2000–01 Liverpool F.C. season

Liverpool

2000–01 season
Chairman	David Moores
Manager	Gérard Houllier
Premier League	3rd
FA Cup	Winners
League Cup	Winners
UEFA Cup	Winners
Top goalscorer	League: Michael Owen (16) All: Michael Owen (24)
Average home league attendance	42,768
Home colours Away colours Third colours
← 1999–2000 2001–02 →

The 2000–2001 season was Liverpool Football Club's 109th season in existence and their 39th consecutive season in the top-flight of English football. This season proved highly successful for Liverpool, with them picking up the League Cup, UEFA Cup and FA Cup under Gerard Houllier, having finished 3rd in the league.^[1]

Liverpool enjoyed their best season for years when they completed a unique treble of cup competitions and ended Gérard Houllier's three-year wait to bring silverware to Anfield.

The first trophy was secured on 25 February when a 5–4 penalty shoot-out victory followed a 1–1 draw with Birmingham City in the Worthington Cup final. The game was also the first club fixture to be played at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium while Wembley was being rebuilt. Part two of the treble was completed on 12 May when two late Michael Owen goals overturned Arsenal's lead in the FA Cup final to give the Reds a 2–1 win. The final part of the treble was perhaps the most dramatic. The UEFA Cup final featured an amazing nine goals as Alavés gave them a run for their money fighting back to equalize from 3–1 and 4–3, before Liverpool finally ran out 5–4 winners after extra-time.^[2] The FA and UEFA cup wins meant Liverpool played in the Charity Shield and UEFA Super Cup at the start of the next season, winning both.

Promising young midfielder Steven Gerrard was voted PFA Young Player of the Year for his key part in one of the most successful seasons in Liverpool's 109-year history, and contributions from British stars Michael Owen, Robbie Fowler, Jamie Carragher, Danny Murphy and new signings Gary McAllister and Emile Heskey were matched by an increasingly continental side consisting of new captain Sami Hyypiä, Sander Westerveld, Jari Litmanen and Dietmar Hamann.

However, there was sad news just after the end of the season, when former manager Joe Fagan (manager of the 1984 side that also managed to win three trophies in a season) died at the age of 80 after a long illness.

No.	Player	Nationality	Date Of Birth	Signed From
Goalkeepers
1	Sander Westerveld		(1974-10-23)23 October 1974 (aged 25)	Vitesse
19	Pegguy Arphexad		(1973-05-18)18 May 1973 (aged 27)	Leicester City
26	Jørgen Nielsen		(1971-05-06)6 May 1971 (aged 29)	Hvidovre
Defenders
2	Stephane Henchoz		(1974-09-07)7 September 1974 (aged 25)	Blackburn Rovers
3	Christian Ziege		(1972-02-01)1 February 1972 (aged 28)	Middlesbrough
6	Markus Babbel		(1972-09-08)8 September 1972 (aged 27)	Bayern Munich
12	Sami Hyypia		(1973-10-07)7 October 1973 (aged 26)	Willem II
14	Vegard Heggem		(1975-07-13)13 July 1975 (aged 24)	Rosenborg
23	Jamie Carragher		(1978-01-28)28 January 1978 (aged 22)	LFC Academy
27	Gregory Vignal		(1981-07-19)19 July 1981 (aged 18)	Montpellier
29	Stephen Wright		(1980-02-08)8 February 1980 (aged 20)	LFC Academy
30	Djimi Traore		(1980-03-01)1 March 1980 (aged 20)	Stade Lavallois
31	Frode Kippe		(1978-01-17)17 January 1978 (aged 22)	Lillestrom
Midfielders
7	Vladimir Smicer		(1973-05-24)24 May 1973 (aged 27)	RC Lens
11	Jamie Redknapp		(1973-06-25)25 June 1973 (aged 27)	Bournemouth
13	Danny Murphy		(1977-03-18)18 March 1977 (aged 23)	Crewe Alexandra
15	Patrik Berger		(1973-11-10)10 November 1973 (aged 26)	Borussia Dortmund
16	Dietmar Hamann		(1973-08-27)27 August 1973 (aged 26)	Newcastle United
17	Steven Gerrard		(1980-05-30)30 May 1980 (aged 20)	LFC Academy
20	Nick Barmby		(1974-02-11)11 February 1974 (aged 26)	Everton
21	Gary McAllister		(1964-12-25)25 December 1964 (aged 35)	Coventry City
24	Bernard Diomede		(1974-01-23)23 January 1974 (aged 26)	Auxerre
25	Igor Biscan		(1978-05-04)4 May 1978 (aged 22)	Dinamo Zagreb
28	Richie Partridge		(1980-09-12)12 September 1980 (aged 19)	Stella Maris
33	Alan Navarro		(1981-05-31)31 May 1981 (aged 19)	LFC Academy
Forwards
8	Emile Heskey		(1978-01-11)11 January 1978 (aged 22)	Leicester City
9	Robbie Fowler		(1975-04-09)9 April 1975 (aged 25)	LFC Academy
10	Michael Owen		(1979-12-14)14 December 1979 (aged 20)	LFC Academy
37	Jari Litmanen		(1971-02-20)20 February 1971 (aged 29)	Barcelona

