# 2000–01 FA Premier League

The 2000–01 FA Premier League (known as the FA Carling Premiership for sponsorship reasons) was the ninth FA Premier League season and the third season running which ended with Manchester United as champions and Arsenal as runners-up. Sir Alex Ferguson became the first manager to win three successive English league titles with the same club. Liverpool, meanwhile, managed a unique cup treble – winning the FA Cup, League Cup and UEFA Cup. They also finished third in the Premier League and qualified for the Champions League. Nike replaced Mitre as manufacturer of the official Premier League match ball, a contract that has since been extended multiple times, with the most recent renewal made in November 2018 to the end of the 2024–25 season.
UEFA Cup places went to Leeds United, Chelsea, Ipswich Town, and Aston Villa, who qualified via the Intertoto Cup. None of the top six clubs in the Premier League had an English manager. The most successful English manager in the 2000–01 Premier League campaign was Peter Reid, whose Sunderland side finished seventh, having spent most of the season challenging for a place in Europe, and briefly occupied second place in the Premier League table.
Despite the success achieved by Sir Alex Ferguson and Gérard Houllier, the Manager of the Year Award went to George Burley. The Ipswich Town manager was in charge of a newly promoted side who began the season as relegation favourites and on a limited budget, guided his team to fifth place in the Premier League final table earning a total of 66 points - the highest total in Premier League history for a newly promoted side since the switch to a 20-team format—and a place in the UEFA Cup for the first time in almost 20 years. 2000–01 was perhaps the best season yet for newly promoted teams in the Premier League. Charlton Athletic finished ninth, their highest finish since the 1950s. The only newly promoted team to suffer relegation was Manchester City, who in the space of six seasons had now been relegated three times and promoted twice. Relegated in bottom place were Bradford City, whose return to the top division after almost 80 years was over after just two seasons. The next relegation place went to Coventry City, who were finally relegated after 34 successive seasons of top division football, which had brought numerous relegation battles and league finishes no higher than sixth place.

## Teams

Twenty teams competed in the league – the top seventeen teams from the previous season and the three teams promoted from the First Division. The promoted teams were Charlton Athletic, Manchester City and Ipswich Town, returning after a top flight absence of one, four and five years respectively. They replaced Wimbledon, Sheffield Wednesday and Watford. They were relegated to the First Division after spending fourteen, nine and one year in the top flight respectively.

### Stadiums and locations

| Team | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
| Arsenal | London (Highbury) | Arsenal Stadium | 38,419 |
| Aston Villa | Birmingham | Villa Park | 42,573 |
| Bradford City | Bradford | Valley Parade | 25,136 |
| Charlton Athletic | London (Charlton) | The Valley | 20,043 |
| Chelsea | London (Fulham) | Stamford Bridge | 42,055 |
| Coventry City | Coventry | Highfield Road | 23,489 |
| Derby County | Derby | Pride Park Stadium | 33,597 |
| Everton | Liverpool (Walton) | Goodison Park | 40,569 |
| Ipswich Town | Ipswich | Portman Road | 30,300 |
| Leeds United | Leeds | Elland Road | 40,242 |
| Leicester City | Leicester | Filbert Street | 22,000 |
| Liverpool | Liverpool (Anfield) | Anfield | 45,522 |
| Manchester City | Manchester (Moss Side) | Maine Road | 35,150 |
| Manchester United | Manchester (Old Trafford) | Old Trafford | 68,174 |
| Middlesbrough | Middlesbrough | Riverside Stadium | 35,049 |
| Newcastle United | Newcastle upon Tyne | St James' Park | 52,387 |
| Southampton | Southampton | The Dell | 15,200 |
| Sunderland | Sunderland | Stadium of Light | 49,000 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | London (Tottenham) | White Hart Lane | 36,240 |
| West Ham United | London (Upton Park) | Boleyn Ground | 35,647 |
* ↑ This was Southampton's last season at The Dell as they were scheduled to relocate to St Mary's Stadium from the following season onward.

