Liverpool 2001–02 football season
The 2001–02 season was the 110th season in Liverpool F.C. 's existence.
Season summary [ ]
Having finished the previous season in third place in the Premiership, as well as winning an unprecedented treble of the League, FA and UEFA Cups , hopes were high for Liverpool going into the new season. However, fixture congestion meant that Liverpool could only play six games, taking 12 points to stand in sixth place, before Gérard Houllier was forced to go to hospital after falling ill during a game against Leeds United . It was later discovered that Houllier was suffering from a heart condition and was forced to take a five-month period of convalescence, with assistant manager Phil Thompson stepping up to take over caretaker responsibilities. In spite of this crisis, Liverpool climbed to fourth at the end of October before topping the Premier League table at the end of November, with a two-point lead over second-placed Leeds while holding a game in hand. November also saw the sale of fan favourite striker Robbie Fowler to Leeds.
Liverpool kept their lead until 17 December, when Newcastle United overtook Liverpool at the top by virtue of goals scored (30 vs 25). During the month, French striker Nicolas Anelka was signed on loan from Paris Saint-Germain until the end of the campaign as a replacement for Fowler. By the end of December, Liverpool were back to fourth (albeit with the game still in hand and a margin of only two points between them and leaders Arsenal ). However, Liverpool failed to take advantage of their extra game and at the end of January were still two points off the top (Manchester United now the league leaders), although they did defeat the Red Devils 1–0 at Old Trafford. This gap increased to four points by the end of February, despite a 4–0 win away to Leeds, but Houllier's return in March coincided with an upturn of form that saw Liverpool reach the Champions League quarter-finals and reclaim top place in the Premiership with five matches left to play, although fellow title challengers Arsenal had two games in hand. Arsenal, in the midst of a twelve-match winning streak, soon overhauled Liverpool and sealed the title with a 2–0 win at Bolton Wanderers . However, on the flip side Arsenal also defeated Manchester United during this winning run, allowing Liverpool to take runners-up spot with a 5–0 home win over Ipswich Town .
The 2001–02 season was the first in which Liverpool had competed in the UEFA Champions League , and their first campaign in Europe's premier club competition (previously the European Cup) since the 1984–85 season. Liverpool topped their group in the first stage, and also progressed through the second group stage, before being knocked out into the quarter-finals by eventual finalists Bayer Leverkusen , 4–3 on aggregate.
During the close season, Houllier turned down the opportunity to sign Anelka, in favour of signing temperamental Senegalese striker El Hadji Diouf , following the latter's role in Senegal's World Cup campaign. For the fifth consecutive season, Michael Owen finished the campaign as the Reds' top goalscorer, with 28 goals in all competitions (19 in the league).
Competition
Result
Top scorer
Premier League
2nd
Michael Owen , 19
Champions League
Quarter-finals
Michael Owen , 5
FA Cup
Fourth round
Michael Owen , 2
League Cup
Third round
Gary McAllister , 1
Charity Shield
Winners
Michael Owen , 1 Gary McAllister , 1
UEFA Super Cup
Winners
Emile Heskey , 1 Michael Owen , 1 John Arne Riise , 1
Overall
Michael Owen , 28
Final league table [ ]
Source:
Premier League Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champion
Notes:
^ Since Arsenal qualified for the Champions League, their UEFA Cup place as FA Cup winners defaulted to Chelsea, the losing finalists .
