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1996–97 Liverpool F.C. season

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Liverpool
1996–97 season
ChairmanDavid Moores
ManagerRoy Evans
Premier League4th
FA CupFourth round
League CupFifth round
Cup Winners' CupSemi-finals
Top goalscorerLeague:
Robbie Fowler (18)
All:
Robbie Fowler (31)
Average home league attendance38,436

The 1996–97 Liverpool F.C. season was the 105th season in the club's existence, and their 35th consecutive year in the top-flight of English football. In addition to the FA Premier League (known as the FA Carling Premiership for sponsorship reasons), the club competed in the FA Cup, League Cup, and the Cup Winners' Cup.

Season overview

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Liverpool led the Premiership for much of the season, and established a five-point lead at the top before New Year's Day 1997. However, the team were overtaken by Manchester United in the latter stages of the season, and it was United who ultimately won the league, though Liverpool squandered several more chances to reclaim the top position.[1] The side were marred both by the rise of the "Spice Boys" culture, as well as by defensive aberrations; dropping points at their previously impregnable Anfield home. A 2–1 home defeat against bottom of the table Coventry City denied Liverpool the chance to return to top spot with six games to go, United having lost at home to Derby the previous day.[2] Indeed, a win over United at Anfield in April would have put Liverpool top with just three matches to go, but United won 3–1 to effectively clinch the title.[3] The title lost, Liverpool still went into the final match of the season in second place with a two-point lead over Newcastle and Arsenal, but a 1–1 draw with Sheffield Wednesday meant they ended up finishing 4th on goal difference, thus missing out on a place in the newly expanded UEFA Champions League[4] and leaving Roy Evans and his team with a UEFA Cup place as scant consolation for a season which had promised much and giving rise to the phrase "finishing fourth in a two horse race".

In the cups there was more disappointment. Liverpool's UEFA Cup Winners' Cup campaign ended in the semi-finals with a 3–2 aggregate defeat to Paris St Germain. In the FA Cup they lost 4–2 to eventual winners Chelsea in the fourth round, having led 2–0 at half-time and squandered chances to extend their lead. Liverpool were knocked out in the Coca-Cola Cup quarter-finals by eventual finalists Middlesbrough.

The side were nevertheless praised for their attractive attacking style of football. Steve McManaman and Robbie Fowler continued to excel for the club, and Fowler continued his prolific strike partnership with Stan Collymore, scoring 47 goals between them. Fowler's suspension for the final four games was a big blow and effectively ended any lingering hopes of title glory. Fowler also received a UEFA Fair Play award, for protesting that he had not been fouled by Arsenal goalkeeper David Seaman when the referee awarded a penalty kick. The season also saw the debut of teenage prodigy Michael Owen.

Former defender Mark Wright stated in an interview that this was the season in the 1990s that the Liverpool team truly had the talent and opportunity to win the title but threw it away:[5] "We did come close to winning the league a few times and we finished fourth one season when we were the best team. We were better than Manchester United, better than everyone, and we finished joint second but ended up fourth because of goal difference. That was the season we should have won the title and we all know that. I remember some of the games we lost and the way we dropped points against certain sides. David James dropped a few clangers and I remember them because in certain games he didn't have anything to do, then all of a sudden he thinks he's got to be involved in the game. He would come rushing out and all of a sudden you would be 1–0 down", he said.

First-team squad

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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 England ENG David James
2 DF England ENG Rob Jones
3 DF England ENG John Scales
3 DF Norway NOR Bjørn Tore Kvarme
4 DF Republic of Ireland IRL Jason McAteer[notes 1]
5 DF England ENG Mark Wright
6 DF Republic of Ireland IRL Phil Babb[notes 2]
7 MF England ENG Steve McManaman
8 FW England ENG Stan Collymore
9 FW England ENG Robbie Fowler
10 MF England ENG John Barnes[notes 3]
11 MF England ENG Jamie Redknapp
12 DF England ENG Steve Harkness
No. Pos. Nation Player
13 GK England ENG Tony Warner[notes 4]
14 DF England ENG Neil Ruddock
15 MF Czech Republic CZE Patrik Berger
16 MF England ENG Michael Thomas
18 FW England ENG Michael Owen
19 MF Republic of Ireland IRL Mark Kennedy
20 DF Norway NOR Stig Inge Bjørnebye
21 DF England ENG Dominic Matteo[notes 5]
22 MF England ENG Jamie Cassidy
23 DF England ENG Jamie Carragher
24 FW Wales WAL Lee Jones
25 MF England ENG David Thompson
26 GK Denmark DEN Jørgen Nielsen

