2003–04 Newcastle United F.C. season

Newcastle United
2003–04 season
ChairmanFreddie Shepherd
ManagerBobby Robson
StadiumSt James' Park
FA Premier League5th
FA CupFourth round
League CupThird round
Champions LeagueThird qualifying round
UEFA CupSemi-finals
Top goalscorerLeague: Alan Shearer (22)
All: Alan Shearer (28)
Average home league attendance51,996

During the 2003–04 season, Newcastle United participated in the FA Premier League. This season saw the club reach the semi-finals of the 2003–04 UEFA Cup.

Newcastle finished 5th in the Premiership at the end of the season, which ensured qualification for the UEFA Cup once again for the 2004–05 season. Many fans were left disgruntled that United did not make it into the Champions League.

Season summary

Newcastle had finished the 2002–03 season third in the Premier League,[1] entering the qualification rounds for the Champions League.

However, Newcastle did not qualify for the Champions League. They beat Partizan Belgrade 1–0 away from home, but then lost 1–0 at St James' Park and were eliminated via the penalty shootout.[2] This defeat dropped Newcastle into the first round of the UEFA Cup.

Newcastle reached the semi-finals of the UEFA Cup, defeating Breda,[3] Basel,[4] Vålerenga,[5] Mallorca[6] and PSV[7] in the competition. Newcastle were knocked out by Olympique Marseille in the semi-finals 2–0 on aggregate.[8]

In the league, the team were unable to repeat the success of the previous two seasons as Liverpool pipped them to the fourth Champions League spot in the last week of the season. Newcastle were able to nip in ahead of Aston Villa and Charlton Athletic to take fifth place and qualify for the UEFA Cup.

The club could have finished higher if they hadn't started and ended the season with terrible runs. Newcastle failed to win until October in the league and ended the season by winning only one of their last seven league games. The club's away form was a major Achilles heel, with the club registering only 2 away wins (at Middlesbrough and Fulham in the space of 4 days) and a staggering 12 away draws.

Final league table

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
3 Manchester United 38 23 6 9 64 35 +29 75 Qualification for the Champions League third qualifying round[a]
4 Liverpool 38 16 12 10 55 37 +18 60
5 Newcastle United 38 13 17 8 52 40 +12 56 Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
6 Aston Villa 38 15 11 12 48 44 +4 56
7 Charlton Athletic 38 14 11 13 51 51 0 53
Source: Premier League
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
Notes:
  1. ^ Since Manchester United qualified for the Champions League, their place in the UEFA Cup as 2003–04 FA Cup winners went to First Division club Millwall, who were the FA Cup runners-up.

Team kit

The team kit for the 2003–04 season was produced by Adidas and the main shirt sponsor was Northern Rock.

Club transfers

In

Date Pos. Name From Fee
1 July 2003 MF England Lee Bowyer England West Ham United Free[9]
2 February 2004 CF England Michael Bridges England Leeds United Three-month loan[10]
  • Total spending: Decrease £0

Out

Date Pos. Name To Fee
14 October 2003 MF Chile Clarence Acuña Argentina Rosario Central Released[11]
1 January 2004 DF Greece Nikos Dabizas England Leicester City Free[12]
25 January 2004 FW England Carl Cort England Wolverhampton Wanderers £2,000,000[13]
30 January 2004 MF Peru Nolberto Solano England Aston Villa £1,500,000[14]
30 January 2004 DF Scotland Gary Caldwell Scotland Hibernian Released[15]
  • Total spending: Increase £3,500,000