Date	Pos.	No.	Player	From	Fee
7 June 2000	MF	24	Bernard Diomede	Auxerre	£3,000,000
1 July 2000	MF	21	Gary McAllister	Coventry City	Free Transfer
1 July 2000	GK	19	Pegguy Arphexad	Leicester City	Free Transfer
1 July 2000	DF	6	Markus Babbel	Bayern Munich	Free Transfer
18 July 2000	MF	20	Nick Barmby	Everton	£6,000,000
25 July 2000	DF	3	Christian Ziege	Middlesbrough	£5,500,000
22 September 2000	DF	27	Gregory Vignal	Montpellier	£500,000
28 November 2000	FW	-	Daniel Sjolund	West Ham United	£1,000,000
7 December 2000	MF	25	Igor Biscan	Dinamo Zagreb	£5,500,000
4 January 2001	FW	37	Jari Litmanen	Barcelona	Free Transfer

Date	Pos.	No.	Player	To	Fee
26 June 2000	DF	20	Stig Inge Bjornebye	Blackburn Rovers	£300,000
1 July 2000	DF	6	Phil Babb	Sporting CP	Free Transfer
3 August 2000	MF	25	David Thompson	Coventry City	£2,750,000
18 August 2000	DF	21	Dominic Matteo	Leeds United	£4,750,000
3 November 2000	GK	19	Brad Friedel	Blackburn Rovers	Free Transfer
28 November 2000	DF	4	Rigobert Song	West Ham United	£2,500,000
6 December 2000	DF	5	Steve Staunton	Aston Villa	Free Transfer
11 December 2000	FW	18	Erik Meijer	Hamburg	Free Transfer
21 December 2000	FW	22	Titi Camara	West Ham United	£2,600,000
27 December 2000	FW	27	Haukur Ingi Guðnason	Keflavik	Free Transfer
20 March 2001	FW	32	Jon Newby	Bury	£100,000

Gérard Houllier prepared for his third season at the Liverpool helm, looking to improve on the fourth-place finish of the previous campaign which had seen the Reds having to settle for a place in the UEFA Cup when they had come so close to qualifying for the UEFA Champions League.

The campaign began with a 1–0 home win over relegation favourites Bradford City, who had defeated Liverpool last season to deny the Reds Champions League qualification; Emile Heskey scored the only goal of the game. A 2–0 defeat at Arsenal followed, before a thrilling 3–3 draw at Southampton in which Michael Owen was on target twice.

September began well with good home wins over Aston Villa and Manchester City. The European adventure then began with a 1–0 away win over Romanian side Rapid București in the first round first leg of the UEFA Cup. The return to league action saw 1–1 draws with West Ham United and Sunderland. The month ended with a goalless home draw in the return leg against Rapid București to ensure progression to the next stage of the competition.

October began badly for Liverpool, who found themselves on the receiving end of a 3–0 defeat by Chelsea in the league. Two weeks later, however, an Emile Heskey hat-trick gave them a 4–0 win at Derby County which put them in fourth place, four points behind leaders Manchester United and second placed Arsenal and a point behind third placed Leicester City. Heskey was on target in the next two games that month – a 1–0 win over Slovan Liberec in the UEFA Cup second round first leg at Anfield and the 3–1 win over Everton in the Merseyside derby, also at Anfield. [1]

November brought mixed results for the Reds. Their Football League Cup quest began in the third round with a 2–1 win over Chelsea after extra time. This was followed by a 4–3 league defeat to Leeds United at Elland Road. In the second round second leg of the UEFA Cup, the Reds eliminated Slovan Liberec to reach the third round. There was also an impressive 4–1 home win over Coventry City in the league, followed by 2–1 defeats at Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United, and finally an 8–0 away demolition of Division Two side Stoke City in the fourth round of the League Cup. Liverpool were still a healthy fifth in the league but were now 12 points adrift of leaders Manchester United, in turn eight points ahead of nearest contenders Arsenal. [2]

