Blackburn Rovers 1994/95: The story of Alan Shearer's Premier League title | OneFootball

Think of Wayne Rooney's last minute wonder goal against Arsenal as a 16-year-old, or Michael Owen winning the Premier League Golden Boot in the 1997/98 season as a teenager before scoring 'that goal' against Argentina at the 1998 World Cup, and you begin to realise that these superstars of football have a knack of announcing themselves on the big stage.

And that's exactly what Alan Shearer did in April 1988 when, as a 17-year-old, he scored a magnificent hat-trick for Southampton at The Dell against a great Arsenal team.

It was a debut that prompted national headlines, and although the following four seasons were far from prolific for Shearer, his strength, hold-up play and goal-scoring ability was drawing huge attention from all of England's big clubs, most notably Manchester United.

So it was met with some surprise that Shearer decided to join Blackburn Rovers in the summer of 1992 for a then English transfer record fee of £3.6m.

Shearer started with a bang on debut

Shearer once again made headlines on his debut, scoring a brace of long-range efforts against Crystal Palace on the opening weekend of the very first Premier League season.

Although an anterior cruciate ligament injury cut short Shearer's first season at Ewood Park, he still managed to score 16 goals from just 21 appearances, before scoring 31 goals the following season as Blackburn finished runners-up to Manchester United in the Premier League.

Rovers signed another prolific striker, Chris Sutton, ahead of the 1994-95 season to play alongside Shearer, boosting their hopes of challenging arch rivals United to win the Premier League title.

The season started well for Kenny Dalglish's men, winning five and drawing two of their opening seven games with Shearer and Sutton - now dubbed the SAS by the media - scoring six goals each. One media outlet claimed the SAS had the potential to be the greatest striker partnership in the history of English football.

October started badly for Rovers with the team winning just one of their next four matches, including a home defeat to Manchester United, meaning that after 11 games of the Premier League season, Shearer and co were fully eight points adrift of Newcastle at the top of the table.

However, a clash with second-placed Nottingham Forest at the City Ground to end the month changed Blackburn's fortunes for the better. Defeat to Forest - who were on an unbeaten run of 24 games at the time - would have seen Rovers fall further behind the main title challengers, but in a scrappy, hard-fought game Sutton scored a brace in a 2-0 win.

Six of the best from Shearer

That victory gave Blackburn huge confidence and they would go on a magnificent run, winning 11, and drawing one of their next 12 league games. Shearer was now at his best, terrorising defences up and down the country. In that glorious spell for Rovers, the then 24-year-old scored an incredible 13 goals including scoring in six consecutive Premier League matches.

Blackburn's blistering form took them five points clear at the top of the table, but up next were the defending champions, and the team sitting second in the table, Manchester United.

An 80th minute goal from Eric Cantona meant the points stayed at Old Trafford, and United were now just two points behind Rovers and red hot favourites to go on and defend their crown. But what happened in United' next game would have huge implications on the title race.

In a 1-1 draw at Selhurst Park, Cantona, by far United's most influential player of that season, was sent off and as he walked towards the tunnel performed a kung-fu kick on a Crystal Palace fan, resulting in the Frenchman receiving an eight month ban from football.

Although United would win their next three games the absence of their star man eventually caused them to lose momentum, and from their next nine games they would drop points in five of them, handing the initiative back to Shearer and his team.

Shearer netted 34th goal at Anfield

Rovers duly took advantage, claiming 23 points from a possible 27 available from early February to early April, with Shearer scoring a further seven goals in that spell. At one point Blackburn were eight points clear of United in second, and the Premier League title going to Ewood Park seemed inevitable.

But the tide turned once again. Rovers got the wobbles and would draw one and lose two of their next five games while United took 13 points from a possible 15. It meant that the destination of the title went right down to the final game, but with matters in their own hands, Blackburn had a very tough-looking fixture away to Liverpool while United faced lowly West Ham.

Shearer scored in that final game of the season, making it 34 for the campaign, nine clear of anyone else. But at one point it looked like it meant nothing as Rovers trailed Liverpool 2-1, meaning a United victory at West Ham would hand the title to the Red Devils.

But in one of the most bizarre endings to a game of football, news came through that United had only drawn at Upton Park with still 90 seconds to play at Anfield. Blackburn Rovers and Alan Shearer were Premier League champions for the very first time, prompting wild celebrations among the staff and players while a game was still being played.