2000–01 In English Football

The 2000–01 season was the 121st season of competitive football in England.

Overview

Manchester United secured their third Premiership title in succession and their seventh title in just nine seasons. Liverpool became only the second English side to win the League Cup and FA Cup in the same season, also adding the UEFA Cup to make it a unique treble.

Fulham reached the Premiership as Division One champions to secure their five-season rise from Division Three. They also became the first club to have played in all four divisions of the English league since the creation of the Premiership.

Luton Town – who had been League Cup winners 13 years prior and top division members until nine years prior – and Oxford United – who had been League Cup winners 15 years earlier and top division members until 13 years prior – were relegated to Division Three.

Mid-table Division Two side Wycombe Wanderers beat all odds by reaching the FA Cup semi-final against Liverpool, beating Division One sides Millwall, Wolverhampton Wanderers, and Wimbledon, as well as Premier League side Leicester City en route to the semis. Wycombe were defeated 2–1 at Villa Park.

Successful managers

George Burley guided newly promoted Ipswich Town to fifth place in the Premiership and achieved qualification for the UEFA Cup.

Gérard Houllier won a treble of trophies with Liverpool after they triumphed in the FA Cup, League Cup and UEFA Cup.

Sir Alex Ferguson became the first manager in English football to win three successive league titles after Manchester United (only the fourth team in history to win three straight titles) topped the Premiership's final table for the third year in a row.

Alan Curbishley consolidated newly promoted Charlton Athletic in the Premiership with a ninth-place finish, their highest finish in nearly 50 years.

Jean Tigana won the Division One title with Fulham to gain promotion to the Premiership and end their 33-year exile from the top flight of English football.

Mark McGhee enjoyed success in his first season as Millwall manager by guiding them to the Division Two title.

Ronnie Moore surprised all the observers by winning a second successive promotion with Rotherham United, who were this time elevated into Division One.

Ray Graydon won his second promotion in three years with Walsall, who triumphed in the Division Two playoffs.

Micky Adams gave Brighton & Hove Albion their most successful season for years as they ended the campaign as Division Three champions.

Brian Talbot took Rushden & Diamonds, founded just nine years prior, into the Football League as Conference champions.

Successful players

Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Chelsea's record signing at £15 million, topped the Premiership goalscoring charts with 23 goals.

Marcus Stewart was the Premiership's second-highest goalscorer with 19 goals for newly promoted Ipswich Town, who qualified for the UEFA Cup.

Teddy Sheringham, 35, was voted Player of the Year by both the PFA and FWA after helping Manchester United win their third successive Premiership title.

Michael Owen helped Liverpool end their six-year trophy drought after his prolific goalscoring helped them win a treble of the FA Cup, League Cup and UEFA Cup.

Steven Gerrard was voted PFA Young Player of the Year as well as winning three major trophies in a single season with Liverpool.

Young French striker Louis Saha was arguably the hottest prospect outside the Premiership after his goals helped Fulham win the Division One title to end their 33-year exile from the top flight.

Veteran striker Mark Hughes, 37, helped Blackburn Rovers return to the Premiership two years after they were relegated.

Jamie Cureton was Division Two's top goalscorer with 27 strikes for Reading.

Bobby Zamora established himself as one of the Football League's top marksmen after helping Brighton & Hove Albion win the Division Three title.

Jermain Defoe, aged 19 and on loan to AFC Bournemouth from West Ham United, scored in ten successive Division Two matches while on loan at the Dean Court side.

Events

Swede Eriksson is England's first foreign coach

With pressure building up on him following England's dismal UEFA Euro 2000 campaign, Kevin Keegan resigned as manager of the England national team just minutes after a 1–0 defeat to Germany in the opening 2002 FIFA World Cup qualifying match. The match, played 7 October 2000, was also the last played at Wembley Stadium. Howard Wilkinson and Peter Taylor each had one-match stints as caretaker manager before Sven-Göran Eriksson accepted The Football Association's offer to become the new national coach. Former Lazio coach Eriksson, 52, was the first foreigner to be appointed coach of the England national team. His first match in charge was a 3–0 win over Spain on 28 February. England would go on to win their first five matches under Eriksson, a highly promising start.

