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The 2000-2001 season was the 121st season of competitive football in England.
Overview
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.
Arguably two of the most famous clubs outside the Premiership fell into Division Three. They were - who had been League Cup winners 13 years earlier and top division members until 9 years ago - and - who had been League Cup winners 15 years earlier and top division members until 13 years ago.
Mid-table Divison Two side Wycombe Wanderers beat all odds by reaching the FA Cup Semi-Final veruses Liverpool, having beaten Divison One sides Millwall, Wolves, Wimbledon and a very strong Premiership Leicester City en route. Wycombe were beaten 2-1 at Villa Park, Keith Ryan scoring the Chairboys' goal.
Successful managers
George Burley guided newly promoted Ipswich Town to fifth place in the Premiership and achieved qualification for the UEFA Cup.
Gerard Houllier won a treble of trophies with Liverpool after they triumphed in the F.A 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 standing for 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 their most successful season for years as they ended the campaign as Division Three champions.
Brian Talbot took Rushden & Diamonds (founded just 9 years ago) into the Football League as Conference champions.
Events
Swede Eriksson is England's first foreign coach
With pressure building up on him following 's dismal Euro 2000 campaign, Kevin Keegan resigned as manager of England's national team minutes after a 1-0 defeat to Germany in the opening 2002 World Cup qualifying game. The match, played October 7, 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 F.A'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 February 28. England would go on to win their first five matches with Eriksson in charge and all the critics who were opposed to Eriksson being appointed looked to have made a major misjudgement.Houllier delivers treble for Liverpool
Liverpool captured the 2001 UEFA Cup on 16th May with a 5-4 win over Alavés. The game was won in the 116th minute by golden goal, and it completed a treble 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 in the first English final at the Millennium Stadium, and the F.A Cup was secured after a dramatic 2-1 win over 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 were crowned Premiership champions for the third season running. Their title was secured with 80 points and a 10-point gap between themselves and runners-up . Most bookmakers had closed their books before the turn of the New Year and admitted that United were certain of their seventh Premiership title in nine seasons. A 6-1 demolition of Arsenal in late February crushed any lingering doubts over the title's destiny.United were not the first team to win three straight league titles. , and had all done it before, but with managerial changes in between.
Fulham back in the big time
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 £30million 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
While Sir Alex Ferguson won a third successive Premiership title with Manchester United and Gerard Houllier guided Liverpool to a unique treble of cup competitions, '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 UEFA Cup place - their first foray in Europe for 20 years.
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 £19million with PSV Eindhoven 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 12th July, Sir Alex broke the English transfer fee record again. This time he brought in Argentine midfielder Juan Sebastian Veron, 26, from Lazio in a £28.1million deal.
Basement battle for survival
At the bottom of the football league, the battle for survival went to the very last day of the season, with the bottom two sides and 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 5 up front for periods of the second half scored twice to keep the tension levels high until the end of the game. It finished 3-2 to Torquay and Barnet lost their league place.Honours
England national team
| Date | Venue | Opponents | Score | Comp | England scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 2, 2000 | Paris | France | 1-1 | F | Owen |
| October 7, 2000 | Wembley, London | Germany | 0-1 | WCQ | |
| October 11, 2000 | Helsinki | Finland | 0-0 | WCQ | |
| November 15, 2000 | Turin | Italy | 0-1 | F | |
| February 28, 2001 | Villa Park, Birmingham | Spain | 3-0 | F | Barmby, Heskey, Ehiogu |
| March 24, 2001 | Anfield, Liverpool | Finland | 2-1 | WCQ | Owen, Beckham |