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.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Republic of Ireland IRL Shay Given
2 DF England ENG Andy Griffin
3 DF England ENG Robbie Elliott
5 DF Republic of Ireland IRL Andy O'Brien
7 MF England ENG Jermaine Jenas
8 MF England ENG Kieron Dyer
9 FW England ENG Alan Shearer (captain)
10 FW Wales WAL Craig Bellamy
11 MF Wales WAL Gary Speed (vice-captain)
12 GK England ENG Steve Harper
14 FW England ENG Michael Bridges
17 MF England ENG Darren Ambrose
18 DF Northern Ireland NIR Aaron Hughes
19 DF England ENG Titus Bramble
20 FW Democratic Republic of the Congo COD Lomana LuaLua
21 MF Paraguay PAR Diego Gavilán
No. Pos. Nation Player
22 DF England ENG Jamie McClen
23 FW Nigeria NGA Shola Ameobi
24 GK England ENG Tony Caig
25 MF Scotland SCO Brian Kerr
27 DF England ENG Jonathan Woodgate
28 FW England ENG Michael Chopra
29 MF England ENG Lee Bowyer
30 DF Scotland SCO Steven Caldwell
32 MF France FRA Laurent Robert
33 GK England ENG Adam Collin
35 DF France FRA Olivier Bernard
37 FW Democratic Republic of the Congo COD Calvin Zola
38 DF England ENG Steven Taylor
39 MF England ENG Martin Brittain
40 MF England ENG Bradley Orr
45 MF Portugal POR Hugo Viana

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
4 MF Peru PER Nolberto Solano (to Aston Villa)
6 MF Chile CHI Clarence Acuña (released)
14 DF England ENG Wayne Quinn (on loan to West Ham United)
No. Pos. Nation Player
16 FW England ENG Carl Cort (to Wolverhampton Wanderers)
34 DF Greece GRE Nikos Dabizas (to Leicester City)
36 DF Scotland SCO Gary Caldwell (to Hibernian)

Appearances, goals and cards

(Starting appearances + substitute appearances)[16]
No. Pos. Name League FA Cup League Cup Champions League UEFA Cup Total Discipline
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
1 GK Republic of Ireland Shay Given 38 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 11 0 53 0 1 0
2 DF England Andy Griffin 5 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 8 0 2 0
4 MF Peru Nolberto Solano 8+4 0 2 0 1 0 2 1 2+1 0 15+5 1 0 0
5 DF Republic of Ireland Andy O'Brien 27+1 1 1 0 0 0 2 0 10+1 0 40+2 1 5 2
7 MF England Jermaine Jenas 26+5 2 2 0 1 0 0+2 0 10 1 39+7 3 5 0
8 MF England Kieron Dyer 25 1 0 2 2 2 2 0 4+1 0 33+1 3 2 0
9 FW England Alan Shearer 37 22 2 0 0+1 0 2 0 10 6 51+1 28 3 0
10 FW Wales Craig Bellamy 13+3 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 6+1 5 20+4 9 4 0
11 MF Wales Gary Speed 37+1 3 2 0 0+1 0 2 0 11 1 52+2 4 6 0
12 GK England Steve Harper 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 0 0
14 FW England Michael Bridges 0+6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1+2 0 1+8 0 1 0
17 MF England Darren Ambrose 10+14 2 0+1 0 0+1 0 0 0 6+5 1 16+21 3 3 0
18 DF Northern Ireland Aaron Hughes 34 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 10 0 47 0 1 0
19 DF England Titus Bramble 27+2 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 11 3 40+2 3 9 0
20 FW Democratic Republic of the Congo Lomana LuaLua 2+5 2 0+1 0 1 0 0+1 0 0+1 0 3+8 0 1 0
23 FW Nigeria Shola Ameobi 18+8 7 0+1 0 1 0 1+1 0 7+4 3 27+14 10 2 0
27 DF England Jonathan Woodgate 18 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 5 0 27 0 3 0
28 FW England Michael Chopra 1+5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1+5 0 0 0
29 MF England Lee Bowyer 17+7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0+1 0 17+8 2 6 0
30 DF Scotland Steven Caldwell 3+2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0+1 0 4+3 0 1 0
32 MF France Laurent Robert 31+4 6 2 2 1 1 1+1 0 11+1 3 46+6 12 1 1
35 DF France Olivier Bernard 35 1 2 0 1 0 2 0 11 0 51 0 1 0
38 DF England Steven Taylor 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0+1 0 1+1 0 0 0
39 MF England Martin Brittain 0+1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0+1 0 0+2 0 0 0
45 MF Portugal Hugo Viana 5+11 0 0+1 0 1 0 1 0 4+4 0 11+16 0 3 0

