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Liverpool

1989–90 season
Manager	Kenny Dalglish
First Division	Champions
FA Cup	Semi-finals
League Cup	Third round
FA Charity Shield	Winners
Top goalscorer	League: John Barnes (22) All: John Barnes (28)
Highest home attendance	38,730 (vs. Everton, League, 3 February)
Lowest home attendance	19,231 (vs. Wigan Athletic, League Cup, 19 September)
Average home league attendance	36,690
Home colours Away colours Third colours
← 1988–891990–91 →

The 1989–90 season was the 98th season in Liverpool F.C.'s existence, and their 28th consecutive year in the top flight. This article covers the period from 1 July 1989 to 30 June 1990.

Liverpool finished the season as league champions for the 18th time, and looked on course for another double, only to be knocked off course in the final stages of the FA Cup for the third season running – this time by a dramatic 4–3 semi-final defeat against a Crystal Palace side they had beaten 9–0 in the league earlier in the season. They did finish the season nine points ahead of runners-up Aston Villa in the league, but had faced a stiff challenge from Villa for much of the season and earlier in the season from neighbouring Everton. This would be Liverpool's last title for 30 years, until the 2019-20 season.

The autumn of 1989 saw the departure of striker John Aldridge to Spain. Aldridge had lost his place in the starting line-up to a resurgent Ian Rush, who had returned to the club a year earlier after an unhappy season in Italy. Injury-plagued defender Jim Beglin was transferred to Leeds United just before the start of the season, with the defence being bolstered by the arrival of Swedish star Glenn Hysén.

Pre-season friendlies

Liverpool's entered the four-team Makita International Tournament, played at Wembley Stadium, where they lost against Arsenal in the final, having beaten Dinamo Kiev. This was followed by a tour of Scandinavia which saw wins against Malmö FF and Halmstads BK and draws with Vasalunds IF and HJK Helsinki.

Regular season

August

As FA Cup holders, Liverpool entered the Charity Shield, facing league champions Arsenal, in a rematch of the last game of the previous season when Arsenal had won the title at Anfield in dramatic circumstances. Liverpool gained some small revenge with a 1–0 win, thanks to a Peter Beardsley goal. The league campaign began with a 3–1 win over Manchester City, followed by away draws against Luton Town and Aston Villa. The month ended with a trip to Spain with a friendly against Real Madrid for the Trofeo Santiago Bernabéu. The Reds lost 2–0.

The month ended with Liverpool fifth in the table, with newly promoted Chelsea top of the league, Millwall (in only their second top flight campaign) second, local rivals Everton third and Coventry City fourth.

September

September began with a third consecutive away game, this time a 3–0 win at Derby County, followed by a 9–0 hammering of Crystal Palace at Anfield. Eight different players scored in this game, which was also notable as John Aldridge's last game for the club. Aldridge, who was leaving to join Real Sociedad, came off the bench to convert a penalty, and threw his boots and kit into the Kop at the end of the game. Aldridge had remained a first-choice player in 1988–89 after Rush's return, either playing in a three-man attack alongside Rush and Beardsley or alongside Beardsley in a two-man attack in the 14 league games that Rush was unfit for, but for 1989–90 Dalglish had decided to stick with a two-man attack of Rush and Beardsley, and Aldridge knew that leaving Anfield would be his best chance of regular first team action.

After a 0–0 home draw with Norwich City, Wigan Athletic were defeated 5–2 in the League Cup, before the first Merseyside derby of the season. Just as in the previous season's FA Cup final, and in so many derbies before, Ian Rush was the match winner, as the Reds won 3–1 at Goodison Park.