First-team squad [ ]
Squad at end of season
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules . Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Left club during season [ ]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules . Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Reserve squad [ ]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules . Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Statistics [ ]
Player statistics [ ]
As of 25 May 2002
Total
Premier League
FA Cup
League Cup
Champions League
UEFA Super Cup
Community Shield
1
GK
Sander Westerveld
3
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
2
DF
Stéphane Henchoz
56
0
37
0
2
0
0
0
15
0
1
0
1
0
3
DF
Abel Xavier
15
2
9+1
1
0
0
0
0
5
1
0
0
0
0
4
DF
Sami Hyypiä
57
4
37
3
2
0
1
0
15
1
1
0
1
0
5
FW
Milan Baroš
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0+1
0
0
0
0
0
6
DF
Markus Babbel
6
1
2
0
0
0
0
1
1+1
0
1
0
1
0
7
MF
Vladimír Šmicer
35
6
13+9
4
1
0
1
0
8+3
2
0
0
0
0
8
FW
Emile Heskey
56
14
26+9
9
1+1
0
0+1
0
16
4
1
1
1
0
9
FW
Robbie Fowler
18
4
8+2
3
0
0
0
0
2+4
1
0+1
0
0+1
0
9
FW
Nicolas Anelka
22
5
13+7
4
2
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
10
FW
Michael Owen
43
28
25+4
19
2
2
0
0
10
5
1
1
1
1
11
MF
Jamie Redknapp
8
2
2+2
1
0
0
0+1
0
1+2
1
0
0
0
0
12
GK
Jerzy Dudek
49
0
35
0
2
0
0
0
12
0
0
0
0
0
13
MF
Danny Murphy
56
8
31+5
6
1+1
0
1
0
13+2
2
0+1
0
0+1
0
15
MF
Patrik Berger
31
1
12+9
1
0+1
0
0
0
1+7
0
0+1
0
0
0
16
MF
Dietmar Hamann
48
1
31
1
2
0
1
0
12
0
1
0
1
0
17
MF
Steven Gerrard
48
8
28+2
7
2
0
0
0
13+1
1
1
0
1
0
18
DF
John Arne Riise
55
7
34+3
6
2
0
0
0
13+1
0
1
1
1
0
19
GK
Pegguy Arphexad
4
0
1+1
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
20
MF
Nick Barmby
12
0
2+4
0
0
0
1
0
3+1
0
1
0
0
0
21
MF
Gary McAllister
38
0
14+11
0
0
0
1
0
4+6
0
1
0
1
0
22
GK
Chris Kirkland
4
0
1
0
0
0
1
0
2
0
0
0
0
0
23
DF
Jamie Carragher
53
0
33
0
2
0
1
0
15
0
0+1
0
1
0
24
MF
Bernard Diomède
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
25
MF
Igor Bišćan
10
0
4+1
0
0
0
0
0
1+2
0
0+1
0
0+1
0
27
DF
Gregory Vignal
9
0
3+1
0
0
0
1
0
4
0
0
0
0
0
29
DF
Stephen Wright
17
1
10+2
0
1
0
1
0
2+1
1
0
0
0
0
30
DF
Djimi Traoré
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
31
DF
Frode Kippe
1
0
0
0
0
0
0+1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
37
FW
Jari Litmanen
32
7
8+13
4
0+1
0
1
0
4+5
3
0
0
0
0
Transfers [ ]
In [ ]
#
Pos
Player
From
Fee
Date
18
DF
John Arne Riise
Monaco
£4,000,000
20 June 2001[2]
5
FW
Milan Baroš
Baník Ostrava
£3,200,000
26 July 2001[3]
22
GK
Chris Kirkland
Coventry City
Undisclosed (estimated £6,000,000)
31 August 2001[4]
12
GK
Jerzy Dudek
Feyenoord
£4,850,000
31 August 2001[5]
9
FW
Nicolas Anelka
Paris Saint-Germain
Loan
20 December 2001[6]
3
DF
Abel Xavier
Everton
£750,000
30 January 2002[7]
Out [ ]
#
Pos
Player
To
Fee
Date
3
DF
Christian Ziege
Tottenham Hotspur
£4,000,000
17 July 2001
9
FW
Robbie Fowler
Leeds United
£12,750,000
29 November 2001
1
GK
Sander Westerveld
Real Sociedad
£3,750,000
17 December 2001
21
MF
Gary McAllister
Coventry City
Free
14 April 2002
11
MF
Jamie Redknapp
Tottenham Hotspur
Free
16 April 2002
9
FW
Nicolas Anelka
Paris Saint-Germain
Loan expired
12 May 2002
Results [ ]
Pre-season and friendlies [ ]
Date
Opponents
H / A
Result
F–A
Scorers
10 July 2001
Bayer Leverkusen
