1999–2000 Liverpool F.C. season

Liverpool

1999–2000 season
Chairman	David Moores
Manager	Gérard Houllier
Premier League	4th
FA Cup	Fourth round
League Cup	Third round
Top goalscorer	League: Michael Owen (11) All: Michael Owen (12)
Average home league attendance	41,564[1]
Home colours Away colours Third colours
← 1998–99 2000–01 →

The 1999–2000 season was the 108th season in Liverpool F.C.'s existence. The club finished fourth in the Premier League, thus qualifying for the 2000–01 UEFA Cup.

Players[]

First-team squad[]

Squad at end of season^[2]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK  NED Sander Westerveld 2 DF   SUI Stéphane Henchoz 4 DF  CMR Rigobert Song 5 DF  IRL Steve Staunton 7 MF  CZE Vladimír Šmicer 8 FW  ENG Emile Heskey 9 FW  ENG Robbie Fowler 10 FW  ENG Michael Owen 11 MF  ENG Jamie Redknapp 12 DF  FIN Sami Hyypiä 14 MF  NOR Vegard Heggem 15 MF  CZE Patrik Berger 16 MF  GER Dietmar Hamann

No. Pos. Nation Player 18 FW  NED Erik Meijer 19 GK  USA Brad Friedel 21 DF  ENG Dominic Matteo[notes 1] 22 FW  GUI Titi Camara 23 DF  ENG Jamie Carragher 24 MF  ENG Danny Murphy 25 MF  ENG David Thompson 28 MF  ENG Steven Gerrard 30 DF  FRA Djimi Traoré[notes 2] 31 DF  NOR Frode Kippe 33 FW  ENG Jon Newby 34 MF  WAL Leyton Maxwell

Left club during season[]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 3 DF  NOR Bjorn Kvarme (to Saint-Étienne) 13 FW  GER Karl-Heinz Riedle (to Fulham)

Reserve squad[]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 6 DF  IRL Phil Babb[notes 3] 20 DF  NOR Stig Inge Bjørnebye 26 GK  DEN Jørgen Nielsen 27 MF  ISL Haukur Ingi Guðnason 29 DF  ENG Stephen Wright 32 MF  IRL Richie Partridge — GK  ENG Ian Dunbavin — GK  ENG Matthew Hogg — DF  ENG John Boardman

No. Pos. Nation Player — DF  ENG Peter Cavanagh — DF  ENG Neil Murphy — DF  ENG Stephen Warnock — DF  IRL Paul O'Mara — MF  ENG Alan Navarro — MF  ENG Chris O'Brien — FW  ENG John Miles — FW  ENG Chris Thompson — FW  ENG Stephen Torpey

Transfers[]

In[]

• Sami Hyypiä - Willem II, 18 May, £2,600,000
• Titi Camara - Marseille, 2 June, £2,600,000
• Stéphane Henchoz - Blackburn Rovers, 3 June, £3,500,000
• Sander Westerveld - Vitesse, 15 June, £4,000,000
• Vladimír Šmicer - Lens,1 July, £4,200,000
• Erik Meijer - Bayer Leverkusen, 1 July, Free
• Dietmar Hamann - Newcastle United, 22 July, £8,000,000^[3]
• Emile Heskey - Leicester City, 10 March, £11,000,000 ^[4]

Out[]

• David James - Aston Villa, 23 June, £1,800,000
• Steve McManaman - Real Madrid, 1 July, free
• Jean-Michel Ferri - Sochaux, 14 July, £1,500,000
• Tony Warner^{[notes 4]} - Millwall, 17 July, free
• Jamie Cassidy - Cambridge United, 22 July, free
• Sean Dundee^{[notes 5]} - Stuttgart, 30 July, £1,000,000
• Paul Ince - Middlesbrough, 30 July, £1,000,000
• Øyvind Leonhardsen - Tottenham Hotspur, 6 August, £3,000,000
• Bjørn Tore Kvarme - Saint-Étienne, 30 August, £1,000,000
• Karl-Heinz Riedle - Fulham, 28 September, £200,000
• Ian Dunbavin - Shrewsbury Town, 22 January, free
• Eifion Jones - Blackpool, 23 March, free
• Rob Jones - West Ham United, free, 24 July

Events of the season[]

After a disappointing seventh-place finish the previous season, which left Liverpool without even UEFA Cup qualification, manager Gérard Houllier began to rebuild his squad and made seven close season signings. The attack was bolstered with the arrival of Titi Camara, Erik Meijer and Vladimír Šmicer. Succeeding Aston Villa-bound David James in goal was Dutchman Sander Westerveld. A new look central defence featured Stéphane Henchoz and Sami Hyypiä.^[5] Following the summer departure of former captain Paul Ince, Jamie Redknapp was made the new captain of the side, with Robbie Fowler appointed as vice-captain.

