2005–06 FA Premier League

The 2005–06 FA Premier League (known as the FA Barclays Premiership for sponsorship reasons) began on 13 August 2005, and concluded on 7 May 2006. The season saw Chelsea retain their title after defeating Manchester United 3–0 at Stamford Bridge towards the end of April. On the same day, West Bromwich Albion and Birmingham City were relegated, joining Sunderland in the Championship for the following season. Chelsea drew the record they set the previous season, with 29 wins in home and away campaigns.

FA Premier League
Season2005–06
Dates13 August 2005–7 May 2006
ChampionsChelsea
2nd Premier League title
3rd English title
RelegatedBirmingham City
West Bromwich Albion
Sunderland
Champions LeagueChelsea
Manchester United
Liverpool
Arsenal
UEFA CupTottenham Hotspur
Blackburn Rovers
West Ham United
Intertoto CupNewcastle United
Matches played380
Goals scored944 (2.48 per match)
Top goalscorerThierry Henry (27 goals)
Biggest home winArsenal 7–0 Middlesbrough
(14 January 2006)
Biggest away winEverton 0–4 Bolton Wanderers (17 December 2005)
Middlesbrough 0–4 Aston Villa (4 February 2006)
Fulham 0–4 Arsenal
(4 March 2006)
Highest scoringCharlton Athletic 2–5 Manchester City
(4 December 2005)
Wigan Athletic 4–3 Manchester City
(26 December 2005)
Arsenal 7–0 Middlesbrough
(14 January 2006)
Blackburn Rovers 4–3 Manchester United
(1 February 2006)
Fulham 6–1 West Bromwich Albion
(11 February 2006)
Middlesbrough 4–3 Bolton Wanderers
(26 March 2006)
Longest winning run10 games[1]
Chelsea
Liverpool
Longest unbeaten run13 games[1]
Chelsea
Longest winless run14 games[1]
Sunderland
Longest losing run9 games[1]
Sunderland
Highest attendance73,006
Manchester United v Charlton Athletic (7 May 2006)
Lowest attendance16,550
Fulham v Birmingham City
(13 August 2005)
Average attendance33,875

Season summary

Several clubs reported disappointing attendances and/or trouble selling out their grounds for the opening weeks' matches. Many have argued that this was due mainly to the comparatively early season start, and the Ashes Test cricket series which caught the nation's imagination and which England went on to win. Other possible reasons are continued escalation of ticket prices and the increasing number of games shown on television (which has had the knock on effect of greater variation in kick-off times). The overall decline in attendances for the season was only around 2%, but that figure is reduced by the fact that bigger clubs were promoted into the Premiership than were relegated and several clubs have suffered larger falls.

For the second time in two seasons, José Mourinho's Chelsea triumphed in the Premier League, with a home win over closest rivals Manchester United confirming them as champions after a record setting albeit tense season.

Chelsea's early season form with 14 wins out of 16 gave the champions an unequivocal head start. With Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool falling way short of their expectations before Christmas, Chelsea had effectively become champions-elect by early 2006. However, a sudden collapse in form by mid-March caused their seemingly unassailable lead of 16 points to be cut to just 7 in two months due to the impressive late run of form of Manchester United, who went on a nine-match winning streak scoring over 20 goals. However, a shock home draw with bottom of the table Sunderland at Old Trafford killed United's title hopes. The momentum was back with Chelsea who didn't need a second bite at the apple with wins over Bolton, Everton and finally Manchester United giving the west Londoners their second successive championship under Mourinho.

The top two clubs at the end of the season earned the right to participate in the UEFA Champions League group stages, while the third- and fourth-placed clubs get places in the Champions League Third Qualifying Round (where they progress to the Champions League group stages if they win or the UEFA Cup if they lose). However, if an English team wins the Champions League, but finishes outside the top four, then they get the final Champions League spot instead of the fourth-placed club, who have to settle for a place in the UEFA Cup. This could have been the case with Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur, but Arsenal pipped Spurs to fourth place in the final matchday of the season before losing 2–1 to FC Barcelona in the final of the UEFA Champions League.

The fifth-placed club always earns a spot in the UEFA Cup. The winners of the FA Cup also earn a place in the UEFA Cup. If they have already qualified for European competition by their league position or winning the League Cup, then the FA Cup runners-up get their place. If the runners-up, too, have already qualified, then the highest league finisher who have not already qualified for Europe (normally sixth place) are given the place. This season, the FA Cup final featured Liverpool and West Ham. Since Liverpool finished third they were assured of a spot in the Champions League qualifying round, which in turn meant that West Ham received the cup winner's UEFA Cup place.

