Season 1997/98
original illustrations of the kits worn during the season
Standard home kit
Shirt number
Playing Record in this kit:
P24 W17 D5 L2 F56 A14
This kit was worn in the following matches:
| Date | Opposition | Date | Opposition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10/8 | Tottenham (a) | 13/8 | Southampton (h) |
| 30/8 | Coventry (h) | 13/9 | West Ham (H) |
| 24/9 | Chelsea (h) | 4/10 | C Palace (h) |
| 25/10 | Barnsley (h) | 1/11 | Sheff Wed (h) |
| 30/11 | Blackburn (h) | 15/12 | Aston Villa (h) |
| 26/12 | Everton (h) | 4/1 | Chelsea (a) |
| 10/14 | Tottenham (h) | 24/1 | Walsall (h) * |
| 31/1 | Leicester (h) | 7/2 | Bolton W (h) |
| 15/2 | Barnsley (h) | 21/2 | Derby C (h) |
| 28/2 | Chelsea (a) | 14/3 | Arsenal (h) |
| 28/3 | Wimbledon (h) | 10/4 | Liverpool (h) |
| 18/4 | Newcastle (h) | 4/5 | Leeds U (h)** |
Kit Notes:
* In the first half Andy Cole wore a shirt without Premier League patches.
** Krisi Blazeski has confirmed that Wes Brown wore a replica shirt rather than a player issue.
Variant home kit
Shirt number
Playing Record in this kit:
P6 W2 D2 L2 F10 A9
This kit was worn in the following matches:
| Date | Opposition | Date | Opposition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20/9 | Bolton W (a) | 18/10 | Derby Co (a) |
| 22/11 | Wimbledon (a) | 21/12 | Newcastle U (a) |
| 28/12 | Coventry C (a) | 7/3 | Sheff Utd (a) |
Variant home kit
Shirt number
Playing Record in this kit:
P4 W2 D1 L1 F5 A2
This kit was worn in the following matches:
| Date | Opposition | Date | Opposition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 23/8 | Leicester C (a) | 27/8 | Everton (a) |
| 27/9 | Leeds U (a) | 6/4 | Blackburn R (a) |
League Cup home kit
Shirt number
Playing Record in this kit:
P1 W0 D0 L1 F0 A2
This kit was worn in the following matches:
| Date | Opposition | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 14/10 | Ipswich T (a) |
European home kit
Shirt number
Playing Record in this kit:
P4 W2 D1 L1 F6 A4
This kit was worn in the following matches:
| Date | Opposition | Date | Opposition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1/10 | Juventus (h) | 22/10 | Fejenoord (h) |
| 10/12 | Juventus (a) | 16/3 | AS Monaco (h) |
Variant home kit
Shirt number
Playing Record in this kit:
P1 W1 D0 L0 F3 A0
This kit was worn in the following matches:
| Date | Opposition | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2/11 | Kosice (h) |
Pre-season home kit
Shirt number
This kit was worn in the following matches:
| Date | Opposition | Date | Opposition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 17/7 | Thailand XI | 22/7 | Urawa Red Diamonds |
Variant home kit
Shirt number
This kit was worn in the following matches:
| Date | Opposition | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 5/10 | Man C (a) |
Standard change kit
Shirt number
Playing Record in this kit:
P1 W1 D0 L0 F3 A1
This kit was worn in the following matches:
| Date | Opposition | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 8/12 | Liverpool (a) |
Variant change kit
Shirt number
Playing Record in this kit:
P1 W0 D0 L1 F0 A1
This kit was worn in the following matches:
| Date | Opposition | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 19/1 | Southampton (a) |
Variant change kit
Shirt number
Playing Record in this kit:
P4 W2 D1 L1 F7 A4
This kit was worn in the following matches:
| Date | Opposition | Date | Opposition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18/2 | Aston Villa (a) | 25/2 | Barnsley (a) |
| 11/3 | West Ham (a) | 10/5 | Barnsley (a) |
Variant change kit
Shirt number
Playing Record in this kit:
P1 W1 D0 L0 F3 A0
This kit was worn in the following matches:
| Date | Opposition | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 27/4 | C Palace (a) |
European change kit
Shirt number
Playing Record in this kit:
P1 W1 D0 L0 F3 A0
This kit was worn in the following matches:
| Date | Opposition | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 17/9 | Kosice (a) |
Charity Shield kit
Shirt number
Playing Record in this kit: P1 W1 D0 L0 F1 A1
This kit was worn in the following matches:
| Date | Opposition | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 3/8 | Chelsea |
David Beckham's name was mis-spelt by the company resposnible for printing the players' names on the shirts.
Pre-season change kit
Shirt number
This kit was worn in the following matches:
| Date | Opposition | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 27/7 | Internazionale (a) |
Standard third kit
Shirt number
Playing Record in this kit:
P1 W0 D0 L1 F2 A3
This kit was worn in the following matches:
| Date | Opposition | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 9/11 | Arsenal (a) |
European third kit
Shirt number
Playing Record in this kit:
P2 W1 D1 L0 F3 A1
This kit was worn in the following matches:
| Date | Opposition | Date | Opposition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5/11 | Fejenoord (a) | 4/3 | AS Monaco (a) |
Pr-season third kit
Shirt number
This kit was worn in the following matches:
| Date | Opposition | Date | Opposition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20/7 | South China | 30/7 | Internazionale (h) |
| 5/8 | Slavia Praha (h) |
Home Kit (short-sleeved)
Home Kit (long-sleeved)
Home Kit Variant
Home Kit Variant
Worn in the League Cup tie v Ipswich (a) 14/10/1997
Home Kit Variant
Worn v Aston Villa (h) 15/12/1997, Liverpool (h) 10/4/1998 and Newcastle (h) 18/4/1998
Home Kit Variant
Worn at Southampton on 19/1/1998
Change Kit
European Home Kit
European Change Kit
Charity Shield Kit
The Season in brief
United's side remained largely unchanged. Following Cantona's retirement Roy Keane had been appointed captain and Teddy Sheringham had joined from Tottenham. The side remained unbeaten until the end of September. The 1-0 defeat at Elland Road was made worse by the loss of Keano with cruciate ligament damage for the remainder of the season.
United claimed top spot after a 7-0 thrashing of Premiership new boys Barnsley on October 25th. Playing superb football United swept all before them through the autumn and early winter. United brushed aside Chelsea, one of the main title contenders, at Stamford Bridge in the third round of the FA Cup 5-3, after a scintillating first half performance had seen them take a 3-0 lead.
Sadly this was their peak. Barnsley nocked them out of the FA Cup in a fifth round replay and they lost their Champions' League quarter final against Monaco on away goals. More disappointingly, Arsenal's 1-0 victory at Old Trafford in March helped the Gunners pip United to the title by a single point.
United had a new change kit and a new European home kit, which had starballs woven in the shirt fabric. Umbro had become the official sportswear supplier for the Champions' League.
Tommy Nielsen has discovered that Peter Scmeichel wore a short sleeved shirt, which we believe means he was the first United goalkeeper to do so, against Tottenham on August 10th.