A
3–2
Owen 41', Heskey 46', Redknapp 87'
16 July 2001
Singapore XI
A
2–0
Heskey 42', Owen 85'
19 July 2001
Thailand
A
3–0
Owen (2) 8', 44', Barmby 64'
26 July 2001
Valencia
N
1–0
Litmanen 84'
28 July 2001
Ajax
N
3–1
Fowler 38'
3 August 2001
Wolverhampton Wanderers
A
3–0
Hyypiä 27', Hamann 32', Fowler 57'
FA Charity Shield [ ]
Liverpool v Manchester United
12 August 2001 Liverpool 2–1 Manchester United show Millennium Stadium , Cardiff 15:00
McAllister 2' (pen. ) Owen 16'
Report
Van Nistelrooy 51'
Attendance: 70,227 Referee: Andy D'Urso
UEFA Super Cup [ ]
Bayern Munich v Liverpool
Premier League [ ]
Liverpool v West Ham United
18 August 2001 1 Liverpool 2–1 West Ham United show Liverpool
Owen 18' , 77'
Report
Di Canio 30' (pen. )
Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 43,935 Referee: Jeff Winter
Bolton Wanderers v Liverpool
27 August 2001 2 Bolton Wanderers 2–1 Liverpool show Bolton
Ricketts 27' Holdsworth 90'
Report
Heskey 66'
Stadium: Reebok Stadium Attendance: 27,205 Referee: Graham Poll
Liverpool v Aston Villa
8 September 2001 3 Liverpool 1–3 Aston Villa show Liverpool
Gerrard 46' ,
Report
Dublin 31' Hendrie 55' Vassell 86'
Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 44,102 Referee: Andy D'Urso
Everton v Liverpool
15 September 2001 4 Everton 1–3 Liverpool show Liverpool
Campbell 5'
Report
Gerrard 12' Owen 31' (pen. ) Riise 52'
Stadium: Goodison Park Attendance: 39,554 Referee: Paul Durkin
Liverpool v Tottenham Hotspur
22 September 2001 5 Liverpool 1–0 Tottenham Hotspur show Liverpool
Litmanen 57'
Report
Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 44,116 Referee: Dermot Gallagher
Newcastle United v Liverpool
Liverpool v Leeds United
13 October 2001 7 Liverpool 1–1 Leeds United show Liverpool
Murphy 67'
Report
Kewell 27'
Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 44,352 Referee: Alan Wiley
Leicester City v Liverpool
20 October 2001 8 Leicester City 1–4 Liverpool show Leicester , East Midlands
Wise 58'
Report
Fowler 5' , 43' , 90' Hyypiä 10'
Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 21,886 Referee: Mark Halsey
Charlton Athletic v Liverpool
Liverpool v Manchester United
4 November 2001 10 Liverpool 3–1 Manchester United show Liverpool
Owen 32' , 51' Riise 39'
Report
Beckham 50'
Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 44,361 Referee: Graham Poll
Blackburn Rovers v Liverpool
17 November 2001 11 Blackburn Rovers 1–1 Liverpool show Blackburn
Jansen 30'
Report
Owen 52'
Stadium: Ewood Park Attendance: 28,859 Referee: Mike Riley
Liverpool v Sunderland
25 November 2001 12 Liverpool 1–0 Sunderland show Liverpool
Heskey 22' Hamann
Report
Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 43,537 Referee: Steve Bennett
Liverpool v Middlesbrough
8 December 2001 14 Liverpool 2–0 Middlesbrough show Liverpool
Owen 27' Berger 45'
Report
Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 43,674 Referee: Dermot Gallagher
Liverpool v Fulham
12 December 2001 15 Liverpool 0–0 Fulham show Liverpool
Report
Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 37,163 Referee: Jeff Winter
Chelsea v Liverpool
16 December 2001 16 Chelsea 4–0 Liverpool show London
Le Saux 3' Hasselbaink 28' Dalla Bona 71' Guðjohnsen 90'
Report
Stadium: Stamford Bridge Attendance: 41,174 Referee: Mark Halsey
