an ankle injury kept sinclair out of the side at the beginning of the 1992–93. he returned to the side in late september in a televised match against manchester city with chelsea winning 1–0. however, sinclair's mentor, paul elliott, suffered a career ending injury in the match. despite this setback he managed to make a total of thirty-nine appearances in all competitions, primarily at left-back, as chelsea finished in mid-table. his impressive performances saw him awarded the chelsea player of the year award in 1993.