Transfers

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In

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# Pos Player From Fee Date
15 MF Czech Republic Patrik Berger Germany Borussia Dortmund £3,250,000 15 August 1996
28 MF Australia Nick Rizzo Australia Sydney Olympic Free 1 September 1996
3 DF Norway Bjørn Tore Kvarme Norway Rosenborg Free 10 January 1997

Out

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# Pos Player To Fee Date
27 GK England Stephen Pears England Hartlepool United Free 1 June 1996
18 MF England Phil Charnock England Crewe Alexandra Free 6 December 1996
3 DF England John Scales England Tottenham Hotspur £2,600,000 11 December 1996

Competitions

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Premier League

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Main article: 1996–97 FA Premier League

League table

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Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
2 Newcastle United 38 19 11 8 73 40 +33 68 Qualification for the Champions League second qualifying round
3 Arsenal 38 19 11 8 62 32 +30 68 Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round[a]
4 Liverpool 38 19 11 8 62 37 +25 68
5 Aston Villa 38 17 10 11 47 34 +13 61
6 Chelsea 38 16 11 11 58 55 +3 59 Qualification for the Cup Winners' Cup first round[b]
Source: Premier League
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
Notes:
  1. ^ Aston Villa was rewarded entry to the UEFA Cup through UEFA Fair Play ranking.
  2. ^ Chelsea qualified for the Cup Winners' Cup as FA Cup winners.

Results by round

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Round1234567891011121314151617181920212223242526272829303132333435363738
GroundAHHAHAHAAHAAHHAHHHAHAAHHAHHAHAAHAAHHAA
ResultDWDWWWWWLWLWDDWLWWDDWLDWWWDLWDWLWDLWLD
Position94743111332323232222123322344444344324
Source: Competitive Matches
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Matches

