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2007–08 Premier League

The 2007–08 Premier League (known as the Barclays Premier League for sponsorship reasons) season was the 16th since its establishment. The first matches of the season were played on 11 August 2007, and the season ended on 11 May 2008. Manchester United went into the 2007–08 season as the Premier League's defending champions, having won their ninth Premier League title and sixteenth league championship overall the previous season. This season was also the third consecutive season to see the "Big Four" continue their stranglehold on the top four spots (which mean UEFA Champions League qualification).

Premier League
Manchester United celebrating their 10th Premier League title following their win at Wigan
Season2007–08
Dates11 August 2007 – 11 May 2008
ChampionsManchester United
10th Premier League title
17th English title
RelegatedReading
Birmingham City
Derby County
Champions LeagueManchester United
Chelsea
Arsenal
Liverpool
UEFA CupPortsmouth
Everton
Tottenham Hotspur
Manchester City (through UEFA Respect Fair Play ranking)
Intertoto CupAston Villa
Matches played380
Goals scored1,002 (2.64 per match)
Top goalscorerCristiano Ronaldo
(31 goals)
Best goalkeeperPepe Reina (18 clean sheets)
Biggest home winMiddlesbrough 8–1 Manchester City
(11 May 2008)
Biggest away winDerby County 0–6 Aston Villa
(12 April 2008)
Highest scoringPortsmouth 7–4 Reading
(29 September 2007)
Longest winning run8 games[1]
Manchester United
Longest unbeaten run21 games[1]
Chelsea
Longest winless run32 games[1]
Derby County
Longest losing run8 games[1]
Reading
Wigan Athletic
Highest attendance76,013[2]
Manchester United 4–1 West Ham United
(3 May 2008)
Lowest attendance14,007[2]
Wigan Athletic 1–0 Middlesbrough
(15 August 2007)
Total attendance13,708,885
Average attendance36,076[2]

Overview

The first goal of the season was scored by Michael Chopra, who scored a 94th-minute winner for Sunderland against Tottenham in the early kick-off.[3] The first red card of the season was given to Reading's Dave Kitson after a challenge on Patrice Evra in their opening game against Manchester United.[4] The first hat-trick was scored by Emmanuel Adebayor in the match between Arsenal and Derby County.[5]

On 29 September 2007, Portsmouth and Reading played the highest-scoring match in Premier League history, in which Portsmouth won 7–4.[6] On 15 December 2007, both Roque Santa Cruz (Blackburn Rovers) and Marcus Bent (Wigan Athletic) scored hat-tricks during Wigan's 5–3 home win over Blackburn. This was the first occasion in Premier League history that two players on opposing teams had scored hat-tricks during the same match.[7]

Manchester United successfully defended their title, winning tenth Premier League on the final day with a 2–0 win over Wigan Athletic, while second-placed Chelsea drew 1–1 with Bolton Wanderers. It was their seventeenth English title overall, with the club just one title behind their rivals Liverpool's total of 18. Elsewhere on the final day, Middlesbrough thrashed Manchester City 8–1 to claim the biggest win of the season.

On 29 March 2008, Derby County drew 2–2 with Fulham while Birmingham City, who were 17th in the table at the time, beat Manchester City 3–1, to make Derby County the first team in Premier League history to be relegated in March.[8] Throughout the season, the team won just one game and recorded only 11 points, the lowest tally in top flight history. On the final day of the season, Reading beat Derby 4–0 and Birmingham City beat Blackburn Rovers 4–1. However, Fulham's 1–0 win over Portsmouth sent both teams down as the London club avoided the drop on goal difference.

The season was notable for the return of the English league to the top of UEFA's official ranking list, overtaking La Liga for the period from 1 May 2008 to 30 April 2009. This followed the success of English clubs in the UEFA Champions League, with both champions Manchester United and runners-up Chelsea reaching the final. This was the first time that the English league had topped the UEFA rankings since the Heysel Stadium disaster in 1985.