Houllier delivers three for Liverpool

Liverpool captured the 2000–01 UEFA Cup on 16 May with a 5–4 win over Alavés. The match was won in the 116th minute by golden goal, and it completed a triplet of trophies for Liverpool which ended their six-year trophy drought as well as delivering their first trophies under Houllier's management. The League Cup had already been won with a penalty shoot-out triumph over Birmingham City in the first English final at the Millennium Stadium, and the FA Cup was secured after a dramatic 2–1 win over Arsenal in which Michael Owen scored two late goals after Freddie Ljungberg had put Arsenal ahead.

Sir Alex makes history with United

Sir Alex Ferguson became the first manager in English football to win three successive League titles after Manchester United were crowned Premier League champions for the third season running. Their title was secured with 80 points and a 10-point gap between themselves and runners-up Arsenal. Most bookmakers had closed their books before the turn of the New Year and admitted that United were certain of their seventh Premier League title in the last nine years. ''The Red Devils 6–1 home league victory over Arsenal on 25 February 2001 was the turning point as Arsenal's hopes of winning the title were ended in late April 2001.

United were not the first team to win three straight league titles. Huddersfield Town, Arsenal and Liverpool had all done it before, but with managerial changes in between.

Fulham back in the big time

Fulham won the Division One title to end their 33-year absence from the top flight. The key men in this success were money-spinning chairman Mohamed Al-Fayed, enthusiastic manager Jean Tigana and free scoring striker Louis Saha.

Fulham's return to the top flight of English football came four years after they had won promotion from Division Three and been taken over by Al-Fayed in a £30 million deal. With his target of Premiership football finally achieved, al Fayed was now determined to turn Fulham into the "Manchester United of the South".

Burley clinches Manager of the Year award

Despite Sir Alex Ferguson winning a third successive Premiership title with Manchester United and Gérard Houllier's three successes in cup competitions, Ipswich Town's George Burley received the Manager of the Year award.

Burley, 45, had been at Portman Road since December 1994, when he took over from John Lyall at an Ipswich side rooted to the foot of the Premiership. He was unable to save them from the drop but quickly put together a new team in hope of getting Ipswich back in the elite of English football. They endured three successive playoff failures before winning the Division One playoff final in 2000 and ending a five-year exile from the Premiership.

Most people had tipped Ipswich to go straight back down in 2000–01, but they spent most of the season in the top five and finished fifth to claim a 2001–02 UEFA Cup place – their first foray in Europe for 20 years.

Manchester United's record breaking summer

After the end of the 2000–01 season, Sir Alex Ferguson began a summer of heavy spending. Before the season was over he had agreed an English record fee of £19 million with PSV for Ruud van Nistelrooy, the 25-year-old Dutch striker who had agreed to sign for United a year earlier, but his original move was scrapped after he suffered a serious knee injury. Then, on 12 July, Ferguson broke the English transfer fee record again. This time he brought in Argentine midfielder Juan Sebastián Verón, 26, from Lazio in a £28.1 million deal.

Basement battle for survival

At the bottom of The Football League, the battle for survival went to the last day of the season, with the bottom two sides Torquay United and Barnet playing each other at Barnet's Underhill Ground. Both teams knew that if they lost they would be relegated to the Conference. Torquay were 3–0 up at half-time, but Barnet, playing with five up front for periods of the second half, scored twice to keep the tension levels high until the end of the match. It finished 3–2 to Torquay and Barnet lost their league place.

Honours

England national team

League tables

FA Premier League

Manchester United became the fourth team in history to win the English league title three seasons in a row; in one of the least eventful title races in Premier League history, they went top after seven games and never relinquished their lead, nor looked to be in any danger of doing so. Arsenal likewise never dropped below second place after mid-October, leaving the real drama as who being who would take third spot, and thereby the final Champions League place.

Ultimately, Liverpool finished third and won both domestic cup competitions as well as the UEFA Cup, becoming the first-ever club to win this treble of cups. Leeds United finished fourth, being left to rue a terrible first half of the season that saw them look in danger of being sucked into the relegation fight, but somewhat made up for this with much better form after Christmas and more significantly, a run to the semi-finals of the Champions League.