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17 August 1996 1 Middlesbrough 3–3 Liverpool Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire
15:00 Ravanelli 26' (pen.), 36', 81' Report Bjørnebye 4'
Barnes 29'
Fowler 65'		 Stadium: Riverside Stadium
Attendance: 30,039
19 August 1996 2 Liverpool 2–0 Arsenal Liverpool, Merseyside
20:00 BST McManaman 68', 74' Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 38,103
Referee: Gary Willard
24 August 1996 3 Liverpool 0–0 Sunderland Liverpool, Merseyside
15:00 Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 40,503
4 September 1996 4 Coventry City 0–1 Liverpool Coventry, West Midlands
19:45 Babb 68' Stadium: Highfield Road
Attendance: 23,021
7 September 1996 5 Liverpool 2–1 Southampton Liverpool, Merseyside
15:00 Collymore 39'
McManaman 89'		 Magilton 68' Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 39,189
15 September 1996 6 Leicester City 0–3 Liverpool Leicester, Leicestershire
15:00 Berger 58', 77'
Thomas 61'		 Stadium: Filbert Street
Attendance: 20,987
21 September 1996 7 Liverpool 5–1 Chelsea Liverpool, Merseyside
15:00 Fowler 15'
Berger 42', 49'
Myers 45' (o.g.)
Barnes 57'		 Leboeuf 85' Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 40,739
29 September 1996 8 West Ham United 1–2 Liverpool Newham, London
15:00 Bilić 15' Collymore 3'
Thomas 55'		 Attendance: 25,064
12 October 1996 9 Manchester United 1–0 Liverpool Trafford, Greater Manchester
11:15 Beckham 23' Stadium: Old Trafford
Attendance: 55,128
27 October 1996 10 Liverpool 2–1 Derby County Liverpool, Merseyside
16:00 Fowler 47', 51' A. Ward 89' Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 39,515
3 November 1996 11 Blackburn Rovers 3–0 Liverpool Blackburn, Lancashire
15:00 Sutton 3' (pen.), 56'
Wilcox 24'		 Stadium: Ewood Park
Attendance: 29,598
16 November 1996 12 Leeds United 0–2 Liverpool Leeds, West Yorkshire
15:00 Ruddock 13'
McManaman 90'		 Stadium: Elland Road
Attendance: 39,981
20 November 1996 13 Liverpool 1–1 Everton Liverpool, Merseyside
19:45 Fowler 30' Speed 82' Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 40,751
23 November 1996 14 Liverpool 1–1 Wimbledon Liverpool, Merseyside
15:00 Collymore 1' Leonhardsen 67' Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 39,027
2 December 1996 15 Tottenham Hotspur 0–2 Liverpool Haringey, London
20:00 Thomas 45'
McManaman 49'		 Stadium: White Hart Lane
7 December 1996 16 Liverpool 0–1 Sheffield Wednesday Liverpool, Merseyside
15:00 Whittingham 21' Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 39,507
14 December 1996 17 Liverpool 5–1 Middlesbrough Liverpool, Merseyside
15:00 Fowler 1', 28', 77', 85'
Bjørnebye 45'		 Fjørtoft 75' Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 39,491
17 December 1996 18 Liverpool 4–2 Nottingham Forest Liverpool, Merseyside
19:45 Collymore 6', 63'
Fowler 27'
Lyttle 53' (o.g.)		 Campbell 34'
Pearce 60'		 Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 36,126
23 December 1996 19 Newcastle United 1–1 Liverpool Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Tyne and Wear
20:00 Shearer 28' Fowler 45' Stadium: St. James' Park
Attendance: 36,570
26 December 1996 20 Liverpool 1–1 Leicester City Liverpool, Merseyside
15:00 Collymore 80' Claridge 76' Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 40,786
29 December 1996 21 Southampton 0–1 Liverpool Southampton, Hampshire
16:00 Barnes 76' Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 15,222
1 January 1997 22 Chelsea 1–0 Liverpool Fulham, London
15:00 Di Matteo 43' Stadium: Stamford Bridge
Attendance: 28,329
11 January 1997 23 Liverpool 0–0 West Ham United Liverpool, Merseyside
15:00 Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 40,102
18 January 1997 24 Liverpool 3–0 Aston Villa Liverpool, Merseyside
15:00 Carragher 50'
Collymore 58'
Fowler 63'		 Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 40,489
1 February 1997 25 Derby County 0–1 Liverpool Derby, Derbyshire
15:00 Collymore 75' Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 18,102
19 February 1997 26 Liverpool 4–0 Leeds United Liverpool, Merseyside
19:45 Fowler 21'
Collymore 36', 37'
Redknapp 87'		 Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 38,957
22 February 1997 27 Liverpool 0–0 Blackburn Rovers Liverpool, Merseyside
15:00 Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 40,747
2 March 1997 28 Aston Villa 1–0 Liverpool Birmingham, West Midlands
16:00 Taylor 83' Stadium: Villa Park
Attendance: 39,339
10 March 1997 29 Liverpool 4–3 Newcastle United Liverpool, Merseyside
20:00 McManaman 29'
Berger 30'
Fowler 42', 90'		 Gillespie 71'
Asprilla 87'
Barton 88'		 Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 40,751
15 March 1997 30 Nottingham Forest 1–1 Liverpool Nottingham
15:00 Woan 30' Fowler 4' Stadium: City Ground
Attendance: 29,181
24 March 1997 31 Arsenal 1–2 Liverpool Islington, London
20:00 GMT Wright 78' Collymore 50'
McAteer 65'		 Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,068
Referee: Gerald Ashby
6 April 1997 32 Liverpool 1–2 Coventry City Liverpool, Merseyside
15:00 Fowler 52' Whelan 65'
Dublin 90'		 Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 40,079
13 April 1997 33 Sunderland 1–2 Liverpool Sunderland, Tyne and Wear
15:00 Stewart 53' Fowler 33'
McManaman 47'		 Stadium: Roker Park
Attendance: 21,938
16 April 1997 34 Everton 1–1 Liverpool Liverpool, Merseyside
19:45 Ferguson 65' Redknapp 26' Stadium: Goodison Park
Attendance: 40,177
19 April 1997 35 Liverpool 1–3 Manchester United Liverpool, Merseyside
11:15 Barnes 19' Pallister 13', 42'
Cole 63'		 Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 40,892
3 May 1997 36 Liverpool 2–1 Tottenham Hotspur Liverpool, Merseyside
15:00 Collymore 15'
Berger 43'		 Anderton 5' Stadium: Anfield
6 May 1997 37 Wimbledon 2–1 Liverpool Croydon, London
19:45 Euell 43'
Holdsworth 55'		 Owen 74' Stadium: Selhurst Park
Attendance: 20,016
11 May 1997 38 Sheffield Wednesday 1–1 Liverpool Sheffield
16:00 Donaldson 75' Redknapp 83' Stadium: Hillsborough
Attendance: 38,943