Teams

Twenty teams competed in the league – the top seventeen teams from the previous season and the three teams promoted from the Championship. The promoted teams were Sunderland, Birmingham City (both teams after a one year absence), and Derby County (returning after a five-year absence). They replaced Sheffield United, Charlton Athletic and Watford. The previous season had seen Sheffield United and Watford both suffer an immediate return to the Championship, while Charlton Athletic were relegated after a seven-year top flight spell.

Stadiums and locations

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Locations of the 2007–08 Premier League teams
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Greater London Premier League football clubs
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Greater Manchester Premier League football clubs
TeamLocationStadiumCapacity
ArsenalLondon (Holloway)Emirates Stadium60,355
Aston VillaBirmingham (Aston)Villa Park42,640
Birmingham CityBirmingham (Bordesley)St Andrew's Stadium30,009
Blackburn RoversBlackburnEwood Park31,367
Bolton WanderersBoltonReebok Stadium28,723
ChelseaLondon (Fulham)Stamford Bridge42,055
Derby CountyDerbyPride Park Stadium33,597
EvertonLiverpool (Walton)Goodison Park40,157
FulhamLondon (Fulham)Craven Cottage26,300
LiverpoolLiverpool (Anfield)Anfield45,276
Manchester CityManchester (Bradford)City of Manchester Stadium47,726
Manchester UnitedManchester (Old Trafford)Old Trafford76,212
MiddlesbroughMiddlesbroughRiverside Stadium35,049
Newcastle UnitedNewcastle upon TyneSt James' Park52,387
PortsmouthPortsmouthFratton Park20,688
ReadingReadingMadejski Stadium24,161
SunderlandSunderlandStadium of Light49,000
Tottenham HotspurLondon (Tottenham)White Hart Lane36,244
West Ham UnitedLondon (Upton Park)Upton Park35,303
Wigan AthleticWiganJJB Stadium25,138

Personnel and kits

TeamManagerCaptainKit manufacturerShirt sponsor
Arsenal Arsène Wenger William GallasNikeEmirates
Aston Villa Martin O'Neill Gareth BarryNike32red
Birmingham City Alex McLeish Damien JohnsonUmbroF&C Investments
Blackburn Rovers Mark Hughes Ryan NelsenUmbroBet 24
Bolton Wanderers Gary Megson Kevin DaviesReebokReebok
Chelsea Avram Grant John TerryAdidasSamsung Mobile
Derby County Paul Jewell Robbie SavageAdidasDerbyshire Building Society
Everton David Moyes Phil NevilleUmbroChang Beer
Fulham Roy Hodgson Brian McBrideNikeLG
Liverpool Rafael Benítez Steven GerrardAdidasCarlsberg
Manchester City Sven-Göran Eriksson Richard DunneLe Coq SportifThomas Cook.com
Manchester United Sir Alex Ferguson Gary NevilleNikeAIG
Middlesbrough Gareth Southgate George BoatengErreàGarmin[9]
Newcastle United Kevin Keegan Nicky ButtAdidasNorthern Rock
Portsmouth Harry Redknapp Sol CampbellCanterburyOki
Reading Steve Coppell Graeme MurtyPumaKyocera
Sunderland Roy Keane Dean WhiteheadUmbroboylesports.com
Tottenham Hotspur Juande Ramos Ledley KingPumaMansion Casino
West Ham United Alan Curbishley Lucas NeillUmbroXL Airways
Wigan Athletic Steve Bruce Mario MelchiotUmbroJJB Sports

In addition, Premier League officials were supplied with new kit made by Umbro, replacing American makers Official Sports, and are sponsored by Air Asia, replacing Emirates. The 2007–08 season saw a new font used for the names on the back of players' shirts.[10]