Coaching staff

Position Staff
Manager England Bobby Robson
Assistant Manager England John Carver
First Team coach England Nigel Pearson
Goalkeeping Coach England Simon Smith
Development Coach England Arthur Cox
Reserve Team Coach Scotland Steve Clarke
Chief scout France David Ginola

Last updated: 3 May 2011
Source: [1]

Results

Pre-season

18 July 2003 Newcastle United 2–1 Doncaster Rovers Newcastle upon Tyne
Speed 20'
Dyer 30'
Gill 40' Stadium: Darsley Park
1 August 2003 Hartlepool United 0–6 Newcastle United Hartlepool
19:15 Bellamy 9'
Shearer 17', 29', 35'
Solano 46'
Speed 53'
Stadium: Victoria Park
Attendance: 4,712
4 August 2003 Hull City 0–4 Newcastle United Hull
19:45 Chopra 21', 59'
Ameobi 35'
Cort 90'
Stadium: Kingston Communications Stadium
Attendance: 15,206
17 August 2003 Leeds United 2–2 Newcastle United Leeds
Viduka 24'
Smith 57'
Report Shearer 20' (pen.), 88' Stadium: Elland Road
Attendance: 36,766
Referee: Alan Wiley
13 September 2003 Everton 2–2 Newcastle United Liverpool
Naysmith Red card 58'
Radzinski 67'
Ferguson 88' (pen.)
Report Robert Yellow card 40' Red card
Shearer 59' (pen.), 82' (pen.)
Stadium: Goodison Park
Attendance: 40,228
Referee: Rob Styles
26 September 2003 Arsenal 3–2 Newcastle United London
Henry 18', 80' (pen.)
Silva 67'
Report Robert 26'
Bernard 71'
Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 38,112
Referee: Mike Riley
21 October 2003 Fulham 2–3 Newcastle United London
Clark 6'
Saha 8'
Report Robert 16'
Shearer 51', 56' (pen.)
Stadium: Loftus Road
Attendance: 16,506
Referee: Barry Knight
25 October 2003 Newcastle United 3–0 Portsmouth Newcastle upon Tyne
Speed 17'
Shearer 28' (pen.)
Ameobi 61'
Report Stadium: St James' Park
Attendance: 52,161
Referee: Paul Durkin
1 November 2003 Newcastle United 1–1 Aston Villa Newcastle upon Tyne
15:00 Robert 45' Report Dublin 11'
McCann Yellow card 70' Red card
Stadium: St James' Park
Attendance: 51,975
Referee: Matt Messias
9 November 2003 Chelsea 5–0 Newcastle United London
16:00 Johnson 25'
Crespo 40'
Lampard 42' (pen.)
Duff 78'
Guðjohnsen 84'
Report O'Brien Red card Stadium: Stamford Bridge
Attendance: 41,332
Referee: Paul Durkin
6 December 2003 Newcastle United 1–1 Liverpool Newcastle upon Tyne
Shearer 63' (pen.) Report Murphy 6' Stadium: St James' Park
Attendance: 52,151
Referee: Graham Poll
13 December 2003 Newcastle United 4–0 Tottenham Hotspur Newcastle upon Tyne
Robert 35', 55'
Shearer 59', 66'
Report Stadium: St James' Park
Attendance: 52,139
Referee: Alan Wiley
26 December 2003 Leicester City 1–1 Newcastle United Leicester
Dickov 67' Report Ambrose 90' Stadium: Walkers Stadium
Attendance: 32,148
Referee: Chris Foy
7 January 2004 Newcastle United 1–0 Leeds United Newcastle upon Tyne
19:45 Shearer 4' Report Stadium: St James' Park
Attendance: 52,130
Referee: Phil Dowd
11 January 2004 Manchester United 0–0 Newcastle United Manchester
16:05 Report Stadium: Old Trafford
Attendance: 67,622
Referee: Paul Durkin
19 January 2004 Newcastle United 3–1 Fulham Newcastle upon Tyne
20:00 O'Brien 4'
Speed 41'
Robert 54'
Report Davis 74' Stadium: St James' Park
Attendance: 50,104
Referee: Neale Barry
31 January 2004 Birmingham City 1–1 Newcastle United Birmingham
15:00 John 90' Report Speed 37' Stadium: St Andrew's
Attendance: 29,513
Referee: Rob Styles
11 February 2004 Blackburn Rovers 1–1 Newcastle United Blackburn
20:00 Stead 85' Report Bellamy 52' Stadium: Ewood Park
Attendance: 23,459
Referee: Matt Messias
21 February 2004 Newcastle United 2–1 Middlesbrough Newcastle upon Tyne
15:00 Bellamy 63'
Shearer 83' (pen.)
Report Zenden 33' Stadium: St James' Park
Attendance: 52,156
Referee: Graham Poll
29 February 2004 Portsmouth 1–1 Newcastle United Portsmouth