### Personnel and kits

(as of 14 May 2001)
| Team | Manager | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
| Arsenal | Arsène Wenger | Tony Adams | Nike | Dreamcast/Sega$^1$ |
| Aston Villa | John Gregory | Gareth Southgate | Diadora | NTL |
| Bradford City | Jim Jefferies | Stuart McCall | Asics | JCT600 Ltd |
| Charlton Athletic | Alan Curbishley | Mark Kinsella | Le Coq Sportif | Redbus |
| Chelsea | Claudio Ranieri | Dennis Wise | Umbro | Autoglass |
| Coventry City | Gordon Strachan | Mustapha Hadji | CCFC Garments | Subaru |
| Derby County | Jim Smith | Darryl Powell | Puma | EDS |
| Everton | Walter Smith | Dave Watson | Puma | One2One |
| Ipswich Town | George Burley | Matt Holland | Punch | Greene King |
| Leeds United | David O'Leary | Lucas Radebe | Nike | Strongbow |
| Leicester City | Peter Taylor | Matt Elliott | Le Coq Sportif | Walkers Crisps |
| Liverpool | Gérard Houllier | Jamie Redknapp | Reebok | Carlsberg Group |
| Manchester City | Joe Royle | Alfie Haaland | Le Coq Sportif | Eidos |
| Manchester United | Sir Alex Ferguson | Roy Keane | Umbro | Vodafone |
| Middlesbrough | Terry Venables Bryan Robson | Paul Ince | Erreà | BT Cellnet |
| Newcastle United | Bobby Robson | Alan Shearer | Adidas | NTL |
| Southampton | Stuart Gray | Matt Le Tissier | Saints | Friends Provident |
| Sunderland | Peter Reid | Michael Gray | Nike | Reg Vardy |
| Tottenham Hotspur | Glenn Hoddle | Sol Campbell | Adidas | Holsten |
| West Ham United | Glenn Roeder | Steve Lomas | Fila | Dr. Martens |
* $^1$ The Dreamcast logo appeared on Arsenal's home and third shirts while the Sega logo appeared on their away shirt.

### Managerial changes

| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
| Leicester City | Martin O'Neill | Signed by Celtic | 1 June 2000 | Pre-season | Peter Taylor | 12 June 2000 |
| Bradford City | Paul Jewell | Signed by Sheffield Wednesday | 18 June 2000 | Pre-season | Chris Hutchings | 18 June 2000 |
| Chelsea | Gianluca Vialli | Sacked | 12 September 2000 | 10th | Claudio Ranieri | 17 September 2000 |
| Bradford City | Chris Hutchings | Sacked | 6 November 2000 | 19th | Stuart McCall (caretaker) | 6 November 2000 |
| Bradford City | Stuart McCall (caretaker) | End of caretaker spell | 20 November 2000 | 20th | Jim Jefferies | 20 November 2000 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | George Graham | Sacked | 16 March 2001 | 13th | Glenn Hoddle | 30 March 2001 |
| Southampton | Glenn Hoddle | Signed by Tottenham Hotspur | 30 March 2001 | 9th | Stuart Gray | 30 March 2001 |
| West Ham United | Harry Redknapp | Mutual consent | 9 May 2001 | 14th | Glenn Roeder (caretaker) | 12 May 2001 |