October

First up in October were Wigan in the so-called "away" leg (played at Anfield because Wigan's pitch was unplayable) of the League Cup second round. Liverpool won 3–0, with substitute Steve Staunton scoring a hat-trick to secure an 8–2 aggregate victory. Back in the league, Wimbledon were beaten 2–1 at Plough Lane before Southampton dealt the Reds a 4–1 hammering at The Dell. The misery was to continue four days later, as Arsenal ended Liverpool's League Cup campaign with a 1–0 win at Highbury. The league campaign resumed with a 1–0 win over Tottenham Hotspur, which saw Liverpool reclaim their lead of the First Division from Everton, who seemed to be re-emerging as a top club after two slightly less successful seasons under the management of Colin Harvey, since Howard Kendall's departure. Chelsea and Arsenal were still giving the two Merseyside clubs a serious run for their money, while a surprise challenge was also starting to mount from Southampton, Norwich and Aston Villa. After a generally very disappointing September, Manchester United had started to improve and were just seven points (though 10 places) behind Liverpool. The challenge from Millwall and Coventry, however, appeared to have ended as both clubs were now some way down the table.

November

November was a miserable month for Liverpool. It began with a 1–0 home defeat against Coventry City, which was compounded by a 3–2 loss at QPR. Wins at Millwall and at home to Arsenal followed, before an away game at Sheffield Wednesday. This was Liverpool's first game at Hillsborough after the tragedy of seven months earlier, and it ended in a 2–0 defeat. However, they ended the month top of the league with 27 points – bracketed together on goal difference with Arsenal, Villa and Chelsea. Southampton and Coventry were both just four points behind the leading pack, but Everton's title hopes were fading fast as they had slumped from top place to 12th within a few short weeks. Manchester United's steady improvement had continued as they had continued to narrow the gap between themselves and Liverpool – now standing at nine places but just six points.

December

December was a better month for Liverpool, who began it with an impressive 4–1 win at Manchester City (now managed by former Everton boss Howard Kendall). A 1–1 home draw with Villa followed, before a superb 5–2 win over fellow title contenders Chelsea on 16 December. A goalless draw with Manchester United came at Anfield on 23 December, with Liverpool's great rivals now enduring another run of bad form and effectively out of the title race. The next two games – against Sheffield Wednesday and Charlton Athletic – were both won, and so Liverpool ended the 1980s as First Division leaders. They had a four-point lead over their nearest rivals Aston Villa and a four-point lead over Arsenal. The challenge from the likes of Southampton, Chelsea and Norwich was becoming more distant, though a threat from North London was emerging in the shape of a Tottenham Hotspur side spearheaded by two of England's finest players – Paul Gascoigne and Gary Lineker. The challenge from Everton was now looking well and truly over, as Colin Harvey's men were now 10th in the league and 13 points adrift of Liverpool, though with a game in hand. Any hopes that Manchester United might have had of beating Liverpool to the title were now almost completely dead, as Alex Ferguson's team now stood 15th in the league and were just two points above the relegation zone.

January

A new year and a new decade began with a 2–2 draw for Liverpool at Nottingham Forest on New Year's Day. Then came an FA Cup third round clash with Swansea City at Vetch Field. The Swans were now in the Third Division and the run for their money that they had given Liverpool eight years earlier was now very much a distant memory, but the Swans gave Liverpool a scare by holding them to a goalless draw. However, Liverpool blew Swansea to pieces in the replay at Anfield three days later by winning 8–0. Their FA Cup action (a fourth round clash with Norwich ending in a 3–1 replay win at Anfield after a goalless draw in the first game at Carrow Road) meant that there would be just two more league games that month – the first a 2–2 home draw with Luton, the second a 2–0 win over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park. However, Liverpool remained top of the league – level on points with Aston Villa with Arsenal as the only other serious contenders, though Nottingham Forest had now climbed into fourth place and were starting to raise a few eyebrows among observers in the title race.

February

Liverpool remained on course for a unique second double as they beat Southampton 3–0 in the fifth round at Anfield on 17 February. Bad weather meant that there were just two league games for Liverpool that month, the first a 2–1 Merseyside derby win over Everton at Anfield, the second a goalless draw at Norwich.