15:00 LuaLua 89' Report Bellamy 34' Stadium: Fratton Park
Attendance: 20,140
Referee: Andy D'Urso
14 March 2004 Tottenham Hotspur 1–0 Newcastle United London
15:00 O'Brien 86' (o.g.) Report Stadium: White Hart Lane
Attendance: 36,083
Referee: Howard Webb
28 March 2004 Bolton Wanderers 1–0 Newcastle United Bolton
14:00 Pedersen 4' Report Stadium: Reebok Stadium
Attendance: 27,360
Referee: Mike Dean
3 April 2004 Newcastle United 4–2 Everton Newcastle upon Tyne
15:00 Bellamy 5'
Dyer 21'
Shearer 52', 90'
Report Gravesen 12'
Yobo 81'
Stadium: St James' Park
Attendance: 42,155
Referee: Dermot Gallagher
11 April 2004 Newcastle United 0–0 Arsenal Newcastle upon Tyne
16:05 Report Stadium: St James' Park
Attendance: 52,141
Referee: Paul Durkin
18 April 2004 Aston Villa 0–0 Newcastle United Birmingham
14:00 Report O'Brien Red card 10' Stadium: Villa Park
Attendance: 40,786
Referee: Barry Knight
25 April 2004 Newcastle United 2–1 Chelsea Newcastle upon Tyne
14:00 Ameobi 44'
Shearer 48'
Report Cole 5' Stadium: St James' Park
Attendance: 52,016
Referee: Rob Styles
12 May 2004 Southampton 3–3 Newcastle United Southampton
20:00 Beattie 19'
Bramble 39' (o.g.)
Griffit 88'
Report Ameobi 7'
Bowyer 35'
Ambrose 90'
Stadium: St Mary's Stadium
Attendance: 31,815
Referee: Graham Poll
15 May 2004 Liverpool 1–1 Newcastle United Liverpool
15:00 Owen 67' Report Ameobi 25' Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 44,172
Referee: Mike Riley
13 August 2003 3rd qual rd. 1st leg Partizan Belgrade Serbia and Montenegro 0–1 England Newcastle United Belgrade
Report Solano 38' Stadium: Stadion FK Partizan
Attendance: 32,500
Referee: Vladimir Hrinak (Slovakia)
15 October 2003 R1 2nd leg NAC Breda Netherlands 0–1
(0–6 agg.)
England Newcastle United Breda
Report Robert 86' Stadium: Rat Verlegh Stadion
Attendance: 16,400
Referee: Espen Berntsen (Norway)
6 November 2003 R2 1st leg FC Basel Switzerland 2–3 England Newcastle United Basel
Cantaluppi 11'
Chipperfield 15'
Report Robert 14'
Bramble 37'
Ameobi 75'
Stadium: St. Jakob-Park
Attendance: 30,000
Referee: Tom Henning Øvrebø (Norway)
27 November 2003 R2 2nd leg Newcastle United England 1–0
(4–2 agg.)
Switzerland FC Basel Newcastle upon Tyne
Smiljanić 14' (o.g.) Report Stadium: St James' Park
Attendance: 40,387
Referee: Knud Erik Fisker (Denmark)
26 February 2004 R3 1st leg Vålerenga Norway 1–1 England Newcastle United Oslo
Normann 54' Report Bellamy 39' Stadium: Ullevaal Stadion
Attendance: 17,039
Referee: Grzegorz Gilewski (Poland)
3 March 2004 R3 2nd leg Newcastle United England 3–1
(4–2 agg.)
Norway Vålerenga Newcastle upon Tyne
Shearer 19'
Ameobi 47', 89'
Report Hagen 25' Stadium: St James' Park
Attendance: 38,531
Referee: Eric Braamhaar (Netherlands)
11 March 2004 R4 1st leg Newcastle United England 4–1 Spain Mallorca Newcastle upon Tyne
Bellamy 67'
Shearer 71'
Robert 74'
Bramble 84'
Report Moya Yellow card 35' Red card
Correa 57'
Stadium: St James' Park
Attendance: 38,012
Referee: Alain Hamer (Luxembourg)
25 March 2004 R4 2nd leg Mallorca Spain 0–3
(1–7 agg.)
England Newcastle United Palma, Majorca
Report Shearer 46', 89'
Bellamy 78'
Stadium: Son Moix
Attendance: 11,500
Referee: Konrad Plautz (Austria)
6 May 2004 Semi-final 2nd leg Marseille France 2–0
(2–0 agg.)
England Newcastle United Marseille
Drogba 18', 82' Report Stadium: Stade Vélodrome
Attendance: 57,500
Referee: Ľuboš Micheľ (Slovakia)
3 January 2004 Round 3 Southampton 0–3 Newcastle United Southampton
Report Dyer 24', 67'
Robert 39'
Stadium: St Mary's Stadium
Attendance: 28,456
Referee: Mike Dean
24 January 2004 Round 4 Liverpool 2–1 Newcastle United Liverpool
Cheyrou 2', 61' Report Robert 4' Stadium: Anfield
Attendance: 41,365
Referee: Graham Poll

