# 1952–53 Manchester United F.C. season

The 1952–53 season was Manchester United's 51st season in the Football League, and their eighth consecutive season in the top division of English football.
The regeneration of squad continued as younger players continued to take the place of the players who had been in the 1948 FA Cup winning team and the previous season's title campaign. Making their senior debuts this season were teenagers Duncan Edwards, a half-back from Dudley, and Doncaster-born winger David Pegg. Also joining the ranks was 21-year-old centre-forward Tommy Taylor from Barnsley for a club record fee of £29,999 in April 1953, a month before Edwards made his debut.

## FA Charity Shield

| Date | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
| 24 September 1952 | Newcastle United | H | 4–2 | Rowley (2), Byrne, Downie | 11,381 |

## First Division

| Date | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance | League position |
| 23 August 1952 | Chelsea | H | 2–0 | Berry, Downie | 43,629 | 3rd |
| 27 August 1952 | Arsenal | A | 1–2 | Rowley | 58,831 | 8th |
| 30 August 1952 | Manchester City | A | 1–2 | Downie | 56,140 | 14th |
| 3 September 1952 | Arsenal | H | 0–0 | | 39,193 | 13th |
| 6 September 1952 | Portsmouth | A | 0–2 | | 37,278 | 19th |
| 10 September 1952 | Derby County | A | 3–2 | Pearson (3) | 20,226 | 13th |
| 13 September 1952 | Bolton Wanderers | H | 1–0 | Berry | 40,531 | 11th |
| 20 September 1952 | Aston Villa | A | 3–3 | Rowley (2), Downie | 43,490 | 12th |
| 27 September 1952 | Sunderland | H | 0–1 | | 28,967 | 15th |
| 4 October 1952 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | A | 2–6 | Rowley (2) | 40,132 | 17th |
| 11 October 1952 | Stoke City | H | 0–2 | | 28,968 | 21st |
| 18 October 1952 | Preston North End | A | 5–0 | Aston (2), Pearson (2), Rowley | 33,502 | 17th |
| 25 October 1952 | Burnley | H | 1–3 | Aston | 36,913 | 19th |
| 1 November 1952 | Tottenham Hotspur | A | 2–1 | Berry (2) | 44,300 | 18th |
| 8 November 1952 | Sheffield Wednesday | H | 1–1 | Pearson | 48,571 | 19th |
| 15 November 1952 | Cardiff City | A | 2–1 | Aston, Pearson | 40,096 | 15th |
| 22 November 1952 | Newcastle United | H | 2–2 | Aston, Pearson | 33,528 | 15th |
| 29 November 1952 | West Bromwich Albion | A | 1–3 | Lewis | 23,499 | 16th |
| 6 December 1952 | Middlesbrough | H | 3–2 | Pearson (2), Aston | 27,617 | 15th |
| 13 December 1952 | Liverpool | A | 2–1 | Aston, Pearson | 34,450 | 11th |
| 20 December 1952 | Chelsea | A | 3–2 | Doherty (2), Aston | 23,261 | 8th |
| 25 December 1952 | Blackpool | A | 0–0 | | 27,778 | 9th |
| 26 December 1952 | Blackpool | H | 2–1 | Carey, Lewis | 48,077 | 8th |
| 1 January 1953 | Derby County | H | 1–0 | Lewis | 34,813 | 8th |
| 3 January 1953 | Manchester City | H | 1–1 | Pearson | 47,883 | 7th |
| 17 January 1953 | Portsmouth | H | 1–0 | Lewis | 32,341 | 6th |
| 24 January 1953 | Bolton Wanderers | A | 1–2 | Lewis | 43,638 | 7th |
| 7 February 1953 | Aston Villa | H | 3–1 | Rowley (2), Lewis | 34,339 | 7th |
| 18 February 1953 | Sunderland | A | 2–2 | Lewis, Pegg | 24,263 | 7th |
| 21 February 1953 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | H | 0–3 | | 38,269 | 8th |
| 28 February 1953 | Stoke City | A | 1–3 | Berry | 30,219 | 9th |
| 7 March 1953 | Preston North End | H | 5–2 | Pegg (2), Taylor (2), Rowley | 52,590 | 9th |
| 14 March 1953 | Burnley | A | 1–2 | Byrne | 45,682 | 9th |
| 25 March 1953 | Tottenham Hotspur | H | 3–2 | Pearson (2), Pegg | 18,384 | 8th |
| 28 March 1953 | Sheffield Wednesday | A | 0–0 | | 36,509 | 8th |
| 3 April 1953 | Charlton Athletic | A | 2–2 | Berry, Taylor | 41,814 | 8th |
| 4 April 1953 | Cardiff City | H | 1–4 | Byrne | 37,163 | 8th |
| 6 April 1953 | Charlton Athletic | H | 3–2 | Taylor (2), Rowley | 30,105 | 8th |
| 11 April 1953 | Newcastle United | A | 2–1 | Taylor (2) | 38,970 | 8th |
| 18 April 1953 | West Bromwich Albion | H | 2–2 | Pearson, Viollet | 31,380 | 8th |
| 20 April 1953 | Liverpool | H | 3–1 | Berry, Pearson, Rowley | 20,869 | 7th |
| 25 April 1953 | Middlesbrough | A | 0–5 | | 34,344 | 8th |
| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GAv | Pts | Relegation |
| 1 | Arsenal (C) | 42 | 21 | 12 | 9 | 97 | 64 | 1.516 | 54 | |
| 2 | Preston North End | 42 | 21 | 12 | 9 | 85 | 60 | 1.417 | 54 | |
| 3 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 42 | 19 | 13 | 10 | 86 | 63 | 1.365 | 51 | |
| 4 | West Bromwich Albion | 42 | 21 | 8 | 13 | 66 | 60 | 1.100 | 50 | |
| 5 | Charlton Athletic | 42 | 19 | 11 | 12 | 77 | 63 | 1.222 | 49 | |
| 6 | Burnley | 42 | 18 | 12 | 12 | 67 | 52 | 1.288 | 48 | |
| 7 | Blackpool | 42 | 19 | 9 | 14 | 71 | 70 | 1.014 | 47 | |
| 8 | Manchester United | 42 | 18 | 10 | 14 | 69 | 72 | 0.958 | 46 | |
| 9 | Sunderland | 42 | 15 | 13 | 14 | 68 | 82 | 0.829 | 43 | |
| 10 | Tottenham Hotspur | 42 | 15 | 11 | 16 | 78 | 69 | 1.130 | 41 | |
| 11 | Aston Villa | 42 | 14 | 13 | 15 | 63 | 61 | 1.033 | 41 | |
| 12 | Cardiff City | 42 | 14 | 12 | 16 | 54 | 46 | 1.174 | 40 | |
| 13 | Middlesbrough | 42 | 14 | 11 | 17 | 70 | 77 | 0.909 | 39 | |
| 14 | Bolton Wanderers | 42 | 15 | 9 | 18 | 61 | 69 | 0.884 | 39 | |
| 15 | Portsmouth | 42 | 14 | 10 | 18 | 74 | 83 | 0.892 | 38 | |
| 16 | Newcastle United | 42 | 14 | 9 | 19 | 59 | 70 | 0.843 | 37 | |
| 17 | Liverpool | 42 | 14 | 8 | 20 | 61 | 82 | 0.744 | 36 | |
| 18 | Sheffield Wednesday | 42 | 12 | 11 | 19 | 62 | 72 | 0.861 | 35 | |
| 19 | Chelsea | 42 | 12 | 11 | 19 | 56 | 66 | 0.848 | 35 | |
| 20 | Manchester City | 42 | 14 | 7 | 21 | 72 | 87 | 0.828 | 35 | |
| 21 | Stoke City (R) | 42 | 12 | 10 | 20 | 53 | 66 | 0.803 | 34 | Relegation to the Second Division |
| 22 | Derby County (R) | 42 | 11 | 10 | 21 | 59 | 74 | 0.797 | 32 | Relegation to the Second Division |