| March 28, 2001 | Tirana | Albania | 3-1 | WCQ | Owen, Scholes, Cole |
| May 25, 2001 | Pride Park, Derby | Mexico | 4-0 | F | Scholes, Fowler, Beckham, Sheringham |
| June 6, 2001 | Athens | Greece | 2-0 | WCQ | Scholes, Beckham |
Key: WCQ = 2002 World Cup qualifiers, F = Friendly; scores are written England first
League competitions
FA Premier League
P W D L F A GD Pts 1 Manchester United 38 24 8 6 79 31 +48 80 2 Arsenal 38 20 10 8 63 38 +25 70 3 Liverpool 38 20 9 9 71 39 +32 69 4 Leeds United 38 20 8 10 64 43 +21 68 5 Ipswich Town 38 20 6 12 57 42 +15 66 6 Chelsea 38 17 10 11 68 45 +23 61 7 Sunderland 38 15 12 11 46 41 +5 57 8 Aston Villa 38 13 15 10 46 43 +3 54 9 Charlton Athletic 38 14 10 14 50 57 -7 52 10 Southampton 38 14 10 14 40 48 -8 52 11 Newcastle United 38 14 9 15 44 50 -6 51 12 Tottenham Hotspur 38 13 10 15 47 54 -7 49 13 Leicester City 38 14 6 18 39 51 -12 48 14 Middlesbrough 38 9 15 14 44 44 0 42 15 West Ham United 38 10 12 16 45 50 -5 42 16 Everton 38 11 9 18 45 59 -14 42 17 Derby County 38 10 12 16 37 59 -22 42 18 Manchester City 38 8 10 20 41 65 -24 34 19 Coventry City 38 8 10 20 36 63 -27 34 20 Bradford City 38 5 11 22 30 70 -40 26Leading goalscorer: Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink (), 23
Football League First Division
P W D L F A GD Pts 1 Fulham 46 30 11 5 100 42 +58 101 2 Blackburn Rovers 46 26 13 7 76 39 +37 91 3 Bolton Wanderers 46 24 15 7 76 45 +31 87 4 Preston North End 46 23 9 14 64 52 +12 78 5 Birmingham City 46 23 9 14 59 48 +11 78 6 West Bromwich Albion 46 21 11 14 60 52 +8 74 7 Burnley 46 21 9 16 50 54 -4 72 8 Wimbledon 46 17 18 11 71 50 +21 69 9 Watford 46 20 9 17 76 67 +9 69 10 Sheffield United 46 19 11 16 52 49 +3 68 11 Nottingham Forest 46 20 8 18 55 53 +2 68 12 Wolverhampton Wanderers 46 14 13 19 45 48 -3 55 13 Gillingham 46 13 16 17 61 66 -5 55 14 Crewe Alexandra 46 15 10 21 47 62 -15 55 15 Norwich City 46 14 12 20 46 58 -12 54 16 Barnsley 46 15 9 22 49 62 -13 54 17 Sheffield Wednesday 46 15 8 23 52 71 -19 53 18 Grimsby Town 46 14 10 22 43 62 -19 52 19 Stockport County 46 11 18 17 58 65 -7 51 20 Portsmouth 46 10 19 17 47 59 -12 49 21 Crystal Palace 46 12 13 21 57 70 -13 49 22 Huddersfield Town 46 11 15 20 48 57 -9 48 23 Queens Park Rangers 46 7 19 20 45 75 -30 40 24 Tranmere Rovers 46 9 11 26 46 77 -31 38Leading goalscorer: Louis Saha (), 27
Football League Second Division
P W D L F A GD Pts 1 Millwall 46 28 9 9 89 38 +51 93 2 Rotherham United 46 27 10 9 79 55 +24 91 3 Reading 46 25 11 10 86 52 +34 86 4 Walsall 46 23 12 11 79 50 +29 81 5 Stoke City 46 21 14 11 74 49 +25 77 6 Wigan Athletic 46 19 18 9 53 42 +11 75 7 AFC Bournemouth 46 20 13 13 79 55 +22 73 8 Notts County 46 19 12 15 62 66 -4 69 9 Bristol City 46 18 14 14 70 56 +14 68 10 Wrexham 46 17 12 17 65 71 -6 63 11 Port Vale 46 16 14 16 55 49 +6 62 12 Peterborough United 46 15 14 17 61 66 -5 59 13 Wycombe Wanderers 46 15 14 17 46 53 -7 59 14 Brentford 46 14 17 15 56 70 -14 59 15 Oldham Athletic 46 15 13 18 53 65 -12 58 16 Bury 46 16 10 20 45 59 -14 58 17 Colchester United 46 15 12 19 55 59 -4 57 18 Northampton Town 46 15 12 19 46 59 -13 57 19 Cambridge United 46 14 11 21 61 77 -16 53 20 Swindon Town 46 13 13 20 47 65 -18 52 21 Bristol Rovers 46 12 15 19 53 57 -4 51 22 Luton Town 46 9 13 24 52 80 -28 40 23 Swansea City 46 8 13 25 47 73 -26 37 24 Oxford United 46 7 6 33 53 100 -47 27Leading goalscorer: Jamie Cureton (), 27
Football League Third Division
P W D L F A GD Pts 1 Brighton & Hove Albion 46 28 8 10 73 35 +38 92 2 Cardiff City 46 23 13 10 95 58 +37 82 3 Chesterfield* 46 25 14 7 79 42 +37 80 4 Hartlepool United 46 21 14 11 71 54 +17 77 5 Leyton Orient 46 20 15 11 59 51 +8 75 6 Hull City 46 19 17 10 47 39 +8 74 7 Blackpool 46 22 6 18 74 58 +16 72 8 Rochdale 46 18 17 11 59 48 +11 71 9 Cheltenham Town 46 18 14 14 59 52 +7 68 10 Scunthorpe United 46 18 11 17 62 52 +10 65 11 Southend United 46 15 18 13 55 53 +2 63 12 Plymouth Argyle 46 15 13 18 54 61 -7 58 13 Mansfield Town 46 15 13 18 64 72 -8 58 14 Macclesfield Town 46 14 14 18 51 62 -11 56 15 Shrewsbury Town 46 15 10 21 49 65 -16 55 16 Kidderminster Harriers 46 13 14 19 47 61 -14 53 17 York City 46 13 13 20 42 63 -21 52 18 Lincoln City 46 12 15 19 58 66 -8 51 19 Exeter City 46 12 14 20 40 58 -18 50 20 Darlington 46 12 13 21 44 56 -12 49 21 Torquay United 46 12 13 21 52 77 -25 49 22 Carlisle United 46 11 15 20 42 65 -23 48 23 Halifax Town 46 12 11 23 54 68 -14 47 24 Barnet 46 12 9 25 67 81 -14 45Leading goalscorer: Bobby Zamora (), 28
'' * = deducted 9 points for financial irregularites.