The biggest surprise of the season came with Ipswich Town, who were newly promoted to the Premiership after five years away and most people's favourites for the drop. Ipswich surprised all the observers by challenging for a place in the top-three and eventually winding up in fifth place, enough to merit UEFA Cup qualification. It was the Suffolk club's highest league finish since 1982. Chelsea took sixth place and thereby the final UEFA Cup spot, as despite the controversial early-season sacking of Gianluca Vialli, the most successful manager in the club's history at that point, they eventually regrouped under new manager Claudio Ranieri.

Newly promoted Charlton Athletic finished an impressive ninth, while Leicester City started the season as unlikely title contenders, but lost nine of their final ten Premiership matches to finish 13th.

Bradford City were the first team to be relegated, having won just five Premiership games all season in their second season after promotion. Joining them were newly promoted Manchester City and Coventry City, whose luck finally ran out after 34 years in the top flight.

Leading goalscorer: Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink (Chelsea) – 23

Football League First Division

Under the management of Jean Tigana, but with only two changes to the previous season's first team, Fulham won the division easily. Blackburn Rovers managed to edge close rivals Bolton Wanderers to the automatic promotion spot, though their rivalry would continue the following season as Bolton defeated Preston North End (another set of close rivals) in the playoffs.

Burnley's seventh-place finish put them just one place short of the playoffs and the chance of ending their 25-year absence from the top flight. Wimbledon finished eighth in their first season outside the top flight for 15 years. Watford faltered to finish ninth after a strong start to the season suggested that they would win promotion back to the Premier League, prompting the resignation of Graham Taylor as manager and the appointment of Gianluca Vialli in his place.

Tranmere's recent cup successes failed to translate into league form, and they finished bottom, just behind Queens Park Rangers, who fell into the third tier for the first time since the 1960s. An unlikely series of results in the final few weeks sent Huddersfield down to Division Two, when they had looked safe at the start of April. Narrowly avoiding relegation were Crystal Palace, whose dramatic last day victory over Stockport ensured survival for a club who spent the previous two seasons struggling with a financial crisis.

Leading goalscorer: Louis Saha ( Fulham) – 27

Football League Second Division

Millwall, who had failed to impress since relegation from the First Division in 1996, finally secured promotion as divisional champions. Making perhaps bigger headlines were unfashionable Rotherham United, who instead of struggling as the pundits predicted, took the second automatic promotion spot, pushing Millwall perilously close for the title. Walsall recovered from the previous year's last-day relegation and won the playoffs.

Oxford finished bottom of the table by some distance, never looking as if they would survive and setting a number of unwanted records for the division. Swansea – who had beaten Rotherham to the Division Three title the previous season – proved almost as bad as Oxford, with their survival hopes being little better. Much was expected of Luton following massive pre-season overhauls both on and off the pitch; unfortunately their season ended in crushing disappointment, and relegation. Bristol Rovers occupied the final relegation spot, entering the League's bottom tier for the first time in their history. Swindon narrowly avoided a second successive relegation.

Leading goalscorer: Jamie Cureton ( Reading) and Neil Harris (Millwall), 27

Football League Third Division

After their financial nightmares and near-relegations of the previous years, Brighton finally started making serious progress, as they won the title. Chesterfield would have taken the runners-up spot; however, financial irregularities resulted in a nine-point deduction, handing second place to Cardiff instead, though Chesterfield still took the final automatic promotion spot. Blackpool sneaked into the playoffs near the end of the season, then proceeded to win them, ensuring that their spell in Division Three was a short one.

A number of teams were threatened with relegation during the course of the season. However, in the end, Barnet – who moved long-serving manager John Still upstairs to make way for the higher-profile appointment of Tony Cottee early in the season – suffered a stunning collapse after a bright start, leading to a "winner takes all, loser stands small" match with Torquay on the final day of the season. Torquay won the match and ensured League survival, while Barnet returned to the Conference after a decade in the league. Carlisle endured a third successive relegation battle and were successful once again.

Leading goalscorer: Bobby Zamora (Brighton & Hove Albion), 28

Note: Cardiff City left administration and made arrangements before promotion as runner up and Chesterfield deducted 9 points for beginning financial irregularities.

