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| Event | 1975–76 Football League Cup | ||||||
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| Date | 28 February 1976 | ||||||
| Venue | Wembley Stadium, London | ||||||
| Referee | Jack Taylor | ||||||
| Attendance | 100,000 | ||||||
←1975 1977 → | |||||||
The1976 Football League Cup Final took place betweenManchester City andNewcastle United on 28 February 1976 atWembley Stadium. It was the sixteenth final and the tenthFootball League Cup final to be played at Wembley. Manchester City won the match 2–1 to win the competition for the second time. The match is best known for its winning goal, anoverhead kick byDennis Tueart.
The 1976 final was the third time Manchester City had reached Wembley in the competition after winning the competition in 1970 by defeatingWest Bromwich Albion, and finishing runners-up toWolverhampton Wanderers in 1974. Manchester City made a slow start to their cup run, the second round tie againstNorwich City went to two replays, Manchester City winning the second replay 6–1 atStamford Bridge. A 2–1 home win againstNottingham Forest in the third round set up aManchester derby against local rivalsManchester United. City beat their neighbours 4–0 to reach the quarter-finals. A 4–2 win againstMansfield Town secured atwo-legged semi-final againstMiddlesbrough. City lost the away leg 1–0, but a comfortable 4–0 win atMaine Road took them through to the final.
1976 was Newcastle's first League Cup final appearance. Their previous best in the competition was reaching the quarter-finals, achieved the preceding season. Their 1975–76 League Cup campaign started with a 6–0 demolition of Fourth DivisionSouthport in the second round. Newcastle required a replay to overcomeBristol Rovers in the third round, and then beatQueens Park Rangers 3–1 atLoftus Road to reach the quarter-finals. A 1–0 win at home to fellowMagpiesNotts County secured a semi-final againstTottenham Hotspur. The first leg of the semi-final resulted in a 1–0 defeat, but Newcastle overcame the deficit in the home leg by winning 3–1.
Manchester City fielded a line-up unchanged from their previous match, a 3–0 home win againstEverton in the league.Colin Bell was absent through injury, having suffered what later transpired to be a career-ending injury in the fourth round derby.Dave Watson was an injury doubt due to a slipped disc, but was selected despite his inability to train in the preceding week.[1]
The opening goal was scored early in the match. Newcastle'sGlenn Keeley fouledJoe Royle in the middle of the Newcastle half. The resulting free-kick was hoisted into the penalty area byAsa Hartford, where it was headed across goal byMike Doyle. Teenage wingerPeter Barnes then scored to give Manchester City the lead. Newcastle equalised in the 35th minute,Alan Gowling finishing from aMalcolm Macdonald cross. At the start of the second half a Manchester City attack led to the winning goal, scored byDennis Tueart, who had supported Newcastle as a boy.[2] A ball byWillie Donachie to the far post was headed across byTommy Booth. Tueart, with his back to goal, performed an overhead kick that bounced beyondMike Mahoney into the bottom left corner of the net.[3] After the match Tueart described the goal as "the greatest of my career".[4] No more goals were scored in the match, though Royle had an effort disallowed. City captain Doyle lifted the trophy, andTony Book became the first man to win the competition as both a player and a manager.[3]
| Manchester City | 2–1 | Newcastle United |
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Barnes 11'Tueart 46' | Gowling 35' |
        Manchester City |     Newcastle United |
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