Managerial changes

TeamOutgoing managerManner of departureDate of vacancyPosition in tableIncoming managerDate of appointment
Wigan Athletic Paul JewellResigned14 May 2007[11]Pre-season Chris Hutchings14 May 2007[12]
Newcastle United Nigel Pearson (caretaker)End of caretaker period14 May 2007 Sam Allardyce15 May 2007[13]
Manchester City Stuart PearceSacked14 May 2007[14] Sven-Göran Eriksson6 July 2007[15]
Chelsea José MourinhoMutual consent20 September 2007[16]5th Avram Grant20 September 2007[16]
Bolton Wanderers Sammy Lee17 October 2007[17]19th Gary Megson25 October 2007[18]
Tottenham Hotspur Martin JolSacked25 October 2007[19]18th Juande Ramos27 October 2007[20]
Wigan Athletic Chris Hutchings5 November 2007[21] Steve Bruce26 November 2007[22]
Birmingham City Steve BruceSigned by Wigan19 November 2007[22]15th Alex McLeish28 November 2007[23]
Derby County Billy DaviesMutual consent26 November 2007[24]20th Paul Jewell28 November 2007[25]
Fulham Lawrie SanchezSacked21 December 2007[26]18th Roy Hodgson30 December 2007[27]
Newcastle United Sam AllardyceMutual consent9 January 2008[28]11th Kevin Keegan16 January 2008[29]

League table

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsQualification or relegation
1Manchester United (C)3827658022+5887Qualification for the Champions League group stage
2Chelsea38251036526+3985
3Arsenal38241137431+4383Qualification for the Champions League third qualifying round
4Liverpool38211346728+3976
5Everton38198115533+2265Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
6Aston Villa381612107151+2060Qualification for the Intertoto Cup third round
7Blackburn Rovers381513105048+258
8Portsmouth38169134840+857Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round[a]
9Manchester City381510134553−855Qualification for the UEFA Cup first qualifying round[b]
10West Ham United381310154250−849
11Tottenham Hotspur381113146661+546Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round[c]
12Newcastle United381110174565−2043
13Middlesbrough381012164353−1042
14Wigan Athletic381010183451−1740
15Sunderland38116213659−2339
16Bolton Wanderers38910193654−1837
17Fulham38812183860−2236
18Reading (R)38106224166−2536Relegation to Football League Championship
19Birmingham City (R)38811194662−1635
20Derby County (R)3818292089−6911
Source: Premier League
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
For further information on European qualification see Premier League – Competition
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:

Results

Home \ AwayARSAVLBIRBLBBOLCHEDEREVEFULLIVMCIMUNMIDNEWPORREASUNTOTWHUWIG
Arsenal1–11–12–02–01–05–01–02–11–11–02–21–13–03–12–03–22–12–02–0
Aston Villa1–25–11–14–02–02–02–02–11–21–11–41–14–11–33–10–12–11–00–2
Birmingham City2–21–24–11–00–11–11–11–12–23–10–13–01–10–21–12–24–10–13–2
Blackburn Rovers1–10–42–14–10–13–10–01–10–01–01–11–13–10–14–21–01–10–13–1
Bolton Wanderers2–31–13–01–20–11–01–20–01–30–01–00–01–30–13–02–01–11–04–1
Chelsea2–14–43–20–01–16–11–10–00–06–02–11–02–11–01–02–02–01–01–1
Derby County2–60–61–21–21–10–20–22–21–21–10–10–11–02–20–40–00–30–50–1
Everton1–42–23–11–12–00–11–03–01–21–00–12–03–13–11–07–10–01–12–1
Fulham0–32–12–02–22–11–20–01–00–23–30–31–20–10–23–11–33–30–11–1
Liverpool1–12–20–03–14–01–16–01–02–01–00–13–23–04–12–13–02–24–01–1
Manchester City1–31–01–02–24–20–21–00–22–30–01–03–13–13–12–11–02–11–10–0
Manchester United2–14–01–02–02–02–04–12–12–03–01–24–16–02–00–01–01–04–14–0
Middlesbrough2–10–32–01–20–10–21–00–21–01–18–12–22–22–00–12–21–11–21–0
Newcastle United1–10–02–10–10–00–22–23–22–00–30–21–51–11–43–02–03–13–11–0
Portsmouth0–02–04–20–13–11–13–10–00–10–00–01–10–10–07–41–00–10–02–0
Reading1–31–22–10–00–21–21–01–00–23–12–00–21–12–10–22–10–10–32–1
Sunderland0–11–12–01–23–10–11–00–11–10–21–20–43–21–12–02–11–02–12–0
Tottenham Hotspur1–34–42–31–21–14–44–01–35–10–22–11–11–11–42–06–42–04–04–0
West Ham United0–12–21–12–11–10–42–10–22–11–00–22–13–02–20–11–13–11–11–1
Wigan Athletic0–01–22–05–31–00–22–01–21–10–11–10–21–01–00–20–03–01–11–0
Source: Barclays Premier League
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Season statistics