European qualifiers
UEFA Champions League
Group phase
Qualifying round
UEFA Cup
Promoted teams
From Division One to the Premier League:
From Division Two to Division One:
From Division Three to Division Two:
From The Football Conference to Division Three:
Relegated teams
From the Premier League to Division One:
From Division One to Division Two:
From Division Two to Division Three:
From Division Three to The Football Conference:
Major Transfer deals
=2000
=- July 3 - Robert Pirès from Marseille to Arsenal, £6m
- July 3 - Carlo Cudicini from Castel di Sangro to Chelsea
- July 17 - Paul Gascoigne from Middlesbrough to Everton, free
- July 18 - Nick Barmby from Everton to Liverpool, £6m
- July 21 - Mark Viduka from Celtic to Leeds United, £6m
- July 25 - Julio Arca from Argentinos Juniors to Sunderland, £3.5m
- July 28 - Alpay from Fenerbahçe to Aston Villa, £5.6m
- August 17 - Craig Bellamy from Norwich City to Coventry City, £6.5m
- August 25 - Christian Ziege from Middlesbrough to Liverpool, £5.5m
- August 26 - Sylvain Wiltord from Bordeaux to Arsenal, £13m
- September 20 - Ugo Ehiogu from Aston Villa to Middlesbrough, £8m
- October 26 - Rio Ferdinand from West Ham United to Leeds United, £18m
- December 7 - Igor Biscan from Dinamo Zagreb to Liverpool, £5.5m
- December 29 - Jesper Grønkjær from Ajax to Chelsea, £7.8m
=2001
=- January 13 - Juan Pablo Ángel from River Plate to Aston Villa, £9.5m
- January 16 - Edu from Corinthians to Arsenal, £6m
- May 21 - Robbie Keane from Inter to Leeds United, £12m
- June 14 - Frank Lampard from West Ham United to Chelsea, £11m
- June 17 - Corrado Grabbi from Ternana to Blackburn, £6.75m
Deaths
- Stan Cullis, 85, manager of from 1947 to 1964, having previously been on the club's playing staff. Won three league championships and two F.A Cups. Was manager from 1965 until 1970. During the early 1990s redevelopment of the Molineux, a new stand was named in honour of Stan Cullis.
- David Rocastle, 33, who won two league championships and one League Cup with (where he played from 1983 until 1992), died of cancer. He played 14 times for without scoring, but was never on the losing side. He later played for , , , , and Malaysian side Selangar before retiring in 1999. His nine-year-old son Ryan was Arsenal's mascot at the F.A Cup final just six weeks after Rocastle senior's death.
- George Armstrong, 56, died of a stroke at 's training ground where he had been coaching the club's reserve side. He had been a key player in their 1971 double triumph.
- Maurice Evans, 63, died of a heart attack. He had managed to the Fourth Division championship in 1979 and most famously took charge of during their three-year spell in the top flight (1985-88). Guided them to League Cup glory in 1986. Was sacked in March 1988 as they were heading for relegation to the Second Division, but was later employed at the club as caretaker manager (during the autumn of 1993) and then as Director of Football.
- Joe Fagan, 80, was a long-serving coach at when he succeeded Bob Paisley as manager in 1983. In his first season they won a unique treble of the league championship, League Cup and European Cup, but his last season ended trophyless after they lost 1-0 to Juventus in the European Cup final at Heysel - the infamous game at which the Heysel Stadium disaster claimed the lives of 39 spectators.
"2000-01 in English football"