## League table

| Pos | Team | 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 | Qualification for the Champions League first group stage |
| 3 | Liverpool | 38 | 20 | 9 | 9 | 71 | 39 | +32 | 69 | Qualification for the Champions League third qualifying round |
| 4 | Leeds United | 38 | 20 | 8 | 10 | 64 | 43 | +21 | 68 | Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round |
| 5 | Ipswich Town | 38 | 20 | 6 | 12 | 57 | 42 | +15 | 66 | Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round |
| 6 | Chelsea | 38 | 17 | 10 | 11 | 68 | 45 | +23 | 61 | Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round |
| 7 | Sunderland | 38 | 15 | 12 | 11 | 46 | 41 | +5 | 57 | |
| 8 | Aston Villa | 38 | 13 | 15 | 10 | 46 | 43 | +3 | 54 | Qualification for the Intertoto Cup third round |
| 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 | Qualification for the Intertoto Cup third round |
| 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 (R) | 38 | 8 | 10 | 20 | 41 | 65 | −24 | 34 | Relegation to the Football League First Division |
| 19 | Coventry City (R) | 38 | 8 | 10 | 20 | 36 | 63 | −27 | 34 | Relegation to the Football League First Division |
| 20 | Bradford City (R) | 38 | 5 | 11 | 22 | 30 | 70 | −40 | 26 | Relegation to the Football League First Division |
* 1 2 Since Liverpool won the League Cup and qualified for the Champions League, their UEFA Cup place went to fifth-placed Ipswich Town. Since both FA Cup finalists, Liverpool and Arsenal, qualified for the Champions League, the berth in the UEFA Cup went to sixth-placed Chelsea. Both Ipswich and Chelsea were the highest-ranked team not already qualified for a European competition.

## Results

| Home \ Away | ARS | AVL | BRA | CHA | CHE | COV | DER | EVE | IPS | LEE | LEI | LIV | MCI | MUN | MID | NEW | SOU | SUN | TOT | WHU |
| Arsenal | | 1–0 | 2–0 | 5–3 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 4–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 6–1 | 2–0 | 5–0 | 1–0 | 0–3 | 5–0 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 2–0 | 3–0 |
| Aston Villa | 0–0 | | 2–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 4–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 0–3 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 2–2 |
| Bradford City | 1–1 | 0–3 | | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 2–2 | 0–3 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 1–4 | 3–3 | 1–2 |
| Charlton Athletic | 1–0 | 3–3 | 2–0 | | 2–0 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 2–0 | 0–4 | 4–0 | 3–3 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 |
| Chelsea | 2–2 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 0–1 | | 6–1 | 4–1 | 2–1 | 4–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 2–4 | 3–0 | 4–2 |
| Coventry City | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 0–0 | | 2–0 | 1–3 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 1–3 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 0–3 |
| Derby County | 1–2 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2–2 | 0–4 | 1–0 | | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 0–4 | 1–1 | 0–3 | 3–3 | 2–0 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 0–0 |
| Everton | 2–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 2–2 | | 0–3 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 2–3 | 3–1 | 1–3 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 1–1 |
| Ipswich Town | 1–1 | 1–2 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 2–2 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 2–0 | | 1–2 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 1–1 |
| Leeds United | 1–0 | 1–2 | 6–1 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 1–2 | | 3–1 | 4–3 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–3 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 4–3 | 0–1 |
| Leicester City | 0–0 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 1–3 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 3–1 | | 2–0 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 0–3 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 4–2 | 2–1 |
| Liverpool | 4–0 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 4–1 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 1–0 | | 3–2 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 3–0 |
| Manchester City | 0–4 | 1–3 | 2–0 | 1–4 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 5–0 | 2–3 | 0–4 | 0–1 | 1–1 | | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 4–2 | 0–1 | 1–0 |
| Manchester United | 6–1 | 2–0 | 6–0 | 2–1 | 3–3 | 4–2 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | | 2–1 | 2–0 | 5–0 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 3–1 |
| Middlesbrough | 0–1 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 4–0 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | | 1–3 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 |
| Newcastle United | 0–0 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 3–2 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | | 1–1 | 1–2 | 2–0 | 2–1 |
| Southampton | 3–2 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 3–2 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 0–3 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 3–3 | 0–2 | 2–1 | 1–3 | 2–0 | | 0–1 | 2–0 | 2–3 |
| Sunderland | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 3–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 4–1 | 0–2 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–2 | | 2–3 | 1–1 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 0–3 | 3–0 | 3–1 | 3–2 | 3–1 | 1–2 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 0–0 | 4–2 | 0–0 | 2–1 | | 1–0 |
| West Ham United | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 5–0 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 0–2 | 0–0 | |