March

Liverpool moved closer to a second double on 14 March when they beat QPR 1–0 in the quarter-final replay at Anfield, three days after drawing the first match 2–2 at Loftus Road. In the league, they defeated Millwall, Manchester United and Southampton but lost to Tottenham Hotspur. They were still top of the league, on goal difference ahead of Aston Villa and with a game in hand. Arsenal were now the only other team looking like a serious threat to the Reds, and, although Everton's recent revival had seen them climb to fifth place, it was now almost certainly too late for them to pip Liverpool to the league title.

22 March saw the arrival at Anfield of 26-year-old Israeli striker Ronny Rosenthal on loan from Belgian club Standard Liège.

April

April was a very mixed month for Liverpool. They finally clinched the league title on 28 April with two games to spare, thanks to a 2–1 home win over QPR, but 8 April saw their "double double" hopes ended in dramatic fashion for the third season running, this time in the shape of an FA Cup semi-final defeat to Crystal Palace (the team they had beaten 9–0 in the league seven months earlier) where the South Londoners had beaten them 4–3 in extra time to book a Wembley date with Manchester United in the final. Liverpool had now been champions of England on no fewer than 18 occasions – more than any other side at the time.

May

The Reds proved themselves as worthy champions by winning both of their final two games: a slender 1–0 home win over Derby followed by a 6–1 hammering of Coventry at Highfield Road on the final day of the season.

Ronny Rosenthal's loan deal became permanent at the end of the season when Liverpool paid Standard Liège £1 million for his services, which had already seen him net seven goals in just eight league games – including a hat-trick in the 4–0 away win over relegation-bound Charlton.

Squad

Goalkeepers

• Bruce Grobbelaar
• Mike Hooper

Defenders

• Gary Ablett
• David Burrows
• Gary Gillespie
• Alan Hansen
• Glenn Hysén
• Steve Nicol
• Steve Staunton
• Nick Tanner
• Barry Venison
• Alex Watson

Midfielders

• John Barnes
• Ray Houghton
• Steve McMahon
• Jim Magilton
• Mike Marsh
• Jan Mølby
• Nigel Spackman
• Ronnie Whelan

Attackers

• John Aldridge
• Peter Beardsley
• Ronny Rosenthal
• Ian Rush
• Kenny Dalglish

Squad statistics

Appearances and goals

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		Division 1		FA Cup		Charity Shield		League Cup
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
	DF	ENG	Gary Ablett	16	0	13+2	0	0+0	0	0+0	0	1+0	0
	FW	IRL	John Aldridge	2	1	0+2	1	0+0	0	0+0	0	0+0	0
	MF	ENG	John Barnes	45	28	34+0	22	8+0	5	1+0	0	2+0	1
	FW	ENG	Peter Beardsley	41	16	27+2	10	8+0	4	1+0	1	2+1	1
	DF	ENG	David Burrows	33	0	23+3	0	2+1	0	1+0	0	3+0	0
	FW	SCO	Kenny Dalglish	1	0	0+1	0	0+0	0	0+0	0	0+0	0
	DF	SCO	Gary Gillespie	16	4	11+2	4	1+1	0	0+0	0	1+0	0
	GK	ZIM	Bruce Grobbelaar	50	0	38+0	0	8+0	0	1+0	0	3+0	0
	DF	SCO	Alan Hansen	42	0	31+0	0	8+0	0	1+0	0	2+0	0
	MF	IRL	Ray Houghton	25	1	16+3	1	3+1	0	0+0	0	2+0	0
	DF	SWE	Glenn Hysén	46	2	35+0	1	8+0	0	1+0	0	2+0	1
	MF	ENG	Mike Marsh	2	0	0+2	0	0+0	0	0+0	0	0+0	0
	MF	ENG	Steve McMahon	49	6	37+1	5	8+0	1	1+0	0	2+0	0
	MF	DEN	Jan Mølby	20	1	12+5	1	0+0	0	0+0	0	2+1	0
	MF	SCO	Steve Nicol	33	9	21+2	6	7+0	3	1+0	0	2+0	0
	FW	ISR	Ronny Rosenthal	8	7	5+3	7	0+0	0	0+0	0	0+0	0
	FW	WAL	Ian Rush	48	26	36+0	18	8+0	6	1+0	0	3+0	2
	DF	IRL	Steve Staunton	28	0	18+2	0	4+2	0	0+0	0	0+2	0
	DF	ENG	Nick Tanner	4	0	2+2	0	0+0	0	0+0	0	0+0	0
	DF	ENG	Barry Venison	37	0	25+0	0	7+1	0	1+0	0	2+1	0
	DF	ENG	Alex Watson	1	0	0+0	0	0+0	0	0+0	0	1+0	0
	MF	IRL	Ronnie Whelan	46	2	34+0	1	8+0	1	1+0	0	3+0	0

