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2003–04 FA Premier League

(Redirected from FA Premier League 2003-04)

The 2003–04 FA Premier League (known as the FA Barclaycard Premiership) was the 12th season of the Premier League. Arsenal were crowned champions ending the season without a single defeat – the first team ever to do so in a 38-game league season. Chelsea finished second to Arsenal.

FA Premier League
Arsenal captain Patrick Vieira lifting the trophy at Highbury
Season2003–04
Dates16 August 2003 – 15 May 2004
ChampionsArsenal
3rd Premier League title
13th English title
RelegatedLeicester City
Leeds United
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Champions LeagueArsenal
Chelsea
Manchester United
Liverpool
UEFA CupNewcastle United
Middlesbrough
Matches played380
Goals scored1,012 (2.66 per match)
Top goalscorerThierry Henry
(30 goals)
Best goalkeeperJens Lehmann
Edwin van der Sar
(15 clean sheets each)
Biggest home winPortsmouth 6–1 Leeds United
(8 November 2003)
Chelsea 5–0 Newcastle United
(9 November 2003)
Arsenal 5–0 Leeds United
(16 April 2004)
Biggest away winWolverhampton Wanderers 0–5 Chelsea
(20 September 2003)
Leicester City 0–5 Aston Villa
(31 January 2004)
Highest scoringManchester City 6–2 Bolton Wanderers
(18 October 2003)
Tottenham Hotspur 4–4 Leicester City
(22 February 2004)
Middlesbrough 5–3 Birmingham City
(20 March 2004)
Longest winning run9 games[1]
Arsenal
Longest unbeaten run38 games[1]
Arsenal
Longest winless run14 games[1]
Manchester City
Longest losing run6 games[1]
Leeds United
Highest attendance67,758
Manchester United 3–2 Southampton
(31 January 2004)
Lowest attendance13,981
Fulham 3–4 Blackburn Rovers
(12 April 2004)
Total attendance13,297,348[2]
Average attendance34,993[2]

Season summary

Having qualified for the Champions League the previous season, Chelsea were bolstered by a £100 million outlay on world-class players, a spree funded by the extensive financial resources of their new owner Roman Abramovich. Manchester United's attack was as strong as ever thanks to free-scoring Ruud van Nistelrooy, but the midfield was weakened following the £25 million pre-season sale of David Beckham to Real Madrid, and the centre of defence suffered a more severe setback after Rio Ferdinand was ruled out for the final four months of the season after being found guilty of the "failure or refusal to take a drugs test". The case of Rio Ferdinand started a debate about punishments relating to drug testing in football, with there being differing views on whether the punishment was too harsh or too lenient. Ferdinand's club sought to make direct comparisons with an earlier case of Manchester City reserve player who had in fact committed a lesser drug testing offence and as a result escaped with only a fine.[3] City themselves had just moved from Maine Road to the City of Manchester Stadium.[4]

Arsenal, meanwhile, had only signed German goalkeeper Jens Lehmann in the 2003 close season, but French striker Thierry Henry was instrumental in Arsenal's success. Away from the Premier League, Arsène Wenger's team suffered disappointment in the cup competitions. They were knocked-out by League Cup eventual winners Middlesbrough in the semi-finals. They lost their grip on the FA Cup (which they held for two seasons in a row) after being defeated by eventual winners Manchester United in the semi-final. Arsenal were knocked out of the Champions League quarter-finals by Chelsea (3–2 on aggregate). These blows in the FA Cup and Champions League came within a few days of each other, and it was feared[who?] that Arsenal might squander their lead of the Premier League for the second successive season, but Arsenal easily defeated Liverpool only days later.

The 2003/04 Premier League season saw Arsène Wenger lead the North-London club to a first undefeated season, solidifying his managerial legacy and longevity to the Arsenal fanbase as they finished the season with 26 wins, 12 draws, 0 defeats and 90 points; the tied-tenth highest points tally ever seen in a premier league season, winning with an 11-point margin to Claudio Ranieri's Chelsea. Thierry Henry proved decisive in the critical moments, inspiring comebacks against close rivals Liverpool and Chelsea, including a hat-trick to seal a 4-2 win from being 2-1 down initially.