Liverpool v Arsenal
23 December 2001 17 Liverpool 1–2 Arsenal show Liverpool
Litmanen 55'
Report
Van Bronckhorst 19' 35' Henry 45' (pen. ) Ljungberg 53'
Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 44,297 Referee: Paul Durkin
Aston Villa v Liverpool
26 December 2001 18 Aston Villa 1–2 Liverpool show Birmingham
Hendrie 21'
Report
Litmanen 9' Šmicer 73'
Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 42,602 Referee: Andy D'Urso
West Ham United v Liverpool
29 December 2001 19 West Ham United 1–1 Liverpool show London
Sinclair 39'
Report
Owen 88'
Stadium: Boleyn Ground Attendance: 35,103 Referee: Rob Styles
Liverpool v Bolton Wanderers
1 January 2002 20 Liverpool 1–1 Bolton Wanderers show Liverpool
Gerrard 50'
Report
Nolan 78'
Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 43,710 Referee: C Wilkes
Southampton v Liverpool
9 January 2002 21 Southampton 2–0 Liverpool show Southampton
Beattie 60' (pen. ) Riise 71' (o.g. )
Report
Stadium: St Mary's Stadium Attendance: 31,527 Referee: Graham Poll
Liverpool v Southampton
19 January 2002 23 Liverpool 1–1 Southampton show Liverpool
Owen 8'
Report
Davies 46'
Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 43,710 Referee: Neale Barry
Manchester United v Liverpool
22 January 2002 24 Manchester United 0–1 Liverpool show Manchester
Report
Murphy 85'
Stadium: Old Trafford Attendance: 67,599 Referee: Graham Barber
Liverpool v Leicester City
31 January 2002 25 Liverpool 1–0 Leicester City show Liverpool
Heskey 56'
[ Report]
Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 42,305
Leeds United v Liverpool
3 February 2002 26 Leeds United 0–4 Liverpool show Leeds , Yorkshire
Report
Ferdinand 16' (o.g. ) Heskey 63' , 66' Owen 90'
Stadium: Elland Road Attendance: 40,216 Referee: Graham Poll
Ipswich Town v Liverpool
9 February 2002 27 Ipswich Town 0–6 Liverpool show Ipswich
Report
Xavier 16' Heskey 43' , 90' Hyypiä 52' Owen 62' , 71'
Stadium: Portman Road Attendance: 25,608 Referee: Steve Bennett
Liverpool v Everton
23 February 2002 28 Liverpool 1–1 Everton show Liverpool
Anelka 72'
Report
Radzinski 52'
Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 44,371 Referee: D Elleray
Fulham v Liverpool
2 March 2002 29 Fulham 0–2 Liverpool show London
Report
Anelka 13' Litmanen 90'
Stadium: Craven Cottage Attendance: 21,103 Referee: Alan Wiley
Liverpool v Newcastle United
6 March 2002 30 Liverpool 3–0 Newcastle United show Liverpool
Murphy 32' , 53' Hamann 75'
Report
Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 44,204 Referee: Jeff Winter
Middlesbrough v Liverpool
Liverpool v Chelsea
24 March 2002 32 Liverpool 1–0 Chelsea show Liverpool
Šmicer 90'
Report
Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 44,203 Referee: Mark Halsey
Liverpool v Charlton Athletic
30 March 2002 33 Liverpool 2–0 Charlton Athletic show Liverpool
Šmicer 23' Owen 36'
Report
Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 44,094 Referee: Dermot Gallagher
Sunderland v Liverpool
13 April 2002 34 Sunderland 0–1 Liverpool show Sunderland
Reyna
Report
Owen 55'
Stadium: Stadium of Light Attendance: 48,335 Referee: Dermot Gallagher
Tottenham Hotspur v Liverpool
27 April 2002 36 Tottenham Hotspur 1–0 Liverpool show London
Poyet 41'
Report
Stadium: White Hart Lane Attendance: 36,017 Referee: Peter Jones