FA Cup

[edit]
Main article: 1996–97 FA Cup
4 January 1997 Third round Liverpool 1–0 Burnley Liverpool
Collymore 12' (Report) Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 33,252
26 January 1997 Fourth round Chelsea 4–2 Liverpool London
Hughes 50'
Zola 58'
Vialli 63', 76'		 (Report) Fowler 10'
Collymore 21'		 Stadium: Stamford Bridge
Attendance: 27,950

Football League Cup

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Main article: 1996–97 Football League Cup
23 October 1996 Third round Charlton Athletic 1–1 Liverpool London
Whyte 18' Report Fowler 21' Stadium: The Valley
Attendance: 15,000
13 November 1996 Third round replay Liverpool 4–1 Charlton Athletic Liverpool
Wright 14'
Redknapp 18'
Fowler 48', 73'		 Report Newton 21' Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 20,714
27 November 1996 Fourth round Liverpool 4–2 Arsenal Liverpool
McManaman 26'
Fowler 39' (pen.), 52'
Berger 72'		 Report Wright 13' (pen.), 68' (pen.) Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 32,814
8 January 1997 Quarter-final Middlesbrough 2–1 Liverpool Middlesbrough
Hignett 14'
Vickers 21'		 Report McManaman 65' Stadium: Riverside Stadium
Attendance: 28,670

Cup Winners' Cup

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Main article: 1996–97 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup
12 September 1996 First round, first leg MyPa Finland 0–1 England Liverpool Anjalankoski
Report Bjørnebye 61' Stadium: Kymenlaakson Sähkö Stadion
Attendance: 4,767
26 September 1996 First round, second leg Liverpool England 3–1
(4–1 agg.)		 Finland MyPa Liverpool
Berger 16'
Collymore 59'
Barnes 77'		 Report Keskitalo 64' Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 39,013
17 October 1996 Second round, first leg Sion Switzerland 1–2 England Liverpool Sion
Bonvin 10' Report Fowler 28'
Barnes 80'		 Stadium: Stade Tourbillon
Attendance: 15,500
31 October 1996 Second round, second leg Liverpool England 6–3
(8–4 agg.)		 Switzerland Sion Liverpool
McManaman 27'
Bjørnebye 55'
Barnes 66'
Fowler 70', 79'
Berger 89'		 Report Chassot 20', 65'
Bonvin 23'		 Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 38,514
6 March 1997 Quarter-final, first leg Brann Norway 1–1 England Liverpool Bergen
Hasund 48' Report Fowler 10' Stadium: Brann Stadion
Attendance: 12,700
20 March 1997 Quarter-final, second leg Liverpool England 3–0
(4–1 agg.)		 Norway Brann Liverpool
Fowler 25' (pen.), 77'
Collymore 61'		 Report Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 40,326
10 April 1997 Semi-final, first leg Paris Saint-Germain France 3–0 England Liverpool Paris
Leonardo 11'
Cauet 43'
Leroy 83'		 Report Stadium: Parc des Princes
Attendance: 35,142
24 April 1997 Semi-final, second leg Liverpool England 2–0
(2–3 agg.)		 France Paris Saint-Germain Liverpool
Fowler 12'
Wright 79'		 Report Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 39,000