Transfers

In

Pos	Player	From	Fee	Date
DF	Glenn Hysén	Fiorentina	£600,000	1 June 1989
DF	Steve Harkness	Carlisle United	£75,000	17 July 1989

Out

Pos	Player	To	Fee	Date
DF	Jim Beglin	Leeds United	Free	06-1989
FW	John Aldridge	Real Sociedad	£1,250,000	13 September 1989

Loaned In

Pos	Player	From	Start	End
FW	Ronnie Rosenthal	Standard Liège	22 March 1990	26 June 1990

Pre-Season and friendlies

29 July  1989 (1989 -07-29) Makita Tournament R1	Dynamo Kyiv	0–2	Liverpool	London
		Report	Barnes (pen.) Aldridge	Stadium: Wembley Attendance: 20,374

30 July  1989 (1989 -07-30) Makita Tournament Final	Arsenal	1–0	Liverpool	London
	Bould 13'	Report		Stadium: Wembley Attendance: 23,026 Referee: G. Courtney

1 August  1989 (1989 -08-01) Tour of Sweden	Malmö FF	1–2	Liverpool	Malmö
	Dahlin 79'	Report	Rush 18' Hysén 64'	Stadium: Malmö Stadion Attendance: 17,239

3 August  1989 (1989 -08-03) Tour of Sweden	Vasalunds IF	1–1	Liverpool	Stockholm
	Ivey 38'	Report	Aldridge 13'	Stadium: Skytteholms IP Attendance: 9,115

5 August  1989 (1989 -08-05) Tour of Sweden	Halmstads BK	0–1	Liverpool	Halmstad
		Report	Beardsley	Stadium: Örjans Vall Attendance: 8,676

30 August  1989 (1989 -08-30) Bernabéu Trophy Final	Real Madrid CF	2–0	Liverpool	Madrid
	Sánchez 15' Butragueño 18'	Report		Stadium: Santiago Bernabéu Stadium Attendance: 45,000 Referee: I.U. Azpitarte

Competitions

FA Charity Shield

Arsenal	0–1	Liverpool
		Beardsley 32'

Arsenal

Liverpool

GK 1 John Lukic RB 2 Lee Dixon LB 3 Nigel Winterburn CM 4 Michael Thomas CB 5 David O'Leary CB 6 Tony Adams (c) RM 7 David Rocastle CM 8 Kevin Richardson CF 9 Alan Smith  76' CB 10 Gus Caesar  58' LM 11 Paul Merson Substitutes: MF Brian Marwood  58' FW Niall Quinn  76' Manager: George Graham

GK 1 Bruce Grobbelaar CB 2 Glenn Hysén LB 3 David Burrows RM 4 Steve Nicol CM 5 Ronnie Whelan CB 6 Alan Hansen (c) CF 7 Peter Beardsley RB 8 Barry Venison CF 9 Ian Rush LM 10 John Barnes CM 11 Steve McMahon Substitutes: GK 12 Mike Hooper DF 14 Gary Ablett MF 15 Jan Molby FW 16 John Aldridge Manager: Kenny Dalglish