References

  1. ^ "Official Site of the Premier League | Statistics". Archived from the original on 27 November 2011. Retrieved 13 September 2014.
  2. ^ "Champions League 2003-2004 Qualifying Rounds results". Archived from the original on 11 September 2012. Retrieved 18 May 2012.
  3. ^ "UEFA Cup 2003-2004 Results, Wednesday 15th October 2003 - statto.com". Archived from the original on 19 September 2012. Retrieved 18 May 2012.
  4. ^ http://www.statto.com/football/stats/europe/uefa-cup/2003-2004/results/2003-11 [dead link]
  5. ^ http://www.statto.com/football/stats/europe/uefa-cup/2003-2004/results/2004-03 [dead link]
  6. ^ "Newcastle ease through". BBC News. 25 March 2004.
  7. ^ http://www.statto.com/football/stats/europe/uefa-cup/2003-2004/results/2004-04 [dead link]
  8. ^ http://www.statto.com/football/stats/europe/uefa-cup/2003-2004/results/2004-05[permanent dead link]
  9. ^ "Bowyer agrees Magpies deal". BBC News. 23 May 2003.
  10. ^ "Newcastle sign Bridges". BBC News. 2 February 2004.
  11. ^ "Acuna leaves Newcastle". BBC News. 14 October 2003.
  12. ^ "Dabizas to join Leicester". BBC News. 1 January 2004.
  13. ^ "Cort secures Wolves switch". BBC News. 25 January 2004.
  14. ^ "Solano signs for Villa". BBC News. 30 January 2004.
  15. ^ "Hibs land Caldwell". BBC News. 30 January 2004.
  16. ^ "All Newcastle United players: 2004".