The relegation spots were occupied by three teams bracketed together on 33 points. Wolves and Leicester City followed the trend of many other newly promoted Premier League clubs and were relegated just one season after reaching the top division. For Leicester City, they would not return to the top flight for another 10 years and became the league champions for the first time ever in their history just a season later, whilst Wolves had been promoted back to the top flight in 2009 and slipped down again 3 years later. The other relegation place went to Leeds United, whose playing fortunes had dipped in the past two seasons after David O'Leary was sacked as manager and club debts had risen so high that many star players had to be sold. As a result, Leeds were relegated from the Premier League after 14 years of top division football – just three seasons after they had reached the Champions League semifinals, and they would not return for another 16 years.

In his third season as Middlesbrough manager, Steve McClaren had guided the Teessiders to their first ever major trophy – sealed with a 2–1 win over Bolton Wanderers in the League Cup final. McClaren was also the first English manager to win a major trophy since Brian Little guided Aston Villa to League Cup success in 1996. He was also the first manager to take Middlesbrough into European competition – they would be competing in the 2004–05 UEFA Cup.

Teams

Twenty teams competed in the league – the top seventeen teams from the previous season and the three teams promoted from the First Division. The promoted teams were Portsmouth, Leicester City and Wolverhampton Wanderers, returning to the top flight after an absence of fifteen, one and nineteen years respectively. This was also both Portsmouth's and Wolverhampton Wanderers' first season in the Premier League. They replaced West Ham United, West Bromwich Albion and Sunderland, who were relegated to the First Division after spending time in the top flight for ten, one and four years respectively.

Stadiums and locations

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Locations of the 2003–04 Premier League teams
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Greater London Premier League football clubs
class=notpageimage|
West Midlands Premier League football clubs
TeamLocationStadiumCapacity
ArsenalLondon (Highbury)Arsenal Stadium38,419
Aston VillaBirmingham (Aston)Villa Park42,553
Birmingham CityBirmingham (Bordesley)St Andrew's30,079
Blackburn RoversBlackburnEwood Park31,367
Bolton WanderersBoltonReebok Stadium28,723
Charlton AthleticLondon (Charlton)The Valley27,111
ChelseaLondon (Fulham)Stamford Bridge42,360
EvertonLiverpool (Walton)Goodison Park40,569
FulhamLondon (Shepherd's Bush)Loftus Road[a]18,493
Leeds UnitedLeedsElland Road40,242
Leicester CityLeicesterWalkers Stadium32,312
LiverpoolLiverpool (Anfield)Anfield45,276
Manchester CityManchester (Bradford)City of Manchester Stadium[b]48,000
Manchester UnitedManchester (Old Trafford)Old Trafford68,217
MiddlesbroughMiddlesbroughRiverside Stadium35,049
Newcastle UnitedNewcastle upon TyneSt James' Park52,387
PortsmouthPortsmouthFratton Park20,220
SouthamptonSouthamptonSt Mary's Stadium32,505
Tottenham HotspurLondon (Tottenham)White Hart Lane36,240
Wolverhampton WanderersWolverhamptonMolineux Stadium29,303

Personnel and kits

TeamManagerCaptainKit manufacturerShirt sponsor
Arsenal Arsène Wenger Patrick VieiraNikeO2
Aston Villa David O'Leary Olof MellbergDiadoraRover
Birmingham City Steve Bruce Kenny CunninghamLe Coq SportifFlybe
Blackburn Rovers Graeme Souness Garry FlitcroftKappaHSA
Bolton Wanderers Sam Allardyce Jay-Jay OkochaReebokReebok
Charlton Athletic Alan Curbishley Matt HollandJomaAll:Sports
Chelsea Claudio Ranieri Marcel DesaillyUmbroFly Emirates
Everton David Moyes David WeirPumaKejian
Fulham Chris Coleman Lee ClarkPumadabs.com
Leeds United Kevin Blackwell Dominic MatteoNikeWhyte and Mackay
Leicester City Micky Adams Matt ElliottLe Coq SportifAlliance & Leicester
Liverpool Gérard Houllier Steven GerrardReebokCarlsberg
Manchester City Kevin Keegan Sylvain DistinReebokFirst Advice
Manchester United Sir Alex Ferguson Roy KeaneNikeVodafone
Middlesbrough Steve McClaren Gareth SouthgateErreàDial-a-Phone
Newcastle United Sir Bobby Robson Alan ShearerAdidasNorthern Rock
Portsmouth Harry Redknapp Teddy SheringhamPompey Sportty
Southampton Paul Sturrock Claus LundekvamSaintsFriends Provident
Tottenham Hotspur David Pleat (caretaker) Jamie RedknappKappaThomson Holidays
Wolverhampton Wanderers Dave Jones Paul InceAdmiralDoritos