Statistics

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Appearances and goals

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No. Pos Nat Player Total Premier League FA Cup League Cup CWC
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Goalkeepers
1 GK England ENG David James 52 0 38 0 2 0 4 0 8 0
Defenders
2 DF England ENG Rob Jones 3 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0
3 DF Norway NOR Bjørn Tore Kvarme 17 0 15 0 1 0 1 0 0 0
5 DF England ENG Mark Wright 43 2 33 0 2 0 3 1 5 1
6 DF Republic of Ireland IRL Phil Babb 31 1 21+1 1 1 0 3 0 4+1 0
12 DF England ENG Steve Harkness 10 0 5+2 0 0 0 0 0 3 0
14 DF England ENG Neil Ruddock 22 1 15+2 1 0 0 2 0 2+1 0
19 DF Republic of Ireland IRL Mark Kennedy 8 0 0+5 0 0+1 0 0+1 0 0+1 0
20 DF Norway NOR Stig Inge Bjørnebye 52 4 38 2 2 0 4 0 8 2
21 DF England ENG Dominic Matteo 38 0 22+4 0 2 0 3 0 7 0
Midfielders
4 MF Republic of Ireland IRL Jason McAteer 51 1 36+1 1 2 0 4 0 8 0
7 MF England ENG Steve McManaman 51 10 37 7 2 0 4 2 8 1
10 MF England ENG John Barnes 47 7 34+1 4 2 0 3 0 7 3
11 MF England ENG Jamie Redknapp 32 4 18+5 3 1 0 1 1 4+3 0
15 MF Czech Republic CZE Patrik Berger 34 9 13+10 6 1+1 0 3 1 6 2
16 MF England ENG Michael Thomas 42 3 29+2 3 1 0 4 0 5+1 0
23 MF England ENG Jamie Carragher 3 1 1+1 1 0 0 0+1 0 0 0
25 MF England ENG David Thompson 2 0 0+2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Forwards
8 FW England ENG Stan Collymore 37 16 25+5 12 2 2 0 0 4+1 2
9 FW England ENG Robbie Fowler 44 31 32 18 1 1 4 5 7 7
18 FW England ENG Michael Owen 2 1 1+1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
24 FW Wales WAL Lee Jones 2 0 0+2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Players transferred out during the season
3 DF England ENG John Scales 7 0 3 0 0 0 1 0 2+1 0

Goal scorers

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Rank No. Pos Nat Name Premier League FA Cup League Cup Cup Winners' Cup Total
1 9 FW England Robbie Fowler 18 1 5 7 31
2 8 FW England Stan Collymore 12 2 0 2 16
3 7 MF England Steve McManaman 7 0 2 1 10
4 15 MF Czech Republic Patrick Berger 6 0 1 2 9
5 10 MF England John Barnes 4 0 0 3 7
6 11 MF England Jamie Redknapp 3 0 1 0 4
20 DF Norway Stig Inge Bjørnebye 2 0 0 2 4
8 16 MF England Michael Thomas 3 0 0 0 3
9 5 DF England Mark Wright 0 0 1 1 2
10 4 DF Republic of Ireland Jason McAteer 1 0 0 0 1
6 DF Republic of Ireland Phil Babb 1 0 0 0 1
14 DF England Neil Ruddock 1 0 0 0 1
18 FW England Michael Owen 1 0 0 0 1
23 DF England Jamie Carragher 1 0 0 0 1
Own goal 2 0 0 0 2
Totals 62 3 10 18 93

Competition top scorers

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Competition Result Top scorer
Premier League 4th England Robbie Fowler, 18
UEFA CWC Semi-finals England Robbie Fowler, 7
FA Cup Fourth round England Stan Collymore, 2
League Cup Fifth round England Robbie Fowler, 5
Overall England Robbie Fowler, 31

Notes

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  1. ^ McAteer was born in Tranmere, England, but also qualified to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally and made his international debut for the Republic of Ireland in March 1994.
  2. ^ Babb was born in Lambeth, England, but also qualified to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally and made his international debut for the Republic of Ireland in 1994.
  3. ^ Barnes was born in Kingston, Jamaica, but also qualified to represent any of the home nations internationally as he held a British passport and made his international debut for England in May 1983.
  4. ^ Warner was born in Liverpool, England, but also qualified to represent Trinidad and Tobago internationally and would make his international debut for Trinidad and Tobago in February 2006.
  5. ^ Matteo was born in Dumfries, Scotland, but was raised in England from the age of four and represented them at U-21 and B level before making his international debut for Scotland in November 2000.

References

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  1. ^ Smyth, Rob (10 September 2008). "Football: The Joy of Six: bogey teams". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 January 2019 – via www.theguardian.com.
  2. ^ "Football: Liverpool fall foul of Dublin". The Independent. 7 April 1997. Archived from the original on 1 May 2022. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  3. ^ Smyth, Rob (15 February 2007). "On second thoughts ... Roy Evans". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 January 2019 – via www.theguardian.com.
  4. ^ "English Premier League Table on Thursday 8th May 1997 - Statto.com". Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  5. ^ "Noticias.info". Archived from the original on 31 August 2020. Retrieved 2 October 2010.
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