The season began on 7 August 1999 with a 2–1 win at Sheffield Wednesday, with Robbie Fowler and the debutant Titi Camara finding the net.^[6] However, the next game saw newly promoted Watford – in the top flight for the first time in over a decade – travel to Anfield and come away surprise 1–0 winners. Defeat followed in the next game as Liverpool travelled to Middlesbrough, but then came victories over Leeds United and Arsenal which saw the Reds occupy eighth place as the first month of the season drew to a close.^[7]

September saw the Reds navigate the second round of the Football League Cup with a comfortable aggregate win over financially troubled Division Three side Hull City, though they failed to achieve any victories in the league, losing 3–2 at home to Manchester United (with Jamie Carragher scoring two own goals), drawing 2–2 at Leicester City and finally losing 1–0 at home to Everton in the Merseyside derby. This left Liverpool 12th by the end of September, while their cross-city rivals were showing signs of a revival after three dismal seasons by occupying sixth place.^[8] Things improved slightly in October with two league victories over Chelsea and West Ham United. Southampton had ended Liverpool's League Cup hopes with a third round defeat earlier in the month, which ended with Liverpool's league standing slightly improved to ninth place. With a third of the season now gone, they were eight points off the top of a table being led by Leeds United.^[9]

November was a much better month for the Reds, who achieved wins over Bradford, Derby County and Sunderland to occupy fifth place by 20 November. They were now just six points behind leaders Manchester United.^[10] However, the month ended on a low note as they lost 1–0 at West Ham United.

Liverpool's revival continued in December as they beat struggling Sheffield Wednesday 4–1 at Anfield. With the FA Cup third round unusually being played before Christmas, they travelled to Division One promotion chasers Huddersfield Town on 12 December and came away 2-0 victors. A 2–0 win over Coventry City on 18 December meant that the Reds were still fifth in the league at Christmas, six points behind Manchester United.^[11]

Their FA Cup quest ended in a shock 1–0 fourth round defeat at home to Blackburn Rovers.

Liverpool's attack was bolstered with the club record £11 million signing of Leicester City's Emile Heskey on 10 March 2000.^[12]

The first two months of the new millennium saw mixed results for the Reds, but many of the teams around them dropped points as well, meaning that by mid February they were third in the league and just six points behind leaders Manchester United, who had a game in hand. There now appeared to be a realistic chance that the Reds might finally be able to end their ten-year wait for the league title.^[13] Three successive draws followed in March, then came a five-match winning run which lifted them to second place by 16 April. However, Manchester United now had an 11-point lead at the top of the table with just five games remaining, and needed just five points from those remaining games to be certain of retaining the league title. However, Liverpool still had something to play for, as the top three places in the Premier League now meant Champions League qualification. Competition for second and third place was still fierce, with Arsenal, Leeds United, Chelsea and Aston Villa all in close contention.^[14]

However, the season ended with a disastrous run of results. A goalless draw at Goodison Park in the Merseyside derby was followed by a 2–0 defeat at Chelsea. Emile Heskey's first game against old club Leicester on 3 May was a disaster as the East Midlanders came away from Anfield with a 2–0 victory. A goalless draw against Southampton followed, and on the final day of the season, 14 May, the Reds travelled to a Bradford City side battling it out with Wimbledon to avoid the last relegation place. An early David Wetherall goal gave Bradford a 1–0 win over the Reds, who surrendered a Champions League place and were forced to settle for a place in the UEFA Cup instead. The result also relegated Wimbledon, who, 12 years to the day, had beaten the Reds in one of the greatest FA Cup final shocks of all time.^[15]

Statistics[]

Appearances and goals[]