## FA Cup

| Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
| 10 January 1953 | Round 3 | Millwall | A | 1–0 | Pearson | 35,652 |
| 31 January 1953 | Round 4 | Walthamstow Avenue | H | 1–1 | Lewis | 34,748 |
| 5 February 1953 | Round 4 Replay | Walthamstow Avenue | A | 5–2 | Rowley (2), Byrne, Lewis, Pearson | 49,119 |
| 14 February 1953 | Round 5 | Everton | A | 1–2 | Rowley | 77,920 |

## Squad statistics

| Pos. | Name | League | League | FA Cup | FA Cup | Charity Shield | Charity Shield | Total | Total |
| Pos. | Name | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| GK | Reg Allen | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| GK | Jack Crompton | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 0 |
| GK | Les Olive | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| GK | Ray Wood | 12 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 17 | 0 |
| FB | John Aston, Sr. | 40 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 45 | 8 |
| FB | Roger Byrne | 40 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 45 | 4 |
| FB | Johnny Carey | 32 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 37 | 1 |
| FB | Bill Foulkes | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| FB | Mark Jones | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| FB | Tommy McNulty | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 24 | 0 |
| FB | Billy Redman | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| HB | Jackie Blanchflower | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| HB | Allenby Chilton | 42 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 47 | 0 |
| HB | Henry Cockburn | 22 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 0 |
| HB | Duncan Edwards | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| HB | Don Gibson | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 21 | 0 |
| HB | Jeff Whitefoot | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 |
| FW | Johnny Berry | 40 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 45 | 7 |
| FW | Ernie Bond | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| FW | Frank Clempson | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| FW | John Doherty | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 |
| FW | Johnny Downie | 20 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 23 | 4 |
| FW | Eddie Lewis | 10 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 9 |
| FW | Harry McShane | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| FW | Stan Pearson | 39 | 16 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 44 | 18 |
| FW | David Pegg | 19 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 4 |
| FW | Jack Rowley | 26 | 11 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 31 | 16 |
| FW | Jackie Scott | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| FW | Tommy Taylor | 11 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 7 |
| FW | Dennis Viollet | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 |