1977 FA Cup Final: Manchester United 2-1 Liverpool

The footage

The match report

Manchester United beat Liverpool 2-1 at Wembley on Saturday 21 May 1977 and won the FA Cup for the fourth time. Liverpool had already retained the First Division title and were due to play the European Cup final four days later. Victory here would have completed an English treble no club had achieved. Instead United, sixth in the league and beaten by Southampton at Wembley the previous year, took the season's domestic knockout prize.[1][14][16][3]

The scoreless first half was not empty. A contemporary season review by Brian James records Liverpool chances for Ray Kennedy, David Johnson, Steve Heighway and Kevin Keegan, with Alex Stepney using a foot to stop Kennedy's header. United's counterweight was defensive: Martin Buchan's authority, Arthur Albiston's composure at left back and occasional openings created by Lou Macari and Steve Coppell. The official Manchester United archive's surviving full match also makes the contrast visible: Liverpool carried the earlier danger, but United were still level at the interval.[5][2]

Then the final broke open. Jimmy Greenhoff flicked a long ball beyond Emlyn Hughes and Stuart Pearson drove past Ray Clemence. Joey Jones answered with a cross from the left; Jimmy Case controlled, turned and struck a rising half-volley beyond Stepney. Liverpool's own profile of Case still singles out that sumptuous strike even though it came in defeat. Within the same rush, Macari shot from distance and the ball changed direction off Greenhoff before looping over Clemence and Phil Neal on the line.[15][3][11][2]

That final touch created a small argument that outlived the afternoon. Macari later recalled that he hit the shot and initially thought it had gone straight past Clemence, before television showed the deflection from Greenhoff's shoulder. Greenhoff accepted the official credit and later insisted the goal was his. Other accounts call the contact chest or shoulder. The safe conclusion is the one the scorebook supports: Macari supplied the shot, Greenhoff supplied the decisive deflection, and Greenhoff is the scorer.[16][17][8][11]

United still had to defend the lead against England's champions. Liverpool introduced Ian Callaghan for David Johnson, while Tommy Docherty eventually replaced Gordon Hill with David McCreery. Buchan and Brian Greenhoff held the centre, young Albiston completed an assured FA Cup debut, and Stepney's first-half intervention gained greater weight with every Liverpool attack that failed to produce a second equaliser.[10][9][5][4]

The clock is less certain than the sequence. One widely used match record places the goals at 51, 53 and 55 minutes. LFChistory shifts Case back to 52, while MUFCinfo shifts both Pearson and Case back to 50 and 52. All agree on Greenhoff at 55, and all describe the same order. This page uses 51, 53 and 55 because two independent match records share them, but it preserves every one-minute alternative rather than manufacturing agreement.[10][15][9][8]

At full time the consequences divided sharply. United had recovered from their 1976 final defeat and added a fourth FA Cup. Liverpool had lost the middle leg of their treble attempt, yet the disappointment did not define their season: four days later they beat Borussia Monchengladbach in Rome to win the European Cup. Jimmy Case's official Liverpool profile treats the Wembley goal as one brilliant moment inside a campaign crowned by league and European medals.[1][3][16]

The material memories are less tidy. Greenhoff later said his Wembley shirt had been stolen from the dressing room; when the person responsible eventually contacted him, he allowed them to keep it. He would not sell the winner's medal either, regarding it as belonging in part to the supporters who had followed the team. The goal's ownership may invite argument, but Greenhoff's account of what the medal represented does not: the final was a collective release after the disappointment of the year before.[17][1]

How the match unfolded

1. pre-matchLiverpool arrive as league champions and favourites, with the European Cup final still to come. Manchester United are attempting to recover from defeat in the previous season's FA Cup final.[1][14][16]
2. first halfLiverpool create the clearer openings. Alex Stepney blocks Ray Kennedy's header with a foot, while David Johnson, Steve Heighway and Kevin Keegan also threaten. United's defence, led by Martin Buchan, keeps the game scoreless.[5][2]
3. half-timeManchester United 0-0 Liverpool. United have shown flashes through Lou Macari and Steve Coppell, and young left back Arthur Albiston has settled into the occasion.[5][11]
4. 51'Jimmy Greenhoff flicks a long ball beyond Emlyn Hughes and Stuart Pearson runs through to drive Manchester United ahead. MUFCinfo records the goal at 50 rather than 51.[10][8][15]
5. 53'Joey Jones crosses from the left, Jimmy Case controls the ball and turns before striking a high half-volley beyond Stepney. LFChistory and MUFCinfo record the equaliser at 52.[10][9][8][3]
6. 55'Macari's shot is travelling wide when it strikes Jimmy Greenhoff's upper body and loops over the wrong-footed Ray Clemence. Phil Neal cannot keep it out on the line, and the goal is credited to Greenhoff.[11][16][17][8]
7. 64'Liverpool send on Ian Callaghan for David Johnson. LFChistory records the change at 63, one minute earlier.[10][9]
8. 81'David McCreery replaces Gordon Hill as United protect the lead.[10][9][8]
9. full-timeManchester United win 2-1. The result gives United their fourth FA Cup and ends Liverpool's attempt to win the league, FA Cup and European Cup in the same season.[1][8][16]