Scoring

  • First goal of the season: Michael Chopra for Sunderland against Tottenham Hotspur (11 August 2007)[3]
  • Last goal of the season: Matthew Taylor for Bolton Wanderers against Chelsea (11 May 2008)[30]
  • Fastest goal in a match: 28 seconds – Geovanni for Manchester City against Wigan Athletic (1 December 2007)[31]
  • Goal scored at the latest point in a match: 90+6 minutes – Andy Reid for Sunderland against West Ham United (29 March 2008)[32]
  • Widest winning margin: 7 goals – Middlesbrough 8–1 Manchester City (11 May 2008)[33]
  • Most goals in a match: 11 – Portsmouth F.C. 7–4 Reading F.C. (29 September 2007)[6]
  • First hat-trick of the season: Emmanuel Adebayor for Arsenal against Derby County (22 September 2007)[5]
  • First own goal of the season: Martin Laursen for Liverpool against Aston Villa (11 August 2007)[34]
  • Most goals by one player in a single match: 4
  • Most hat-tricks scored by one player: 2
    • Benjani for Portsmouth
      • Portsmouth 7–4 Reading (29 September 2007)[6]
      • Portsmouth 3–1 Derby County (19 January 2008)[37]
    • Fernando Torres for Liverpool
      • Liverpool 3–2 Middlesbrough (23 February 2008)[38]
      • Liverpool 4–0 West Ham United (5 March 2008)[39]
    • Emmanuel Adebayor for Arsenal
      • Arsenal 5–0 Derby County (22 September 2007)[5]
      • Derby County 2–6 Arsenal (28 April 2008)[40]
        • This is the first time in the Premier League that any player has scored a hat-trick against the same team twice in one season.
  • Most goals by one team in a match: 8
    • Middlesbrough 8–1 Manchester City (11 May 2008)[41]
  • Most goals in one half by one team: 6
    • Manchester United 6–0 Newcastle United (12 January 2008)[42]
    • Middlesbrough 8–1 Manchester City (11 May 2008)[41]
  • Most goals scored by losing team: 4 – Reading
    • Portsmouth 7–4 Reading (29 September 2007)[6]
    • Tottenham Hotspur 6–4 Reading (29 December 2007)[35]

Top scorers

RankPlayerClubGoals[43]
1 Cristiano RonaldoManchester United31
2 Emmanuel AdebayorArsenal24
Fernando TorresLiverpool
4 Roque Santa CruzBlackburn Rovers19
5 BenjaniPortsmouth / Manchester City15
Dimitar BerbatovTottenham Hotspur
Robbie Keane
YakubuEverton
9 Carlos TevezManchester United14
10 John CarewAston Villa13

Fastest scorers

ScorerTime (seconds)TeamOpponent
Geovanni28Manchester CityWigan Athletic
Cameron Jerome32Birmingham CityDerby County
Yakubu47EvertonPortsmouth
David Healy50FulhamArsenal

Clean sheets

  • Most clean sheets – Manchester United and Chelsea (21)
  • Fewest clean sheets – Derby County and Birmingham (3)

Discipline

  • First yellow card of the season: Didier Zokora for Tottenham Hotspur against Sunderland (11 August 2007)[3]
  • First red card of the season: Dave Kitson for Reading against Manchester United (12 August 2007)[4]
  • Most yellow cards: Middlesbrough (85)
  • Fewest yellow cards: Everton (40)
  • Most red cards: Chelsea and Fulham (6)
  • Fewest red cards: Bolton (0)

