# 2005–06 Newcastle United F.C. season

During the 2005–06 season, Newcastle United participated in the Premier League.

## Season summary

In July 2005 rumours circulated that Newcastle was being stalked with a new buyer, but this later emerged to be the Shepherds consolidating their interests. On the pitch, Newcastle were eliminated from the Intertoto Cup after a 4–2 aggregate loss to Deportivo La Coruna in the semi-final, eliminating the club from European competition for the season.
Upon Craig Bellamy's return from his loan to Celtic, it was reported that he had not resolved his differences with Souness or Shearer, and was sold to Blackburn Rovers for £5 million. During the summer transfer window, Patrick Kluivert, Jermaine Jenas, Aaron Hughes and Andy O'Brien were sold by Souness. Laurent Robert and James Milner were loaned out, to Portsmouth and Aston Villa respectively (Robert would be transferred to Benfica in January). The club signed Emre, Scott Parker, Craig Moore and Albert Luque.
In August, the club signed Michael Owen from Real Madrid, despite strong interest from Owen's former club Liverpool. The fee, £17 million, surpassed Newcastle's previous record of £15 million for Alan Shearer from Blackburn in 1996. In the closing hours of the transfer window, the club re-signed Nolberto Solano from Aston Villa.
Souness's decision to pair Shearer and Owen together up front proved to be lethal, but Owen broke his fourth metatarsal bone in his foot after a clash with Paul Robinson in a match against Tottenham Hotspur, keeping him out for the rest of the season. With Owen injured the team's form dipped.
Souness was sacked as manager following a 3–0 defeat to Manchester City in early February. Shay Given, Robbie Elliott and Alan Shearer have since stated that the fans never really took to him, with his favouritism of players damaging morale and a series of injuries leading to poor form.
United's youth academy director, former West Ham United manager Glenn Roeder, was put in charge as caretaker manager. Upon Roeder's first game in charge, against Portsmouth, Alan Shearer scored his 201st goal for the club, breaking Jackie Milburn's record of 200 goals for the club and becoming the club's highest ever goalscorer.
Despite speculation that Bolton Wanderers manager Sam Allardyce was interested in taking charge, Roeder guided Newcastle from 15th place to 7th place by the end of the season, winning 9 out of their remaining 14 Premier League games to see the club qualify for the UEFA Intertoto Cup - a great way for club legend Alan Shearer to end his playing career. Despite the exit from the FA Cup at the hands of Chelsea, Roeder was praised for amazingly achieving a European spot, having seen the prospect of a relegation battle when he joined. At the end of the season he was given a two-year contract by chairman Freddie Shepherd.

## Final league table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 5 | Tottenham Hotspur | 38 | 18 | 11 | 9 | 53 | 38 | +15 | 65 | Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round |
| 6 | Blackburn Rovers | 38 | 19 | 6 | 13 | 51 | 42 | +9 | 63 | Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round |
| 7 | Newcastle United | 38 | 17 | 7 | 14 | 47 | 42 | +5 | 58 | Qualification for the Intertoto Cup third round |
| 8 | Bolton Wanderers | 38 | 15 | 11 | 12 | 49 | 41 | +8 | 56 | |
| 9 | West Ham United | 38 | 16 | 7 | 15 | 52 | 55 | −3 | 55 | Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round |
* ↑ Since Liverpool had already qualified for the Champions League, their UEFA Cup berth as the FA Cup winners went to West Ham, who were the FA Cup runners-up.

## Kit

Newcastle's kit for the 2005–06 season was produced by German company Adidas. The main shirt sponsor was British bank Northern Rock.