Managerial changes

TeamOutgoing managerManner of departureDate of vacancyPosition in tableIncoming managerDate of appointment
Fulham Chris Coleman (caretaker)End of caretaker period12 May 2003Pre-season Chris Coleman15 May 2003[5]
Aston Villa Graham TaylorResigned14 May 2003[6] David O'Leary20 May 2003
Tottenham Hotspur Glenn HoddleSacked22 September 2003[7]18th David Pleat (caretaker)24 September 2003[8]
Leeds United Peter Reid10 November 200320th Eddie Gray10 November 2003
Southampton Gordon StrachanResigned13 February 200412th Paul Sturrock4 March 2004
Leeds United Eddie GrayMutual consent10 May 200419th Kevin Blackwell1 June 2004

League table

The Premier League commissioned a unique gold trophy to commemorate Arsenal's achievement of winning the league title without defeat.
PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsQualification or relegation
1Arsenal (C)38261207326+4790Qualification for the Champions League group stage
2Chelsea3824776730+3779
3Manchester United3823696435+2975Qualification for the Champions League third qualifying round[a]
4Liverpool381612105537+1860
5Newcastle United38131785240+1256Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
6Aston Villa381511124844+456
7Charlton Athletic381411135151053
8Bolton Wanderers381411134856−853
9Fulham381410145246+652
10Birmingham City381214124348−550
11Middlesbrough38139164452−848Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round[b]
12Southampton381211154445−147
13Portsmouth38129174754−745
14Tottenham Hotspur38136194757−1045
15Blackburn Rovers38128185159−844
16Manchester City38914155554+141
17Everton38912174557−1239
18Leicester City (R)38615174865−1733Relegation to the Football League Championship
19Leeds United (R)3889214079−3933
20Wolverhampton Wanderers (R)38712193877−3933
Source: Premier League
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:

Season statistics

Total goals: 1,012
Average goals per game: 2.66

Results

Home \ AwayARSAVLBIRBLBBOLCHACHEEVEFULLEELEILIVMCIMUNMIDNEWPORSOUTOTWOL
Arsenal2–00–01–02–12–12–12–10–05–02–14–22–11–14–13–21–12–02–13–0
Aston Villa0–22–20–21–12–13–20–03–02–03–10–01–10–20–20–02–11–01–03–2
Birmingham City0–30–00–42–01–20–03–02–24–10–10–32–11–23–11–12–02–11–02–2
Blackburn Rovers0–20–21–13–40–12–32–10–21–21–01–32–31–02–21–11–21–11–05–1
Bolton Wanderers1–12–20–12–20–00–22–00–24–12–22–21–31–22–01–01–00–02–01–1
Charlton Athletic1–11–21–13–21–24–22–23–10–12–23–20–30–21–00–01–12–12–42–0
Chelsea1–21–00–02–21–21–00–02–11–02–10–11–01–00–05–03–04–04–25–2
Everton1–12–01–00–11–20–10–13–14–03–20–30–03–41–12–21–00–03–12–0
Fulham0–11–20–03–42–12–00–12–12–02–01–22–21–13–22–32–02–02–10–0
Leeds United1–40–00–22–10–23–31–11–13–23–22–22–10–10–32–21–20–00–14–1
Leicester City1–10–50–22–01–11–10–41–10–24–00–01–11–40–01–13–12–21–20–0
Liverpool1–21–03–14–03–10–11–20–00–03–12–12–11–22–01–13–01–20–01–0
Manchester City1–24–10–01–16–21–10–15–10–01–10–32–24–10–11–01–11–30–03–3
Manchester United0–04–03–02–14–02–01–13–21–31–11–00–13–12–30–03–03–23–01–0
Middlesbrough0–41–25–30–12–00–01–21–02–12–33–30–02–10–10–10–03–11–02–0
Newcastle United0–01–10–10–10–03–12–14–23–11–03–11–13–01–22–13–01–04–01–1
Portsmouth1–12–13–11–24–01–20–21–21–16–10–21–04–21–05–11–11–02–00–0
Southampton0–11–10–02–01–23–20–13–30–02–10–02–00–21–00–13–33–01–02–0
Tottenham Hotspur2–22–14–11–00–10–10–13–00–32–14–42–11–11–20–01–04–31–35–2
Wolverhampton Wanderers1–30–41–12–21–20–40–52–12–13–14–31–11–01–02–01–10–01–40–2
Source: 11v11
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Overall

