Alan Shearer: What we achieved at Blackburn Rovers will never be repeated

Shearer was back on his old stamping ground on Thursday night to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Rovers’ fairytale Premiership title triumph.

The former England international blasted 34 goals in 42 league games as Kenny Dalglish’s side were crowned top-flight champions just three years after winning promotion.

And Shearer believes what they achieved in the incredible 1994-95 campaign will never be matched by Rovers or any other club of their size again.

“It’s great to be back,” said the 44-year-old, speaking at the Blackburn Rovers Former Players Association’s Celebration of Champions event.

“And where have 20 years gone? Goodness me, it’s incredible.

“What we achieved that season will be remembered for a hell of long time in these parts, I’m sure. I’ll never forget it.

“For little old Blackburn to come in to the Premier League and not only take on but beat the might of Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea, I’m not sure you’ll ever see the like again. It was a magnificent season.

“We’d done well in the previous two years and we were determined to go that one step further – and Kenny had spelled that out to us at the beginning of the season without trying to put too much pressure on us.

“We were leading for the vast majority of the season and it was only the last couple of games that we started to falter and feel the pressure.

“So that final whistle at Anfield, when we knew we had won it, was such a huge relief because there was huge pressure on us. We’d been there to be shot at all season.

“It was a team that had unbelievable team spirit. There were probably better teams than us out there but what got us through in the end was our great team spirit.

“Funnily enough we didn’t really socialise that much as players because as a team we lived all over the north-west but when we came together into training and into matches, I’ve not known many better team spirits in my time and that’s what got us through.

“And no-one can ever take it away from us. No-one expected Blackburn to do it and I’m not sure it’ll ever be done again because, for a team to come up from the Championship, and take on Manchester United and beat them, that’s the size of the task that you’re looking at.

“And, of course, Financial Fair Play rules make it even more difficult to do now.”

“It was an incredible achievement and an incredible season.”

Shearer scored 130 goals in 171 appearances for Rovers after making a British transfer record £3.3m move from Southampton in July 1992 – and after Manchester United missed out on the chance of signing him.

“I came up for talks with my wife, who was seven months pregnant at the time, and we met Kenny and Ray Harford at the Thistle Hotel in Haydock,” remembers Shearer, who left Rovers to join his hometown club Newcastle United for a world record £15m in July 1996.

“I promised I’d give Kenny an answer in three days so I went back to Southampton and I got a call from Manchester United.

“They said they’d love to speak to me and sign me. I told them I’d been in talks with Blackburn and that I’d promised to give them an answer within three days. So I told them (United) if they’d like to sign me, then I’d like to speak to them.

“But I never heard anything back from Manchester United and I kept my promise to Kenny and told him I’d love to sign for him.

“I’d worked with Ray Harford in the Toulon Tournament with England so I knew what a fantastic coach he was. So, with his expertise in coaching, with Kenny’s experience in winning the league, and with Jack Walker’s know-how and finance, I knew that was a pretty formidable threesome to take on the big boys.

“And, of course, it worked out. It was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.”