Match facts

Date

Saturday 21 May 1977

Venue

Wembley Stadium, London

Attendance

99,252MUFCinfo and Transfermarkt give the precise figure 99,252. Several other records and the contemporary season review round the crowd to 100,000; the precise figure is published here and the rounding is retained in uncertainties.[8][11]

Referee

Robert Matthewson (Bolton)[10][11]

Scorers

Stuart Pearson 51'
Jimmy Case 53'
Jimmy Greenhoff 55'[1][10][8]

Half-time

0-0

Competition

1976-77 FA Cup

Where they played

Both sides as they lined up. Choose any player to read what they did in this final.

Select a shirt for that player's note.

Route to the final

Line-ups

Trivia and detail

• Arthur Albiston started only because Stewart Houston was injured. In the official Manchester United podcast, Albiston recalled feeling guilty about receiving his 1977 medal because Houston's misfortune had opened the place.[4]
• Manchester United's official archive makes the complete match available on MUTV in a programme running for one hour and 37 minutes.[2]
• The 1977 final was John Motson's first FA Cup final as a commentator. In a later Football Association interview, Motson said the competition had taken on extra importance for him from the moment he received that assignment.[6]
• Martin Buchan became the first player to captain both Scottish Cup and FA Cup winning sides. He had led Aberdeen past Celtic in the 1970 Scottish Cup final before captaining United at Wembley.[7]
• Brian James's contemporary review counted this as Tommy Docherty's eighth Wembley visit in playing or managerial colours, and the first on which he left as a winner.[5]
• The same contemporary account picked out Wembley's unusual colour pattern: the supporter camps at both ends were decked in red on a bright, sunny afternoon.[5]
• Liverpool needed a replay in both the third round and the semi-final. The semi-final was a Merseyside derby against Everton, and both matches were staged at Maine Road.[13]
• Manchester United played six matches in their cup run, scoring ten and conceding five. Liverpool played seven, scoring sixteen and also conceding five.[12][13]
• The teams had met in the league at Anfield eighteen days before the final. Liverpool won that match 1-0.[12][13]

How well do you know the 1977 final?

Five questions. Every answer is sourced from the material on this page.

1. Who was officially credited with Manchester United's winning goal in the 1977 FA Cup final?

   Jimmy GreenhoffLou MacariStuart PearsonSteve Coppell
   Answer

   Jimmy Greenhoff. Macari struck the shot, but it deflected from Greenhoff and the goal was credited to Greenhoff.[8][16][17]

2. Which Liverpool player scored the equaliser?

   Jimmy CaseKevin KeeganDavid JohnsonTerry McDermott
   Answer

   Jimmy Case. Case controlled Joey Jones's cross, turned and drove a rising half-volley beyond Alex Stepney.[3][10]

3. What had Liverpool already won before arriving at Wembley?

   The First DivisionThe European CupThe League CupThe UEFA Cup
   Answer

   The First Division. Liverpool had retained the league title; their European Cup final followed four days after Wembley.[14][3]

4. Which young Manchester United defender started after Stewart Houston was injured?

   Arthur AlbistonJimmy NichollBrian GreenhoffDavid McCreery
   Answer

   Arthur Albiston. Albiston took the left-back place and later recalled mixed feelings because Houston's injury created the opportunity.[4][5]

5. Which team did Manchester United beat in the semi-final?

   Leeds UnitedEvertonAston VillaSouthampton
   Answer

   Leeds United. United beat Leeds United 2-1 at Hillsborough. Everton were Liverpool's semi-final opponents.[12][13]

