Further heavy spending followed this disappointment, but Derby failed to make a serious challenge for promotion from the new Division One (which they had been widely expected to dominate) in 1992–93 but it was still a good personal season for Kitson, who scored 17 times in 44 league games.
[8] He scored his first goal for Newcastle in the 2–0 win over Manchester United in the third round of the League Cup in October 1994, though he was still very much the club's "backup" striker behind Andy Cole and Peter Beardsley.
He had a decent campaign, scoring eight goals in 26 games, though 1994–95 is generally remembered as a disappointing season for Newcastle, who began it as many people's title favourites with six successive wins but ended up finishing sixth – not even enough for a UEFA Cup place.
But he remained loyal to the Magpies even after another blow at the end of July 1996: the arrival of £15 million world record signing Alan Shearer.
His departure from Tyneside was relatively quiet, coming just weeks after one of the most momentous events in the club's history: the resignation of manager Kevin Keegan.
[12] West Ham's assistant manager Frank Lampard said, "The last man we signed from Newcastle was Bryan 'Pop' Robson in the 1970s and Paul has the same qualities.
[13] This marked the beginning of what is still arguably West Ham's finest strikeforce since the Tony Cottee/Frank McAvennie partnership of the 1980s, and a contrast following the disappointing spells of strikers like Florin Raducioiu and Paulo Futre.
[17] Subsequent seasons at Upton Park were not quite so successful, with the 1997–98 seeing Kitson restricted to 13 games and 4 goals in the Premier League (though the Hammers improved to eighth in the league and just missed out on a UEFA Cup place in their best season for over a decade), and a year later he contributed 17 games and 3 goals to a side which finished fifth to secure UEFA Cup football and their first European campaign in almost 20 years.