League Division 1

League table

Matches

19 August  1989 (1989 -08-19) 1	Liverpool	3–1	Manchester City	Liverpool
15:00 BST	Barnes 7' (pen.) Beardsley 60' Nicol 90'	Report	Hinchcliffe 23' McNab	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 37,628 Referee: Dave Phillips

23 August  1989 (1989 -08-23) 2	Aston Villa	1–1	Liverpool	Birmingham
19:30 BST	Platt 60'	Report	Barnes 24'	Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 35,796 Referee: Ron Groves

9 September  1989 (1989 -09-09) 4	Derby County	0–3	Liverpool	Derby
15:00 BST		Report	Rush 50' Barnes 82' (pen.) Beardsley 90'	Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 20,034 Referee: George Courtney

12 September  1989 (1989 -09-12) 5	Liverpool	9–0	Crystal Palace	Liverpool
19:30 BST	Nicol 7', 90' McMahon 15' Rush 45' Gillespie 56' Beardsley 61' Aldridge 67' (pen.) Barnes 79' Hysén 82'	Report		Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 35,779 Referee: Keren Barratt

23 September  1989 (1989 -09-23) 7	Everton	1–3	Liverpool	Liverpool
15:00 BST	Newell 18'	Report	Barnes 33' Rush 62', 64'	Stadium: Goodison Park Attendance: 42,453 Referee: Bob Nixon

14 October  1989 (1989 -10-14) 8	Wimbledon	1–2	Liverpool	Wimbledon
15:00 BST	Wise 49'	Report	Beardsley 3' Whelan 55'	Stadium: Plough Lane Attendance: 13,510 Referee: Lester Shapter

21 October  1989 (1989 -10-21) 9	Southampton	4–1	Liverpool	Southampton
15:00 BST	Rideout 24' Wallace 38', 55' Le Tissier 83'	Report	Beardsley 57' (pen.)	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 20,501 Referee: Ray Lewis

29 October  1989 (1989 -10-29) 10	Liverpool	1–0	Tottenham Hotspur	Liverpool
15:30 GMT	Barnes 25'	Report		Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 36,550 Referee: David Hutchison

4 November  1989 (1989 -11-04) 11	Liverpool	0–1	Coventry City	Liverpool
15:00 GMT		Report	Regis 47'	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 36,443 Referee: T. Simpson

11 November  1989 (1989 -11-11) 12	Queens Park Rangers	3–2	Liverpool	London
15:00 GMT	Wright 27' (pen.), 36' Falco 56'	Report	Barnes 32' (pen.), 58'	Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 18,804 Referee: John E. Martin

19 November  1989 (1989 -11-19) 13	Millwall	1–2	Liverpool	London
15:30 GMT	Thompson 38'	Report	Barnes 36' Rush 70'	Stadium: The Den Attendance: 13,547 Referee: Jim Ashworth

26 November  1989 (1989 -11-26) 14	Liverpool	2–1	Arsenal	Liverpool
15:30 GMT	McMahon 30' Barnes 65'	Report	Smith 79'	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 35,983 Referee: Mike Peck

29 November  1989 (1989 -11-29) 15	Sheffield Wednesday	2–0	Liverpool	Sheffield
19:45 GMT	Hirst 54' Atkinson 90'	Report		Stadium: Hillsborough Attendance: 32,732 Referee: Vic Callow

2 December  1989 (1989 -12-02) 16	Manchester City	1–4	Liverpool	Manchester
15:00 GMT	Allen 59' (pen.)	Report	Rush 9', 88' Beardsley 48' McMahon 58'	Stadium: Maine Road Attendance: 31,641 Referee: Arthur Ward

9 December  1989 (1989 -12-09) 17	Liverpool	1–1	Aston Villa	Liverpool
15:00 GMT	Beardsley 64'	Report	Olney 21'	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 37,435 Referee: Ken Redfern

16 December  1989 (1989 -12-16) 18	Chelsea	2–5	Liverpool	London
15:00 GMT	Durie 10' Dixon 89'	Report	Beardsley 3' Rush 5', 79' Houghton 23' McMahon 51'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge Attendance: 31,005 Referee: George Courtney