Diary of the season

* 2 July 2000: The News of the World reports that Kevin Keegan has resigned as England national coach, but the reports are swiftly denied. Meanwhile, Terry Venables (who was in charge from 1994 to 1996) insists that he is not interested in becoming national coach if Keegan departs.
* 3 July 2000: Arsenal sign France midfielder Robert Pires from Marseille for £6 million.
* 5 July 2000: Newcastle United sign striker Carl Cort from Wimbledon for £7 million.
* 10 July 2000: Birmingham City pay a club record £2.25 million for Fulham striker Geoff Horsfield as they prepare to make it third time lucky after two successive playoff failures in Division One.
* 14 July 2000: Fulham prepare for their Division One title challenge under Jean Tigana with a £2 million move for Everton and Scotland midfielder John Collins.
* 17 July 2000: Former England midfielder Paul Gascoigne, 33, signs for Everton on a free transfer from Middlesbrough.
* 18 July 2000: Everton forward Nick Barmby moves to neighbours Liverpool for £6 million.
* 20 July 2000: Charlton Athletic, newly promoted to the Premier League, pay a club record £4 million for Claus Jensen from Bolton Wanderers.
* 21 July 2000: Leeds United pay £6 million for Celtic and Australia striker Mark Viduka.
* 24 July 2000: Leicester City pay £5 million for Wolverhampton Wanderers striker Ade Akinbiyi.
* 25 July 2000: Sunderland pay £3.5 million for Argentina defender Julio Arca from Argentinos Juniors.
* 26 July 2000: West Bromwich Albion, looking to improve on last season's 21st-place finish in Division One, sign striker Jason Roberts from Bristol Rovers for £2 million.
* 28 July 2000: Arsenal sell Emmanuel Petit to Barcelona for £5 million, along with Marc Overmars for £25 million.
* 30 July 2000: Aston Villa sign David Ginola from Tottenham Hotspur for £3 million.
* 1 August 2000: After a year at Coventry City, Robbie Keane joins Inter Milan for £13 million.
* 7 August 2000: Middlesbrough sign Croatian striker Alen Bokšić from Lazio for £2.5 million.
* 13 August 2000: Chelsea defeat Manchester United to win the Charity Shield in the last-ever club game at Wembley Stadium before it is closed for reconstruction.
* 17 August 2000: Everton purchase Duncan Ferguson back from Newcastle United for £3.75 million, and Coventry City play a club record £6.5 million for Norwich City winger Craig Bellamy.
* 18 August 2000: Liverpool sell defender Dominic Matteo to Leeds United for £4.75 million.
* 19 August 2000: Opening day drama in the Premier League sees newly promoted Charlton Athletic and Manchester City clash at The Valley, with the hosts winning 4–0. Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink scores a penalty on his league debut for Chelsea as they defeat West Ham United 4–2 at Stamford Bridge.
* 23 August 2000: Paulo Wanchope scores a hat-trick for Manchester City as they beat Sunderland 4–2 at Maine Road.
* 25 August 2000: Liverpool pay Middlesbrough £5.5 million for Christian Ziege.
* 31 August 2000: The first month of the league season draws to a close with Arsenal leading the Premier League and the top five being completed by Leeds United, Newcastle United, Coventry City and Manchester United. The three relegation places are occupied by West Ham United, Aston Villa and Southampton.
* 5 September 2000: Defending champions and title favourites Manchester United beat Bradford City 6–0 at Old Trafford.
* 10 September 2000 : Luc Nilis, Aston Villa's 33-year-old Belgian striker, suffers a badly broken leg in his third fixture for the club and the injury is reported as likely to end his career.
* 12 September 2000: Gianluca Vialli is sacked after two-and-a-half years in charge of Chelsea, during which time he won the FA Cup, League Cup, UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, Charity Shield and UEFA Super Cup.
* 15 September 2000: Chelsea name Italian Claudio Ranieri as their new manager.
* 30 September 2000: Rumours are circulating that Aston Villa are about to purchase back Dwight Yorke from Manchester United, two years after he left them in a £12.6 million deal. Meanwhile, Yorke's current club are top of the Premier League as September draws to a close, facing stiff competition from surprise title contenders Leicester City along with Arsenal, Liverpool and newly promoted Charlton Athletic. Bradford City, Derby County and West Ham United prop up the table. In Division One, Fulham lead the way after winning their opening four matches of the season. Watford are looking good bets for an immediate return to the Premier League as they stand second with three wins and a draw from their first four games. Bolton Wanderers, Blackburn Rovers, Birmingham City and newly promoted Preston North End complete the top six. Sheffield Wednesday's hopes of an immediate return to the Premier League are fading fast as they prop up Division One and look in real danger of a second successive relegation. Huddersfield Town, who spent last season challenging for promotion, now find themselves fighting against relegation in 22nd place.