As of 14 May 2000

Players with no appearances not included in the list

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		FA Premier League		FA Cup		League Cup
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1	GK	NED	Sander Westerveld	39	0	36	0	2	0	1	0
2	DF	SUI	Stéphane Henchoz	33	0	29	0	2	0	2	0
4	DF	CMR	Rigobert Song	21	0	14+4	0	0+1	0	2	0
5	DF	IRL	Steve Staunton	16	1	7+5	0	1	0	3	1
7	MF	CZE	Vladimír Šmicer	25	1	13+8	1	2	0	2	0
8	FW	ENG	Emile Heskey	12	3	12	3	0	0	0	0
9	FW	ENG	Robbie Fowler	14	3	8+6	3	0	0	0	0
10	FW	ENG	Michael Owen	30	12	22+5	11	1	0	2	1
11	MF	ENG	Jamie Redknapp	23	3	18+4	3	0	0	1	0
12	DF	FIN	Sami Hyypiä	42	2	38	2	2	0	2	0
14	DF	NOR	Vegard Heggem	25	1	10+12	1	0	0	1+2	0
15	MF	CZE	Patrik Berger	37	9	34	9	1	0	1+1	0
16	MF	GER	Dietmar Hamann	30	1	27+1	1	2	0	0	0
18	FW	NED	Erik Meijer	24	2	7+14	0	0	0	3	2
19	GK	USA	Brad Friedel	4	0	2	0	0	0	2	0
21	DF	SCO	Dominic Matteo	34	1	32	0	1+1	1	0	0
22	FW	GUI	Titi Camara	37	10	22+11	9	2	1	0+2	0
23	DF	ENG	Jamie Carragher	40	0	33+3	0	2	0	2	0
24	MF	ENG	Danny Murphy	27	6	9+14	3	2	0	2	3
25	MF	ENG	David Thompson	31	3	19+8	3	0+1	0	3	0
28	MF	ENG	Steven Gerrard	31	1	26+3	1	2	0	0	0
31	DF	NOR	Frode Kippe	1	0	0+1	0	0	0	0	0
33	FW	ENG	Jon Newby	4	0	0+1	0	0+2	0	0+1	0
34	MF	WAL	Leyton Maxwell	1	1	0	0	0	0	0+1	1
Players featured for club who have left:
13	FW	GER	Karl-Heinz Riedle	2	2	0+1	0	0	0	1	2

Source:^[16]

Top scorers[]

Competition	Result	Top Scorer
Premier League	4th	Michael Owen, 11
FA Cup	Fourth round	Titi Camara, 1 Dominic Matteo, 1
League Cup	Third round	Danny Murphy, 3
Overall		Michael Owen, 12

Disciplinary record[]

As of 14 May 2000

No.	Pos.	Name	FA Premier League		FA Cup		League Cup		Total
1	GK	Sander Westerveld	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1
2	DF	Stéphane Henchoz	8	0	0	0	1	0	9	0
4	DF	Rigobert Song	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
5	DF	Steve Staunton	2	1	0	0	0	0	2	1
7	MF	Vladimír Šmicer	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
9	FW	Robbie Fowler	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
10	FW	Michael Owen	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
11	MF	Jamie Redknapp	4	0	0	0	0	0	14	0
12	DF	Sami Hyypiä	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
15	MF	Patrik Berger	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
16	MF	Dietmar Hamann	6	0	1	0	0	0	7	0
18	FW	Erik Meijer	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
21	DF	Dominic Matteo	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
22	FW	Titi Camara	7	0	0	0	0	0	7	0
23	DF	Jamie Carragher	4	0	0	0	0	0	4	0
24	MF	Danny Murphy	3	0	0	0	0	0	3	0
25	MF	David Thompson	7	1	0	0	0	0	7	1
28	MF	Steven Gerrard	5	1	0	0	0	0	5	1
Total			60	4	1	0	1	0	62	4

Source:^[16]

Results[]

Pre-season and friendlies[]

Date	Opponents	H / A	Result F–A	Scorers
19 July 1999	German XI	A	8–0	Fowler (3), Berger (2), Murphy, Camara, Heggem
20 July 1999	Wolverhampton Wanderers	A	2–0	Fowler 26', Riedle 80'
22 July 1999	Linfield[17]	A	4–0	Porter 14' (o.g.), Murphy 46', Redknapp 52' (pen.), Berger 63'
24 July 1999	Feyenoord[18]	N	2–0	Šmicer 53', Camara 61'
29 July 1999	Valerenga	A	4–1	Riedle 21', Hamann 32', Kjølner 50' (o.g.), Meijer 60'
31 July 1999	Blackburn Rovers	A	2–2	Fowler 22', Berger 40'
3 August 1999	Manchester City	A	1–2	Thompson 42'
18 October 1999	Omagh Town	A	7–1	Camara 23', 69', Meijer 37', 44', Šmicer 44', Berger 73', Redknapp 77'
16 February 2000	Bournemouth	A	4–0	Partridge 8', Berger 21', Murphy 32', Camara 52'
16 May 2000	Celtic[19]	H	4–1	Meijer 37', 61', Thompson 45', Camara 53'
21 May 2000	Ireland XI[20]	A	2–4	Heskey 3', Owen 84'

Premier League[]

Classification[]

Pos	Team v t	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
2	Arsenal	38	22	7	9	73	43	+30	73	Qualification for the Champions League first group stage
3	Leeds United	38	21	6	11	58	43	+15	69	Qualification for the Champions League third qualifying round
4	Liverpool	38	19	10	9	51	30	+21	67	Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round[a]
5	Chelsea	38	18	11	9	53	34	+19	65
6	Aston Villa	38	15	13	10	46	35	+11	58	Qualification for the Intertoto Cup third round

Results summary

Overall								Home						Away
Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
38	19	10	9	51	30	+21	67	11	4	4	28	13	+15	8	6	5	23	17	+6

Results by round

FA Cup[]

League Cup[]

Notes[]

References[]