26 December  1989 (1989 -12-26) 20	Liverpool	2–1	Sheffield Wednesday	Liverpool
15:00 GMT	Mølby 2' Rush 84'	Report	Atkinson 49'	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 37,488 Referee: Peter Tyldesley

30 December  1989 (1989 -12-30) 21	Liverpool	1–0	Charlton Athletic	Liverpool
15:00 GMT	Barnes 17'	Report		Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 36,678 Referee: John Key

1 January  1990 (1990 -01-01) 22	Nottingham Forest	2–2	Liverpool	Nottingham
17:05 GMT	Hodge 50' Clough 60' (pen.)	Report	Rush 13', 38'	Stadium: City Ground Attendance: 24,518 Referee: Alf Buksh

13 January  1990 (1990 -01-13) 23	Liverpool	2–2	Luton Town	Liverpool
15:00 GMT	Barnes 32' Nicol 75'	Report	Black 71' Nogan 73'	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 35,312 Referee: Trelford Mills

20 January  1990 (1990 -01-20) 24	Crystal Palace	0–2	Liverpool	London
15:00 GMT		Report	Rush 9' Beardsley 62'	Stadium: Selhurst Park Attendance: 29,807 Referee: Martin Bodenham

3 February  1990 (1990 -02-03) 25	Liverpool	2–1	Everton	Liverpool
15:00 GMT	Barnes 10' Beardsley 29' (pen.)	Report	Sharp 43'	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 38,730 Referee: David Allison

10 February  1990 (1990 -02-10) 26	Norwich City	0–0	Liverpool	Norwich
15:05 GMT		Report	Hysén  51'	Stadium: Carrow Road Attendance: 20,210 Referee: Lester Shapter

3 March  1990 (1990 -03-03) 27	Liverpool	1–0	Millwall	Liverpool
15:00 GMT	Gillespie 83'	Report		Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 36,427 Referee: George Tyson

18 March  1990 (1990 -03-18) 28	Manchester United	1–2	Liverpool	Manchester
15:30 GMT	Whelan 82' (o.g.)	Report	Barnes 15', 55' (pen.)	Stadium: Old Trafford Attendance: 46,629 Referee: George Courtney

21 March  1990 (1990 -03-21) 29	Tottenham Hotspur	1–0	Liverpool	London
20:05 GMT	Stewart 83'	Report		Stadium: White Hart Lane Attendance: 25,656 Referee: Keith Hackett

31 March  1990 (1990 -03-31) 30	Liverpool	3–2	Southampton	Liverpool
15:00 BST	Barnes 15' Osman 73' (o.g.) Rush 82'	Report	Rideout 35' Case 48'	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 37,027 Referee: Terry Holbrook

3 April  1990 (1990 -04-03) 31	Liverpool	2–1	Wimbledon	Liverpool
19:30 BST	Rush 10' Gillespie 44' Hysén McMahon	Report	Hansen 70' (o.g.) Fashanu	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 33,319 Referee: Ken Redfern

11 April  1990 (1990 -04-11) 32	Charlton Athletic	0–4	Liverpool	London
19:45 BST		Report	Rosenthal 26', 50', 62' Barnes 87'	Stadium: Selhurst Park Attendance: 13,982 Referee: David Axcell

14 April  1990 (1990 -04-14) 33	Liverpool	2–2	Nottingham Forest	Liverpool
15:00 BST	Rosenthal 12' McMahon 15'	Report	Hodge 52' Jemson 70'	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 37,265 Referee: Keren Barratt

18 April  1990 (1990 -04-18) 34	Arsenal	1–1	Liverpool	London
20:05 BST	Merson 40'	Report	Barnes 86'	Stadium: Highbury Attendance: 33,395 Referee: Alan Seville

21 April  1990 (1990 -04-21) 35	Liverpool	4–1	Chelsea	Liverpool
15:00 BST	Rosenthal 25' Nicol 36', 80' Rush 82'	Report	Dixon 90'	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 38,431 Referee: Roger Milford