* 1 October 2000 – Leicester City go top of the Premier League at the expense of Manchester United. It is the first time since the 1963–64 season that Leicester have been top of the English league.
* 7 October 2000: After 77 years, Wembley Stadium closes its doors for the last time in order to allow a complete reconstruction which should be finished in 2003. The final game at the old stadium is England's first qualifying match for the 2002 FIFA World Cup. They lost 1–0 to Germany and manager Kevin Keegan resigns after 18 months at the helm.
* 14 October 2000: Leicester City surrender their lead of the Premier League with a 3–0 home defeat by Manchester United, who replace them at the top of the table.
* 21 October 2000: Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink scores four goals as Chelsea beat Coventry City 6–1 in the league at Stamford Bridge.
* 28 October 2000: Arsenal beat Manchester City 5–0 in the league at Highbury. Teddy Sheringham scores a hat-trick for Manchester United as a 5–0 win over Southampton keeps them top of the Premier League.
* 30 October 2000: Lazio's Swedish coach Sven-Göran Eriksson accepts The Football Association's offer to take charge of the England team from next summer. It is widely assumed that either Howard Wilkinson or Peter Taylor, both of whom have taken caretaker charge since the resignation of Kevin Keegan, will act as interim manager until then, although the FA hold off any making any announcements just yet.
* 31 October 2000: October draws to a close with Manchester United still top of the Premier League, though now only on goal difference ahead of Arsenal. Leicester City's surprise title challenge is being joined by a Liverpool side looking to end their 11-year wait for the league title, as well as a newly promoted Ipswich Town who were among most people's pre-season favourites for relegation. Derby County, still without a win after 11 matches, prop up the table, joined in the bottom three by Bradford City and Southampton. Watford have now leapfrogged Fulham by a single point at the top of Division One, while the playoff zone is occupied by Birmingham City, Preston North End, West Bromwich Albion and Bolton Wanderers. Burnley, newly promoted this season, are just one point and one place outside the playoff zone and looking like contenders for a second successive promotion.
* 4 November 2000: Mark Viduka scores all four goals for Leeds United as they beat Liverpool 4–3 in the Premier League at Elland Road.
* 18 November 2000: The first Manchester derby in five seasons sees United beat City 1–0 at Maine Road with an early goal from David Beckham.
* 23 November 2000: Leeds United break the English transfer fee record by paying £18 million for West Ham United centre-back Rio Ferdinand, while Chelsea's £12 million sale of Tore André Flo to Rangers breaks the Scottish record.
* 25 November 2000: Les Ferdinand scores a hat-trick as Tottenham Hotspur defeat Leicester City 3–0 in the league at White Hart Lane.
* 30 November 2000: Manchester United finish November as Premier League leaders, with an eight-point margin over Arsenal who have a game in hand. The surprise challenge of Ipswich Town and Leicester City continues, as does the challenge of Liverpool. Bradford City and Derby County continue to prop up the top flight, joined in the drop zone by Middlesbrough. Fulham have now regained their lead of Division One and are nine points ahead of Watford. Burnley had leapfrogged Preston North End into the playoff zone, which is still occupied by Birmingham City, West Bromwich Albion and Bolton Wanderers.
* 1 December 2000: Middlesbrough withdraw an offer to Terry Venables for him to become the club's first-team coach.
* 6 December 2000: Five days after withdrawing their offer for him to become first-team coach, Middlesbrough unveil Terry Venables as first-team coach to work alongside manager Bryan Robson, who had been his assistant with the England team from 1994 to 1996.
* 8 December 2000: Martin O'Neill buys his former Leicester City player Neil Lennon for Celtic in a £5.75 million deal.

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