December was a generally good month for the Reds, who began with a 3–0 home win over Charlton Athletic before overcoming Olympiacos in the UEFA Cup third round. Liverpool then suffering a shock 1–0 home defeat at the hands of surprise title outsiders Ipswich Town, only promoted the previous season. A Danny Murphy goal gave them a 1–0 away win over Manchester United two days before Christmas, though it did little to alter the decision of many bookmakers by this stage of the season to re-open the books on the title race, as so many of them were now certain that United would win their third successive title. The year ended with a 1–0 defeat to Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium on Boxing Day. The Reds ended the year in sixth place, occupying the European places along with leaders Manchester United, and the top five clubs Arsenal, Sunderland, Leicester City and Ipswich Town. [3]

2001 started with a 2–1 home win over Southampton, followed by a 3–0 home win over Rotherham United in the FA Cup third round. Then came a surprise 2–1 defeat by Division One strugglers Crystal Palace in the League Cup semi-final first leg at Selhurst Park, though the Reds were rampant 5–0 winners in the return leg at Anfield 14 days later to book their place in the final with Birmingham City and be presented with the opportunity to win the trophy for a record sixth time. There was also an excellent 3–0 away win over Aston Villa in the league in mid January, as well as a 2–0 win at Leeds United in the FA Cup fourth round. The month ended with a 1–1 draw against strugglers Manchester City at Maine Road. Liverpool now stood fourth in the league, with Manchester United now 15 points ahead of nearest contenders Arsenal, 16 points clear of third placed Sunderland and 18 points clear of Liverpool. Though the league was now surely beyond Liverpool's (and indeed any other team's) reach, the Reds still had three cups to play for. [4]

February began with an impressive 3–0 home win over struggling West Ham United and a 1–1 draw at Sunderland. Then came the return to European action – a 2–0 away win over Roma in the UEFA Cup fourth round, in which Michael Owen scored both goals. Then came a 4–2 home win over Manchester City in the FA Cup fifth round. Then came the second leg of the game against Roma, which the Reds lost 1–0 at Anfield, still enough for Liverpool to progress to the quarter-finals.

The League Cup final on 25 February was to be the first domestic cup final to be playing beyond England's borders: Wembley Stadium had closed for rebuilding in October 2000 and, until the revamped stadium was ready, all major finals in English football would be held at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales. Robbie Fowler put the Reds ahead against Birmingham City after 30 minutes, only for the Division One midlanders to equalise later. With extra time played, the scores were still level and so the game went to penalties – a first for an English cup final. Liverpool won the shoot-out to end their six-year wait for a major trophy, their longest major trophy wait since the early 1960s.

Liverpool began March with a 2–0 defeat at Leicester City before travelling to Portugal for the UEFA Cup quarter final first leg with Porto, which ended in a goalless draw. Then came the all-Merseyside FA Cup quarter-final – not against Everton, but against Wirral-based Tranmere Rovers, managed by former Liverpool striker John Aldridge. The Reds won 4–2 at Prenton Park, marking the end of a complicated story for Tranmere, who were on their way to relegation from Division One – and for Aldridge, who left the club within weeks of this game. Four days later, Porto travelled to Anfield for the quarter-final second leg, which the Reds won 2–0. The remaining games that month were a 1–1 home draw with struggling Derby County and a 2–0 home win over Manchester United, which did little except prolong United's wait for their inevitable third straight league title.

With Manchester United confirmed as Premier League champions on 14 April, most eyes were off the Premier League as Liverpool looked to add the FA Cup and UEFA Cup to their earlier League Cup triumph. The FA Cup semi-final at Villa Park on 8 April was against Division Two surprise package Wycombe Wanderers (in only their eighth season as a Football League club) and the Reds only narrowly managed to beat them with a slender 2–1 win. The UEFA Cup semi final first leg with Barcelona saw a goalless draw at the Camp Nou, before a penalty by 36-year-old Gary McAllister in the return leg at Anfield put the Reds through to their first post-Heysel European final.

After securing a third-place finish in the league and qualification for the Champions League for the first time in the post-Heysel era, the Reds enjoyed one of their finest months ever by completing a unique treble of the League Cup (won in late February), FA Cup and UEFA Cup. The FA Cup was snatched from the jaws of defeat when two late goals from Michael Owen overturned Arsenal's 1–0 lead in the final minutes of the game. The treble was completed four days later when a thrilling match against Alavés of Spain gave them a 5–4 victory in the UEFA Cup final.