Scoring

Top scorers

RankPlayerClubGoals
1 Thierry HenryArsenal30
2 Alan ShearerNewcastle United22
3 Louis SahaManchester United/Fulham20
Ruud van NistelrooyManchester United20
5 Mikael ForssellBirmingham City17
6 Nicolas AnelkaManchester City16
Juan Pablo ÁngelAston Villa16
Michael OwenLiverpool16
YakubuPortsmouth16
10 James BeattieSouthampton14
Robbie KeaneTottenham Hotspur14
Robert PiresArsenal14

Awards

Monthly awards

MonthManager of the MonthPlayer of the Month
AugustArsène Wenger (Arsenal)Teddy Sheringham (Portsmouth)
SeptemberClaudio Ranieri (Chelsea)Frank Lampard (Chelsea)
OctoberSir Bobby Robson (Newcastle United)Alan Shearer (Newcastle United)
NovemberSam Allardyce (Bolton Wanderers)Jay-Jay Okocha (Bolton Wanderers)
DecemberSir Alex Ferguson (Manchester United)Paul Scholes (Manchester United)
JanuarySam Allardyce (Bolton Wanderers)Thierry Henry (Arsenal)
FebruaryArsène Wenger (Arsenal)Dennis Bergkamp (Arsenal) & Edu (Arsenal)
MarchClaudio Ranieri (Chelsea)Mikael Forssell (Birmingham City)
AprilHarry Redknapp (Portsmouth)Thierry Henry (Arsenal)

Annual awards

LMA Manager of the Year

The LMA Manager of the Year award was won by Arsène Wenger.[9]

PFA Players' Player of the Year

The PFA Players' Player of the Year award for 2004 was won by Thierry Henry of Arsenal for the second successive year.[10]

The shortlist for the PFA Players' Player of the Year award was as follows:

PFA Young Player of the Year

The PFA Young Player of the Year award was won by Scott Parker of Chelsea F.C.

The shortlist for the award was as follows:[11]

PFA Team of the Year

Goalkeeper: Tim Howard (Manchester United)
Defence: Lauren, Ashley Cole, Sol Campbell (all Arsenal), John Terry (Chelsea)
Midfield: Steven Gerrard (Liverpool), Patrick Vieira, Robert Pires (both Arsenal), Frank Lampard (Chelsea)
Attack: Thierry Henry (Arsenal), Ruud van Nistelrooy (Manchester United)

PFA Fans' Player of the Year

Thierry Henry of Arsenal was named the PFA Fans' Player of the Year for the second consecutive year. Henry was the first player to win this award twice.[12][13]

FWA Footballer of the Year

The FWA Footballer of the Year award for 2004 was won by Thierry Henry. The Arsenal forward picked up a remarkable 87% of the votes.[14]

Premier League Fair Play Award

The Premier League Fair Play Award merit is given to the team who has been the most sporting and best behaved team. Champions Arsenal won this.[15][16]

Behaviour of the Public League

Given to the best-behaved fans, Arsenal won this, thus achieving a fair play double.[15]

Premier League Manager of the Year

Arsène Wenger won the Premier League Manager of the Year award. His team won 26 games, losing none and drawing 12 scoring 73 goals, conceding 26.[17]

See also

References

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