Liverpool v Blackburn Rovers
8 May 2002 37 Liverpool 4–3 Blackburn Rovers show Liverpool
Murphy 23' Anelka 39' Hyypiä 52' Heskey 86'
Report
Duff 28' Cole 49' Jansen 80'
Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 40,663 Referee: Alan Wiley
Liverpool v Ipswich Town
11 May 2002 38 Liverpool 5–0 Ipswich Town show Liverpool
Riise 13' , 35' Owen 46' Šmicer 57' Anelka 88'
Report
Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 44,088 Referee: Steve Dunn
Results by round [ ]
Round 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 Ground H A A H A H H A H A A H A H A H A H A A H A H H A A H A H A H H A H A H A H Result W L L L W D W W D W W W D W W W L L W D D D D W W W D W W W W W W W W L W W Position 7 13 16 17 10 10 7 6 6 6 5 3 3 1 1 1 2 3 3 4 5 5 5 4 4 4 4 4 3 3 3 3 2 2 2 2 2 2
FA Cup [ ]
Liverpool v Birmingham City
5 January 2002 3 Liverpool 3–0 Birmingham City show Anfield , Liverpool
Owen 17' 25' Anelka 86'
Report
Attendance: 40,875 Referee: Mark Halsey
Arsenal v Liverpool
27 January 2002 4 Arsenal 1–0 Liverpool show Highbury , London
Bergkamp 28' , 71' Keown 67'
Report
Carragher 72'
Attendance: 38,092 Referee: Mike Riley
League Cup [ ]
Champions League [ ]
Third qualifying round [ ]
First group stage [ ]
Liverpool v Boavista
Borussia Dortmund v Liverpool
19 September 2001 Borussia Dortmund 0–0 Liverpool show Westfalenstadion , Dortmund 20:45
UEFA report
BBC report
Attendance: 50,000 Referee: Valentin Ivanov (Russia )
Liverpool v Dynamo Kyiv
26 September 2001 Liverpool 1–0 Dynamo Kyiv show Anfield , Liverpool 20:45
Litmanen 23'
UEFA report
BBC report
Attendance: 33,513 Referee: Pierluigi Collina (Italy )
Dynamo Kyiv v Liverpool
Boavista v Liverpool
Liverpool v Borussia Dortmund
Second group stage [ ]
Liverpool v Barcelona
20 November 2001 Liverpool 1–3 Barcelona show Anfield , Liverpool 20:45
Owen 27'
UEFA report
BBC report
Kluivert 41' Rochemback 65' Overmars 84'
Attendance: 45,000 Referee: Hellmut Krug (Germany )
Roma v Liverpool
Liverpool v Galatasaray
Galatasaray v Liverpool
26 February 2002 Galatasaray 1–1 Liverpool show Ali Sami Yen Stadium , Istanbul 20:45
Niculescu 71'
UEFA report
BBC report
Heskey 79'
Attendance: 36,000 Referee: Urs Meier (Switzerland )
Barcelona v Liverpool
Liverpool v Roma
Quarter-finals [ ]
Liverpool v Bayer Leverkusen
Bayer Leverkusen v Liverpool
Notes [ ]
^ Traoré was born in Saint-Ouen , France , but also qualified to represent Mali internationally and would make his international debut for Mali in 2004.
References [ ]
show National teams
League competitions
Level 1 Levels 2–4 Level 5 Levels 6–7 Levels 8–9
Isthmian League (Two , Three )
Combined Counties League (level 8 only )
Eastern Counties League (Premier , One )
Essex Senior League (level 8 only )
Hellenic League (Premier , One East , One West )
Kent League (level 8 only )
Midland Alliance (level 8 only )
Midland Football Combination (level 9 only )
North West Counties League (One , Two )
Northern Counties East League (Premier , One )
Northern League (One , Two )
Spartan South Midlands League (Premier , One )
Sussex County League (One , Two )
United Counties League (Premier , One )
Wessex League (level 8 only )
West Midlands (Regional) League (level 9 only )
Western League (Premier , One )
Cup competitions
FA cups Football League cups
European competitions