Date	Opponents	H / A	Result F–A	Scorers
22 July 2000	Stoke City	A	0–1
29 July 2000	SC Freiburg	A	4–1	Barmby 18', Heskey 40', Owen 54', Staunton 74'
3 August 2000	Glentoran	A	4–0	Fowler 9', Berger 43', Šmicer 44', Murphy 61'
5 August 2000	Benfica	N	2–2	Camara 10', Owen 48'
10 August 2000	Valerenga	A	1–1 (2–4 p)	Šmicer 22'
13 August 2000	Parma	H	5–0	Hamann 29', Barmby 38', McAllister 59', Owen 64' (pen.), 84'

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
1	Manchester United (C)	38	24	8	6	79	31	+48	80	Qualification for the Champions League first group stage
2	Arsenal	38	20	10	8	63	38	+25	70
3	Liverpool	38	20	9	9	71	39	+32	69	Qualification for the Champions League third qualifying round[a]
4	Leeds United	38	20	8	10	64	43	+21	68	Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round[a]
5	Ipswich Town	38	20	6	12	57	42	+15	66

As of 31 June 2001

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		Premier League		FA Cup		League Cup		UEFA Cup
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1	GK	NED	Sander Westerveld	61	0	38	0	6	0	4	0	13	0
2	DF	SUI	Stéphane Henchoz	53	0	32	0	5	0	6	0	10	0
3	DF	GER	Christian Ziege	32	2	11+5	1	2+1	0	1+3	1	6+3	0
4	DF	CMR	Rigobert Song	4	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
5	DF	IRL	Steve Staunton	2	0	0+1	0	0	0	0	0	0+1	0
6	DF	GER	Markus Babbel	60	6	38	3	5	1	4	1	13	1
7	MF	CZE	Vladimír Šmicer	49	7	16+11	2	4+1	1	5+1	4	6+5	0
8	FW	ENG	Emile Heskey	56	22	33+3	14	3+2	5	3+1	0	9+2	3
9	FW	ENG	Robbie Fowler	48	17	15+12	8	3+2	2	5	6	6+5	1
10	FW	ENG	Michael Owen	46	24	20+8	16	4+1	3	1+1	1	10+1	4
12	DF	FIN	Sami Hyypiä	58	4	35	3	6	0	6	1	11	0
13	MF	ENG	Danny Murphy	47	10	13+14	4	4+1	1	5	4	6+4	1
14	DF	NOR	Vegard Heggem	4	0	1+2	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
15	MF	CZE	Patrik Berger	21	2	11+3	2	0+1	0	1	0	3+2	0
16	MF	GER	Dietmar Hamann	53	3	26+4	2	5	1	2+3	0	13	0
17	MF	ENG	Steven Gerrard	50	10	29+4	7	2+2	1	4	0	9	2
18	FW	NED	Erik Meijer	3	0	0+3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
19	GK	FRA	Pegguy Arphexad	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	0
20	MF	ENG	Nick Barmby	46	8	21+5	2	2+3	1	2+4	1	6+3	4
21	MF	SCO	Gary McAllister	49	8	21+9	5	4+1	1	2+3	0	4+5	2
23	DF	ENG	Jamie Carragher	58	0	30+4	0	6	0	6	0	12	0
24	MF	FRA	Bernard Diomède	4	0	1+1	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
25	MF	CRO	Igor Bišćan	21	2	8+5	0	3+1	1	4	1	0	0
26	MF	IRL	Richie Partridge	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
27	DF	FRA	Grégory Vignal	7	0	4+2	0	0+1	0	0	0	0	0
29	DF	ENG	Stephen Wright	4	0	0+2	0	1	0	0+1	0	0	0
30	DF	FRA	Djimi Traoré	12	0	8	0	0	0	1	0	2+1	0
37	MF	FIN	Jari Litmanen	9	2	4+1	1	1+1	1	1+1	0	0	0

Includes all competitive matches.

Rank	Pos.	No.	Player	Premier League	FA Cup	League Cup	UEFA Cup	Total
1	FW	10	Michael Owen	16	3	1	4	24
2	FW	8	Emile Heskey	14	5	0	3	22
3	FW	9	Robbie Fowler	8	2	6	1	17
4	MF	17	Steven Gerrard	7	1	0	2	10
	MF	13	Danny Murphy	4	1	4	1	10
6	MF	20	Nick Barmby	2	1	1	4	8
7	MF	21	Gary McAllister	5	0	0	2	7
	MF	7	Vladimír Šmicer	2	1	4	0	7
9	DF	6	Markus Babbel	3	1	1	1	6
10	DF	12	Sami Hyypiä	3	0	1	0	4
11	MF	16	Dietmar Hamann	2	1	0	0	3
12	MF	15	Patrik Berger	2	0	0	0	2
	MF	37	Jari Litmanen	1	1	0	0	2
	DF	3	Christian Ziege	1	0	1	0	2
15	DF	25	Igor Bišćan	0	0	1	0	1
Own goal				1	0	0	1	2
TOTALS				71	17	17	20	127

[5]

Competition	Result	Top scorer
Premier League	3rd	Michael Owen, 16
UEFA Cup	Winners	Nick Barmby, 4 Michael Owen, 4
FA Cup	Winners	Emile Heskey, 5
League Cup	Winners	Robbie Fowler, 6
Overall		Michael Owen, 24

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