What is not settled

Honesty matters more than tidiness. These details are contested or unrecorded, and we have not guessed at them:

• The goal minutes differ by source. This record publishes 51, 53 and 55 from 11v11 and FA-CupFinals.co.uk. LFChistory gives 51, 52 and 55; MUFCinfo gives 50, 52 and 55. The sequence and scorers are not disputed.
• Attendance is printed as 99,252 by MUFCinfo and Transfermarkt, but 11v11, LFChistory, English Football League Tables and the contemporary Brian James review round it to 100,000. The precise shared figure is used here.
• Accounts of the winning deflection name Jimmy Greenhoff but vary over the point of contact, describing shoulder, chest or upper body. This record uses upper body and does not pretend the surviving wording settles the anatomy.
• Ian Callaghan's introduction is timed at 64 by 11v11 and at 63 by LFChistory. The record uses 64 and preserves the alternative.
• Transfermarkt reconstructs both formations as 4-4-2. Period teams were more fluid than a modern formation graphic suggests, so the lineups are confirmed but the drawn shapes should be read as supported reconstructions.
• The scanned Brian James review is clearly signed and contemporary to the season, but the scan does not expose enough front matter to identify its original volume title with confidence. It is cited by article title, pages and host rather than assigned an invented publication title.
• No official or rightsholder YouTube upload was found. Unofficial full-match uploads were deliberately rejected before proposal; the official Manchester United archive full match remains available through MUTV's proprietary player.

How we know

Every claim on this page is tied to a numbered source below. These are the contemporary records behind it, each one fetched and matched word for word before publication rather than taken on trust:

• Club trophy history, 1976 and 1977 entries · Manchester United
• Official full-match archive listing, duration 1h 37m · Manchester United MUTV
• Official former-player profile, 1977 final and season honours · Liverpool FC
• Episode summary, published 11 January 2022 · Official Manchester United Podcast via Acast
• Pages 470-471, article signed Brian James · Brian James season review, scan hosted by Historical Lineups
• FA interview published 16 May 2018; Motson identifies 1977 as his first Final commentary · The Football Association
• Scottish Football Hall of Fame profile, inducted 2013 · Scottish Football Museum

Where a primary record and a modern account disagree, we show both rather than choosing the tidier number.

Sources

1. FA Cup · Manchester United
2. Watch in full: United 2 Liverpool 1 · Manchester United MUTV
3. Jimmy Case · Liverpool FC
4. Arthur Albiston · Official Manchester United Podcast via Acast
5. F.A. Cup 1976-77 season review · Brian James season review, scan hosted by Historical Lineups
6. Legendary BBC commentator John Motson on his love for The FA Cup · The Football Association
7. Martin Buchan · Scottish Football Museum
8. Manchester United v Liverpool, 21 May 1977 · MUFCinfo
9. Manchester United 2-1 Liverpool · LFChistory.net
10. Liverpool v Manchester United, 21 May 1977 · 11v11
11. Manchester United v Liverpool FC, 21 May 1977 · Transfermarkt
12. Manchester United football club match record: 1977 · 11v11
13. Liverpool football club match record: 1977 · 11v11
14. England 1976-77 · English Football League Tables
15. 1977 FA Cup Final · FA-CupFinals.co.uk
16. Lou Macari of Manchester United: The winning goal I didn't score · The Independent
17. How proud Jimmy swapped Wembley for the warehouse · Evening Standard

Elsewhere in the encyclopedia

These two clubs have met in a final before

• 1996 Liverpool 0-1 Manchester United

Other finals involving these clubs

• 1971 Liverpool: Arsenal 2-1 Liverpool
• 1974 Liverpool: Liverpool 3-0 Newcastle United
• 1976 Manchester United: Manchester United 0-1 Southampton
• 1979 Manchester United: Arsenal 3-2 Manchester United
• 1983 Manchester United: Brighton & Hove Albion 2-2 Manchester United
• 1985 Manchester United: Everton 0-1 Manchester United

Other finals at Wembley Stadium

• 1923 Bolton Wanderers 2-0 West Ham United
• 1953 Blackpool 4-3 Bolton Wanderers
• 1971 Arsenal 2-1 Liverpool
• 1973 Sunderland 1-0 Leeds United
• 1974 Liverpool 3-0 Newcastle United
• 1975 West Ham United 2-0 Fulham

Elsewhere on WhatChan