | Blackpool | H | 2–1 | Charlton, Law | 26,953 |
| 30 April 1966 | West Ham United | A | 2–3 | Aston, Cantwell | 36,416 |
| 4 May 1966 | West Bromwich Albion | A | 3–3 | Aston, T. Dunne, Herd | 22,609 |
| 7 May 1966 | Blackburn Rovers | A | 4–1 | Herd (2), Charlton, Sadler | 14,513 |
| 9 May 1966 | Aston Villa | H | 6–1 | Herd (2), Sadler (2), Charlton, Ryan | 23,039 |
| 19 May 1966 | Leeds United | H | 1–1 | Herd | 35,008 |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GAv | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liverpool (C) | 42 | 26 | 9 | 7 | 79 | 34 | 2.324 | 61 | Qualification for the European Cup first round |
| 2 | Leeds United | 42 | 23 | 9 | 10 | 79 | 38 | 2.079 | 55 | Qualification for the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup second round |
| 3 | Burnley | 42 | 24 | 7 | 11 | 79 | 47 | 1.681 | 55 | Qualification for the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup first round |
| 4 | Manchester United | 42 | 18 | 15 | 9 | 84 | 59 | 1.424 | 51 | |
| 5 | Chelsea | 42 | 22 | 7 | 13 | 65 | 53 | 1.226 | 51 | |
| 6 | West Bromwich Albion | 42 | 19 | 12 | 11 | 91 | 69 | 1.319 | 50 | Qualification for the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup second round |
| 7 | Leicester City | 42 | 21 | 7 | 14 | 80 | 65 | 1.231 | 49 | |
| 8 | Tottenham Hotspur | 42 | 16 | 12 | 14 | 75 | 66 | 1.136 | 44 | |
| 9 | Sheffield United | 42 | 16 | 11 | 15 | 56 | 59 | 0.949 | 43 | |
| 10 | Stoke City | 42 | 15 | 12 | 15 | 65 | 64 | 1.016 | 42 | |
| 11 | Everton | 42 | 15 | 11 | 16 | 56 | 62 | 0.903 | 41 | Qualification for the European Cup Winners' Cup first round |
| 12 | West Ham United | 42 | 15 | 9 | 18 | 70 | 83 | 0.843 | 39 | |
| 13 | Blackpool | 42 | 14 | 9 | 19 | 55 | 65 | 0.846 | 37 | |
| 14 | Arsenal | 42 | 12 | 13 | 17 | 62 | 75 | 0.827 | 37 | |
| 15 | Newcastle United | 42 | 14 | 9 | 19 | 50 | 63 | 0.794 | 37 | |
| 16 | Aston Villa | 42 | 15 | 6 | 21 | 69 | 80 | 0.863 | 36 | |
| 17 | Sheffield Wednesday | 42 | 14 | 8 | 20 | 56 | 66 | 0.848 | 36 | |
| 18 | Nottingham Forest | 42 | 14 | 8 | 20 | 56 | 72 | 0.778 | 36 | |
| 19 | Sunderland | 42 | 14 | 8 | 20 | 51 | 72 | 0.708 | 36 | |
| 20 | Fulham | 42 | 14 | 7 | 21 | 67 | 85 | 0.788 | 35 | |
| 21 | Northampton Town (R) | 42 | 10 | 13 | 19 | 55 | 92 | 0.598 | 33 | Relegation to the Second Division |
| 22 | Blackburn Rovers (R) | 42 | 8 | 4 | 30 | 57 | 88 | 0.648 | 20 |
Source: World Football
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal average; 3) Goals scored
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal average; 3) Goals scored
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:
FA Cup
| Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 January 1966 | Round 3 | Derby County | A | 5–2 | Best (2), Law (2), Herd | 33,827 |
| 12 February 1966 | Round 4 | Rotherham United | H | 0–0 | 54,263 | |
| 15 February 1966 | Round 4 Replay | Rotherham United | A | 1–0 | Connelly | 23,500 |
| 5 March 1966 | Round 5 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | A | 4–2 | Law (2), Best, Herd | 53,500 |
| 26 March 1966 | Round 6 | Preston North End | A | 1–1 | Herd | 37,876 |
| 30 March 1966 | Round 6 Replay | Preston North End | H | 3–1 | Law (2), Connelly | 60,433 |
| 23 April 1966 | Semi-final | Everton | N | 0–1 | 60,000 |
European Cup
| Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 September 1965 | Preliminary round First leg | HJK Helsinki | A | 3–2 | Connelly, Herd, Law | 25,000 |
| 6 October 1965 | Preliminary round Second leg | HJK Helsinki | H | 6–0 | Connelly (3), Best (2), Charlton | 30,388 |
| 17 November 1965 | Round 1 First leg | Vorwärts Berlin | A | 2–0 | Connelly, Law | 40,000 |
| 1 December 1965 | Round 1 Second leg | Vorwärts Berlin | H | 3–1 | Herd (3) | 30,082 |
| 2 February 1966 | Quarter-final First leg | Benfica | H | 3–2 | Foulkes, Herd, Law | 64,035 |
| 9 March 1966 | Quarter-final Second leg | Benfica | A | 5–1 | Best (2), Charlton, Connelly, Crerand | 75,000 |
| 13 April 1966 | Semi-final First leg | Partizan | A | 0–2 | 60,000 | |
| 20 April 1966 | Semi-final Second leg | Partizan | H | 1–0 | Stiles | 62,500 |
Squad statistics
| Pos. | Name | League | FA Cup | European Cup | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| GK |  Pat Dunne | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 0 |
| GK |  David Gaskell | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| GK |  Harry Gregg | 26 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38 | 0 |
| FB | Shay Brennan | 28 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 39 | 0 |
| FB | Noel Cantwell | 23 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 29 | 2 |
| FB | Tony Dunne | 40 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 56 | 0 |
| FB | Bobby Noble | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| HB |  Pat Crerand | 41 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 56 | 1 |
| HB | John Fitzpatrick | 3(1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4(1) | 0 |
| HB | Bill Foulkes | 33 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 48 | 1 |
| HB | Nobby Stiles | 39 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 55 | 3 |
| FW | Willie Anderson | 5(1) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7(1) | 0 |
| FW | John Aston, Jr. | 23 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 28 | 4 |
| FW | George Best | 31 | 9 | 5 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 43 | 17 |
| FW | Bobby Charlton | 38 | 16 | 7 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 54 | 18 |
| FW | John Connelly | 31(1) | 5 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 45(1) | 13 |
| FW | David Herd | 36(1) | 24 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 51(1) | 33 |
| FW | Denis Law | 33 | 15 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 49 | 24 |
| FW | Jimmy Ryan | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 |
| FW | David Sadler | 10 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 4 |
References
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