Average home attendance

  • Highest average home attendance: 75,691 (Manchester United)[44]
  • Lowest average home attendance: 19,046 (Wigan Athletic)[44]

Overall

  • Most wins – Manchester United (27)
  • Fewest wins – Derby County (1)
  • Most losses – Derby County (29)
  • Fewest losses – Arsenal and Chelsea (3)
  • Most goals scored – Manchester United (80)
  • Fewest goals scored – Derby County (20)
  • Most goals conceded – Derby County (89)
  • Fewest goals conceded – Manchester United (22)

Home

  • Most wins – Manchester United (17)
  • Fewest wins – Derby County (1)
  • Most losses – Derby County (13)
  • Fewest losses – Arsenal and Chelsea (0)
  • Most goals scored – Manchester United (47)
  • Fewest goals scored – Derby County (12)
  • Most goals conceded – Derby County (43)
  • Fewest goals conceded – Manchester United (7)

Away

  • Most wins – Chelsea (13)
  • Fewest wins – Derby County (0)
  • Most losses – Derby County (16)
  • Fewest losses – Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool (3)
  • Most goals scored – Arsenal and Aston Villa (37)
  • Fewest goals scored – Derby County (8)
  • Most goals conceded – Derby County (46)
  • Fewest goals conceded – Chelsea (13)

Records

  • Derby County finished with the worst record since the league was founded in 1992–93 and also the worst since the introduction of the three points for a win rule. Among the records set by the Rams were:
    • A final record of one win, eight draws and 29 losses for a total of eleven points, worse than the Sunderland team from 2005–06, with the previously set lows of three wins, six draws and 29 losses totalling fifteen points. The single win, coming at home against Newcastle United 1–0 on 17 September was also a record for the fewest wins in a Premier League campaign
    • Derby's 20 goals scored as a team (with Ronaldo, Adebayor and Torres each scoring more goals individually) was lower than the 2002–03 Black Cats' total with 21 goals scored. This marked the third time a team was outscored by one or more players. The team also failed to score in 21 of their 38 games
    • Their −69 goal difference (20 goals scored, 89 conceded) was worse than Ipswich Town's 1994–95 goal difference of −57 (36 goals scored, 93 conceded). The 89 goals they conceded was the worst defensive performance by a team since Ipswich Town conceded 93 goals in 1994–95. It was also the worst record since the Premier League adopted the 20-team, 38-match format in 1995–96
    • The 29 defeats they suffered equalled the 2005–06 Sunderland team for the most losses suffered in one Premier League season
  • Chelsea's 85 points accumulated was a new record for the most points gained in a 38-game season without securing the title. The 83 points achieved by Arsenal was a new record for the most points gained in a 38-game season for finishing third
  • Manchester United's goal difference of +58 was the greatest ever attained in a Premier League season, beating the record set by Chelsea in 2004–05
  • Cristiano Ronaldo beat his own record for most goals scored by a midfielder, raising the record to 31 goals. The previous record was 17 goals, from the previous season. Furthermore, his goal total equalled the highest number of goals ever scored in the Premier League during a 38-game season, equalling the record first set by Blackburn Rovers' Alan Shearer during the 1995–96 season
  • Marcus Bent and Roque Santa Cruz each scored a hat trick for their team during Wigan Athletic's 5–3 victory over Blackburn Rovers on 15 December 2007. This is the first time in Premier League history that players from opposing sides both scored hat-tricks in the same match[7]
  • Emmanuel Adebayor scored two hat tricks home and away against Derby. This was the first time in the Premier League that a player had scored a hat trick against the same team twice in the league
  • Fernando Torres scored 24 goals for Liverpool, a new record for goals scored by a foreign player during his debut season[45]