## Transfers
### In

| Date | Player | Previous club | Cost |
| 15 June 2005 | Scott Parker | Chelsea | £6,500,000 |
| 19 July 2005 | Emre Belözoğlu | Internazionale | £3,800,000 |
| 19 July 2005 | Tim Krul | ADO Den Haag | Undisclosed |
| 29 July 2005 | Craig Moore | Borussia Mönchengladbach | Free |
| 2 August 2005 | Lee Clark | Fulham | Free |
| 26 August 2005 | Albert Luque | Deportivo de La Coruña | £9,500,000 |
| 31 August 2005 | Michael Owen | Real Madrid | £17,000,000 |
| 31 August 2005 | Nolberto Solano | Aston Villa | £1,500,000 |

### Out

| Date | Player | Buying club | Cost |
| 13 June 2005 | Andrew O'Brien | Portsmouth | £2,000,000 |
| 15 June 2005 | Laurent Robert | Portsmouth | Loan |
| 7 July 2005 | Craig Bellamy | Blackburn Rovers | £4,900,000 |
| 8 July 2005 | Darren Ambrose | Charlton Athletic | Undisclosed |
| 3 August 2005 | Nicky Butt | Birmingham City | Loan |
| 23 August 2005 | Hugo Viana | Valencia | Loan |
| 31 August 2005 | Jermaine Jenas | Tottenham Hotspur | £7,000,000 |
| 31 August 2005 | James Milner | Aston Villa | Loan |
| 31 August 2005 | Alan O'Brien | Carlisle United | Loan |
| 16 February 2006 | Daryl Smylie | Stockport County | Loan |
| 1 March 2006 | Hugo Viana | Valencia | £1,700,000 |

## First-team squad

    The following players made appearances for the first-team squad this season.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 1 | GK | IRL | Shay Given |
| 2 | DF | IRL | Stephen Carr |
| 3 | DF | ENG | Robbie Elliott |
| 4 | MF | PER | Nolberto Solano |
| 5 | MF | TUR | Emre Belözoğlu |
| 6 | DF | FRA | Jean-Alain Boumsong |
| 8 | MF | ENG | Kieron Dyer |
| 9 | FW | ENG | Alan Shearer |
| 10 | FW | ENG | Michael Owen |
| 11 | MF | ENG | Lee Bowyer |
| 12 | GK | ENG | Steve Harper |
| 14 | MF | FRA | Charles N'Zogbia |
| 15 | MF | SEN | Amdy Faye |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 17 | MF | ENG | Scott Parker |
| 18 | DF | AUS | Craig Moore |
| 19 | DF | ENG | Titus Bramble |
| 20 | MF | ESP | Albert Luque |
| 21 | MF | ENG | Lee Clark |
| 23 | FW | ENG | Shola Ameobi |
| 26 | DF | ENG | Peter Ramage |
| 27 | DF | ENG | Steven Taylor |
| 28 | FW | ENG | Michael Chopra |
| 33 | DF | NGA | Celestine Babayaro |
| 35 | MF | RSA | Matty Pattison |
| 37 | MF | IRL | Alan O'Brien |
| 39 | MF | ENG | Martin Brittain |

### Left club during season

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 7 | MF | ENG | Jermaine Jenas (to Tottenham Hotspur) |
| 16 | MF | ENG | James Milner (on loan to Aston Villa) |
| 20 | MF | POR | Hugo Viana (on loan to Valencia) |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 40 | GK | ENG | Ben Smith (to Stockport County) |
| — | MF | FRA | Laurent Robert (to Benfica) |
| — | MF | ENG | Nicky Butt (on loan to Birmingham City) |

### Coaching staff

| Position | Staff |
| Manager | Glenn Roeder |
| Assistant manager | Lee Clark |
| First team coach | Nigel Pearson |
| Goalkeeping coach | Andy Woodman |
| Development coach | Arthur Cox |
| Reserve team coach | David Ginola |
| Chief scout | Steve Clarke |
Last updated: 3 May 2011 Source:

### Reserve squad

    The following players spent most of the season playing for the reserves, and did not appear for the first team this season.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 24 | GK | ENG | Tony Caig |
| 36 | DF | ENG | Kris Gate |
| 38 | MF | NIR | Daryl Smylie |
| 54 | DF | ENG | Paul Huntington |
| — | GK | ENG | Mark Cook |
| — | GK | ENG | Fraser Forster |
| — | GK | NED | Tim Krul |
| — | DF | ENG | Liam Atkin |
| — | DF | ENG | Craig Baxter |
| — | DF | ENG | Phil Cave |
| — | DF | ENG | Chris Farman |
| — | DF | ENG | Chris Shanks |
| — | DF | CAN | David Edgar |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| — | MF | ENG | Nicky Deverdics |
| — | MF | ENG | Mark Doninger |
| — | MF | ENG | Robert Cavener |
| — | MF | ENG | Dean Critchlow |
| — | MF | ENG | Callum Little |
| — | MF | COD | Kazenga LuaLua |
| — | MF | AUS | James Troisi |
| — | FW | ENG | Andy Carroll |
| — | FW | ENG | Carl Finnigan |
| — | FW | ENG | Scott Marshall |
| — | FW | ENG | Marc Walton |
| — | | ENG | Michael Terrell |
| — | | | Glen Reay |

### Trialists

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| — | DF | FRA | Yohan Lachor (on trial from Lens) |
| — | FW | ENG | Fabian Pritchard (on trial from N/A) |
| — | DF | ITA | Francesco Coco (on trial from Inter Milan) |
| — | DF | GER | Frank Wiblishauser (on trial from 1. FC Nürnberg) |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| — | DF | CMR | Jean-Hugues Ateba (on trial from Paris Saint-Germain) |
| — | FW | DEN | Nicki Bille Nielsen (on trial from Frem) |

## Statistics
### Appearances and goals

| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Total | Premier League | Premier League | FA Cup | FA Cup | League Cup | League Cup | UEFA Intertoto Cup | UEFA Intertoto Cup |
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Goalkeepers ||||||||||||||
| 1 | GK | IRL | Shay Given | 47 | 0 | 38 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 12 | GK | ENG | Steve Harper | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Defenders ||||||||||||||
| 2 | DF | IRL | Stephen Carr | 24 | 0 | 19 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 3 | DF | ENG | Robbie Elliott | 22 | 0 | 14+3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 6 | DF | FRA | Jean-Alain Boumsong | 41 | 0 | 30+3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 18 | DF | AUS | Craig Moore | 9 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | DF | ENG | Titus Bramble | 28 | 2 | 21+3 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | DF | ENG | Peter Ramage | 29 | 0 | 23 | 0 | 3+1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 27 | DF | ENG | Steven Taylor | 17 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 33 | DF | NGA | Celestine Babayaro | 35 | 0 | 26+2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Midfielders ||||||||||||||
| 4 | MF | PER | Nolberto Solano | 35 | 6 | 27+2 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | MF | TUR | Emre Belözoğlu | 25 | 2 | 19+1 | 2 | 1+2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 8 | MF | ENG | Kieron Dyer | 13 | 1 | 4+7 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | MF | ENG | Lee Bowyer | 34 | 2 | 18+10 | 1 | 1+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| 14 | MF | FRA | Charles N'Zogbia | 41 | 6 | 27+5 | 5 | 2+1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3+1 | 1 |
| 15 | MF | SEN | Amdy Faye | 28 | 0 | 14+8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 17 | MF | ENG | Scott Parker | 32 | 2 | 26 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 21 | MF | ENG | Lee Clark | 25 | 1 | 8+14 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 35 | MF | RSA | Matty Pattison | 3 | 0 | 2+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 37 | MF | IRL | Alan O'Brien | 4 | 0 | 0+3 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 39 | MF | ENG | Martin Brittain | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 0+3 | 0 |
| Forwards ||||||||||||||
| 9 | FW | ENG | Alan Shearer | 41 | 14 | 31+1 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 2 |
| 10 | FW | ENG | Michael Owen | 11 | 7 | 10+1 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | FW | ESP | Albert Luque | 18 | 1 | 6+8 | 1 | 1+2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 23 | FW | ENG | Shola Ameobi | 34 | 9 | 25+5 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| 28 | FW | ENG | Michael Chopra | 20 | 3 | 6+7 | 1 | 1+1 | 1 | 1+1 | 0 | 1+2 | 1 |
| Players transferred out during the season ||||||||||||||
| 7 | MF | ENG | Jermaine Jenas | 5 | 0 | 3+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 16 | MF | ENG | James Milner | 7 | 2 | 1+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 |
| | MF | ENG | Nicky Butt | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
Last updated: 30 May 2006 Source: Competitions