## Season statistics
### Scoring
#### Top scorers

| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink | Chelsea | 23 |
| 2 | Marcus Stewart | Ipswich Town | 19 |
| 3 | Thierry Henry | Arsenal | 17 |
| 3 | Mark Viduka | Leeds United | 17 |
| 5 | Michael Owen | Liverpool | 16 |
| 6 | Teddy Sheringham | Manchester United | 15 |
| 7 | Emile Heskey | Liverpool | 14 |
| 7 | Kevin Phillips | Sunderland | 14 |
| 9 | Alen Bokšić | Middlesbrough | 12 |
| 10 | James Beattie | Southampton | 10 |

#### Hat-tricks

| Player | For | Against | Result | Date |
| Paulo Wanchope | Manchester City | Sunderland | 4–2 (H) | 23 August 2000 |
| Michael Owen | Liverpool | Aston Villa | 3–1 (H) | 6 September 2000 |
| Emile Heskey$^P$ | Liverpool | Derby County | 4–0 (A) | 15 October 2000 |
| Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink$^4$ | Chelsea | Coventry City | 6–1 (H) | 21 October 2000 |
| Teddy Sheringham | Manchester United | Southampton | 5–0 (H) | 28 October 2000 |
| Mark Viduka$^4$ | Leeds United | Liverpool | 4–3 (H) | 4 November 2000 |
| Les Ferdinand$^P$ | Tottenham Hotspur | Leicester City | 3–0 (H) | 25 November 2000 |
| Ray Parlour | Arsenal | Newcastle United | 5–0 (H) | 9 December 2000 |
| Thierry Henry | Arsenal | Leicester City | 6–1 (H) | 26 December 2000 |
| Kevin Phillips | Sunderland | Bradford City | 4–1 (A) | 26 December 2000 |
| Dwight Yorke | Manchester United | Arsenal | 6–1 (H) | 25 February 2001 |
| Sylvain Wiltord | Arsenal | West Ham United | 3–0 (H) | 3 March 2001 |
| Marcus Stewart | Ipswich Town | Southampton | 3–0 (A) | 2 April 2001 |
| Michael Owen | Liverpool | Newcastle United | 3–0 (H) | 5 May 2001 |
    Note: $^4$ Player scored 4 goals; $^P$ Player scored a perfect hat-trick; (H) – Home; (A) – Away

#### Top assists

| Rank | Player | Club | Assists |
| 1 | David Beckham | Manchester United | 12 |
| 2 | Nolberto Solano | Newcastle United | 10 |
| 3 | Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink | Chelsea | 9 |
| 3 | Thierry Henry | Arsenal | 9 |
| 3 | Vladimír Šmicer | Liverpool | 9 |
| 6 | Ryan Giggs | Manchester United | 8 |
| 6 | Graham Stuart | Charlton Athletic | 8 |
| 8 | Stephen Clemence | Tottenham Hotspur | 7 |
| 8 | Paolo Di Canio | West Ham United | 7 |
| 8 | Hassan Kachloul | Southampton | 7 |

## Awards
### Monthly awards

| Month | Manager of the Month | Manager of the Month | Player of the Month | Player of the Month |
| Month | Manager | Club | Player | Club |
| August | Bobby Robson | Newcastle United | Alan Smith | Leeds United |
| September | Peter Taylor | Leicester City | Tim Flowers | Leicester City |
| October | Arsène Wenger | Arsenal | Teddy Sheringham | Manchester United |
| November | George Burley | Ipswich Town | Paul Robinson | Leeds United |
| December | Peter Reid | Sunderland | James Beattie | Southampton |
| January | Terry Venables | Middlesbrough | Robbie Keane | Leeds United |
| February | Alex Ferguson | Manchester United | Stuart Pearce | West Ham United |
| March | David O'Leary | Leeds United | Steven Gerrard | Liverpool |
| April | David O'Leary | Leeds United | Gary McAllister | Liverpool |