Awards

Monthly awards

MonthManager of the MonthPlayer of the Month
August 2007Sven-Göran Eriksson (Manchester City)[46]Micah Richards (Manchester City)[46]
September 2007Arsène Wenger (Arsenal)[47]Cesc Fàbregas (Arsenal)[47]
October 2007Mark Hughes (Blackburn Rovers)[48]Wayne Rooney (Manchester United)[48]
November 2007Martin O'Neill (Aston Villa)[49]Gabriel Agbonlahor (Aston Villa)[49]
December 2007Arsène Wenger (Arsenal)[50]Roque Santa Cruz (Blackburn Rovers)[50]
January 2008Sir Alex Ferguson (Manchester United)[51]Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)[51]
February 2008David Moyes (Everton)[52]Fernando Torres (Liverpool)[52]
March 2008Sir Alex Ferguson (Manchester United)[53]Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)[53]
April 2008Avram Grant (Chelsea)[54]Ashley Young (Aston Villa)[54]

Annual awards

Premier League Manager of the Season

Sir Alex Ferguson picked up the Premier League Manager of the Season award for the eighth time.[55]

Premier League Player of the Season

Cristiano Ronaldo won the Premier League Player of the Season accolade for the second season in succession.[55]

PFA Players' Player of the Year

The PFA Players' Player of the Year award for 2008 was won by Cristiano Ronaldo for the second year in a row.[56]

The shortlist for the PFA Players' Player of the Year award, in alphabetical order, was as follows:

PFA Team of the Year

Goalkeeper: David James (Portsmouth)
Defence: Bacary Sagna, Gaël Clichy (both Arsenal), Rio Ferdinand, Nemanja Vidić (both Manchester United)
Midfield: Steven Gerrard (Liverpool), Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United), Cesc Fàbregas (Arsenal), Ashley Young (Aston Villa)
Attack: Emmanuel Adebayor (Arsenal), Fernando Torres (Liverpool)

PFA Young Player of the Year

The PFA Young Player of the Year award was won by Cesc Fàbregas of Arsenal.[56]

The shortlist for the award was as follows:

FWA Footballer of the Year

The FWA Footballer of the Year award for 2008 was won by Cristiano Ronaldo for a second successive season. The Manchester United winger saw off the challenges of Liverpool striker Fernando Torres and Portsmouth goalkeeper David James, who finished second and third respectively.[57]

Premier League Golden Boot

Cristiano Ronaldo was named the winner of the Premier League Golden Boot award. The Manchester United winger's 31 goals from 34 league appearances helped see off stiff opposition for this award from Arsenal's Emmanuel Adebayor and Fernando Torres of Liverpool. This was the first Premier League season that a player has scored more than 30 goals since Alan Shearer's 31-goal haul for Blackburn Rovers twelve years prior.[55][58]

Premier League Golden Glove

Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina claimed the Premier League Golden Glove award for the third season in succession. Clean sheets in 18 out of the 38 games meant Reina kept more clean sheets than any other goalkeeper in the top flight during the 2007–08 campaign.[59]

Premier League Fair Play Award

The Premier League Fair Play Award is a merit given to the team who has been the most sporting and best behaved team. Tottenham topped the Fair Play League, ahead of Liverpool, Manchester United and Arsenal.[60] The least sporting side was Blackburn Rovers who finished in last place in the rankings.[61]

LMA Manager of the Year

The LMA Manager of the Year award was won by Sir Alex Ferguson after leading Manchester United to back-to-back league title wins. The award was presented by Fabio Capello on 13 May 2008.[62]

PFA Fans' Player of the Year

2007 winner, Cristiano Ronaldo, was named the PFA Fans' Player of the Year again in 2008. Liverpool striker Fernando Torres finished second, with Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fàbregas finishing third.[63]

PFA Merit Award

BBC broadcaster and former England and Blackpool full-back Jimmy Armfield received the PFA Merit Award for his services to the game.[56]

Premier League Merit Award

Cristiano Ronaldo, the Portuguese winger, collected the Premier League Merit Award for reaching 30 league goals this season.[58]

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to FA Premier League season 2007-2008.
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