28 April  1990 (1990 -04-28) 36	Liverpool	2–1	Queens Park Rangers	Liverpool
15:00 BST	Rush 40' Barnes 63' (pen.)	Report	Wegerle 14'	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 37,758 Referee: Robbie Hart

1 May  1990 (1990 -05-01) 37	Liverpool	1–0	Derby County	Liverpool
19:30 BST	Gillespie	Report		Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 38,038 Referee: Brian Hill

5 May  1990 (1990 -05-05) 38	Coventry City	1–6	Liverpool	Coventry
15:00 BST	Gallacher 2'	Report	Rush 16' Barnes 37', 39', 61' Rosenthal 50', 69'	Stadium: Highfield Road Attendance: 23,204 Referee: Fangon Roberts

F.A. Cup

Matches

9 January  1990 (1990 -01-09) 3	Liverpool	8–0	Swansea City	Liverpool
19:30 GMT	Barnes 21', 43' Whelan 40' Rush 53', 77', 83' Beardsley 54' Nicol 86'	Report		Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 29,194 Referee: Alan Gunn

31 January  1990 (1990 -01-31) 4	Liverpool	3–1	Norwich City	Liverpool
19:30 GMT	Nicol 17' Barnes 56' Beardsley 64' (pen.)	Report	Fleck 19'	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 29,339 Referee: Keith Hackett

17 February  1990 (1990 -02-17) 5	Liverpool	3–0	Southampton	Liverpool
15:00 GMT	Rush 39' Beardsley 64' Nicol 77'	Report		Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 35,961 Referee: Neil Midgley

11 March  1990 (1990 -03-11) 6	Queens Park Rangers	2–2	Liverpool	London
15:05 GMT	Wilkins 29' Barker 83'	Report	Barnes 55' Rush 80'	Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 21,057 Referee: Brian Hill

14 March  1990 (1990 -03-14) 6	Liverpool	1–0	Queens Park Rangers	Liverpool
19:30 GMT	Beardsley 4'	Report		Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 38,090 Referee: Alan Seville

8 April  1990 (1990 -04-08) Semi-final	Liverpool	3–4 (a.e.t.)	Crystal Palace	Birmingham
12:00 BST	Rush 14' McMahon 81' Barnes 83'	Report	Bright 46' O'Reilly 70' Gray 88' Pardew 109'	Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 38,389 Referee: George Courtney

Football League Cup

Matches

19 September  1989 (1989 -09-19) 1	Liverpool	5–2	Wigan Athletic	Liverpool
19:30 BST	Hysén 4' Rush 64', 66' Beardsley 81' Barnes 88'	Report	Griffiths 18' Thompson 54'	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 19,231 Referee: R Dilkes

4 October  1989 (1989 -10-04) 1	Wigan Athletic	0–3 (2–8 agg.)	Liverpool	Liverpool
19:30 BST		Report	Staunton 59', 72', 88'	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 17,954 Referee: PL Wright
Note: Played at Anfield because Springfield Park did not meet safety standards.

25 October  1989 (1989 -10-25) 2	Arsenal	1–0	Liverpool	London
19:45 BST	Smith 80'	Report		Stadium: Highbury Attendance: 40,814 Referee: Alan Gunn

Notes

1. Liverpool were banned by UEFA from its competitions from the season 1985–86 on for 10 years, because of the Heysel Stadium disaster in 1985, involving Liverpool fans. The ban was eventually lifted for the 1991–92 season.

References

• "Games for the 1989–90 season". LFC History.net. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
• "Games for the 1989–90 season". Liverweb. Archived from the original on 6 June 2011. Retrieved 23 January 2023.

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10. "Why Liverpool FC haven't won the league title in 25 years". Liverpool Echo. 28 April 2015. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
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14. "Guide to the weekend fixtures". The Times. London. 12 August 1989. p. 42.
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• Liverpool F.C. seasons
• English football championship–winning seasons
• 1989–90 Football League First Division by team