### Annual awards

| Award | Winner | Club |
| Premier League Manager of the Season | George Burley | Ipswich Town |
| Premier League Player of the Season | Patrick Vieira | Arsenal |
| PFA Players' Player of the Year | Teddy Sheringham | Manchester United |
| PFA Young Player of the Year | Steven Gerrard | Liverpool |
| FWA Footballer of the Year | Teddy Sheringham | Manchester United |
PFA Team of the Year :
| Goalkeeper | Fabien Barthez (Manchester United) | Fabien Barthez (Manchester United) | Fabien Barthez (Manchester United) | Fabien Barthez (Manchester United) | Fabien Barthez (Manchester United) | Fabien Barthez (Manchester United) | Fabien Barthez (Manchester United) | Fabien Barthez (Manchester United) | Fabien Barthez (Manchester United) | Fabien Barthez (Manchester United) | Fabien Barthez (Manchester United) | Fabien Barthez (Manchester United) |
| Defence | Stephen Carr (Tottenham Hotspur) | Stephen Carr (Tottenham Hotspur) | Stephen Carr (Tottenham Hotspur) | Jaap Stam (Manchester United) | Jaap Stam (Manchester United) | Jaap Stam (Manchester United) | Wes Brown (Manchester United) | Wes Brown (Manchester United) | Wes Brown (Manchester United) | Sylvinho (Arsenal) | Sylvinho (Arsenal) | Sylvinho (Arsenal) |
| Midfield | Steven Gerrard (Liverpool) | Steven Gerrard (Liverpool) | Steven Gerrard (Liverpool) | Roy Keane (Manchester United) | Roy Keane (Manchester United) | Roy Keane (Manchester United) | Patrick Vieira (Arsenal) | Patrick Vieira (Arsenal) | Patrick Vieira (Arsenal) | Ryan Giggs (Manchester United) | Ryan Giggs (Manchester United) | Ryan Giggs (Manchester United) |
| Attack | Teddy Sheringham (Manchester United) | Teddy Sheringham (Manchester United) | Teddy Sheringham (Manchester United) | Teddy Sheringham (Manchester United) | Teddy Sheringham (Manchester United) | Teddy Sheringham (Manchester United) | Thierry Henry (Arsenal) | Thierry Henry (Arsenal) | Thierry Henry (Arsenal) | Thierry Henry (Arsenal) | Thierry Henry (Arsenal) | Thierry Henry (Arsenal) |

## Attendances

| # | Football club | Home games | Average attendance |
| 1 | Manchester United | 19 | 67,490 |
| 2 | Newcastle United | 19 | 51,309 |
| 3 | Sunderland AFC | 19 | 46,791 |
| 4 | Liverpool FC | 19 | 43,699 |
| 5 | Leeds United | 19 | 38,974 |
| 6 | Arsenal FC | 19 | 37,974 |
| 7 | Tottenham Hotspur | 19 | 35,195 |
| 8 | Chelsea FC | 19 | 34,700 |
| 9 | Everton FC | 19 | 34,131 |
| 10 | Manchester City | 19 | 34,058 |
| 11 | Aston Villa | 19 | 31,597 |
| 12 | Middlesbrough FC | 19 | 30,747 |
| 13 | Derby County | 19 | 28,551 |
| 14 | West Ham United | 19 | 25,697 |
| 15 | Ipswich Town | 19 | 22,532 |
| 16 | Coventry City | 19 | 20,582 |
| 17 | Leicester City | 19 | 20,452 |
| 18 | Charlton Athletic | 19 | 20,023 |
| 19 | Bradford City | 19 | 18,511 |
| 20 | Southampton FC | 19 | 15,115 |