The League Cup winners also qualify for the UEFA Cup. If they have already qualified for European competition through other means then their place is, unlike the FA Cup, not awarded to the runner-up, but instead the highest league finisher who has not qualified for Europe. League Cup winners Manchester United finished second, placing them directly into the Champions League group stage. This meant that the sixth-placed club, Blackburn Rovers, qualified for the UEFA Cup. The team directly after the UEFA Cup places, goes into the UEFA Intertoto Cup which means in turn, if the team – Newcastle United this season – wins a 2-legged match means they earn a place in the qualifying round of the UEFA Cup.

Teams

Twenty teams competed in the league – the top seventeen teams from the previous season and the three teams promoted from the Championship. The promoted teams were Sunderland, Wigan Athletic and West Ham United. Sunderland and West Ham United returned to the top flight after an absence of two years while Wigan Athletic played in the top flight for the first time in history. They replaced Crystal Palace, Norwich City (both teams relegated after a season's presence) and Southampton (ending their top flight spell of twenty-seven years).

Stadiums and Locations
Locations of the 2005–06 Premier League teams
Greater London Premier League football clubs
Greater Manchester Premier League football clubs
West Midlands Premier League football clubs
Team Location Stadium Capacity
Arsenal London (Highbury) Arsenal Stadium[lower-alpha 1] 38,419
Aston Villa Birmingham (Aston) Villa Park 42,553
Birmingham City Birmingham (Bordesley) St Andrew's 30,079
Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Ewood Park 31,367
Bolton Wanderers Bolton Reebok Stadium 28,723
Charlton Athletic London (Charlton) The Valley 27,111
Chelsea London (Fulham) Stamford Bridge 42,360
Everton Liverpool (Walton) Goodison Park 40,569
Fulham London (Fulham) Craven Cottage 24,600
Liverpool Liverpool (Anfield) Anfield 45,276
Manchester City Manchester City of Manchester Stadium 48,000
Manchester United Old Trafford Old Trafford 68,217
Middlesbrough Middlesbrough Riverside Stadium 35,049
Newcastle United Newcastle upon Tyne St James' Park 52,387
Portsmouth Portsmouth Fratton Park 20,220
Sunderland Sunderland Stadium of Light 49,000
Tottenham Hotspur London (Tottenham) White Hart Lane 36,240
West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich The Hawthorns 26,484
West Ham United London (Upton Park) Boleyn Ground 35,146
Wigan Athletic Wigan JJB Stadium 25,138
  1. This was Arsenal's last season at their long-time home of the Arsenal Stadium. The Gunners opened the 60,000-seat Emirates Stadium in the summer of 2006.[2]

Personnel and kits
Team Manager Captain Kit manufacturer Shirt sponsor
Arsenal Arsène Wenger Thierry Henry Nike O2
Aston Villa David O'Leary Olof Mellberg Hummel DWS Investments
Birmingham City Steve Bruce Kenny Cunningham Lonsdale Flybe.com
Blackburn Rovers Mark Hughes Ryan Nelsen Lonsdale Lonsdale
Bolton Wanderers Sam Allardyce Kevin Nolan Reebok Reebok
Charlton Athletic Alan Curbishley Matt Holland Joma All:Sports[3]
Llanera
Chelsea José Mourinho John Terry Umbro Samsung Mobile
Everton David Moyes David Weir Umbro Chang
Fulham Chris Coleman Luís Boa Morte Puma Pipex
Liverpool Rafael Benítez Steven Gerrard Reebok Carlsberg
Manchester City Stuart Pearce Sylvain Distin Reebok Thomas Cook
Manchester United Sir Alex Ferguson Gary Neville Nike Vodafone
Middlesbrough Steve McClaren Gareth Southgate Erreà 888.com
Newcastle United Glenn Roeder Alan Shearer Adidas Northern Rock
Portsmouth Harry Redknapp Dejan Stefanović Jako OKI Printing Solution
Sunderland Kevin Ball (caretaker) Gary Breen Lonsdale Reg Vardy
Tottenham Hotspur Martin Jol Ledley King Kappa Thomson Holidays
West Bromwich Albion Bryan Robson Kevin Campbell Diadora T-Mobile
West Ham United Alan Pardew Nigel Reo-Coker Reebok JobServe
Wigan Athletic Paul Jewell Arjan de Zeeuw JJB JJB

Managerial changes
Team Outgoing manager Manner of departure Date of vacancy Position in table Incoming manager Date of appointment
Portsmouth Alain Perrin Sacked 24 November 2005[4] 17th Harry Redknapp 2 December 2005
Newcastle United Graeme Souness 2 February 2006[5] 15th Glenn Roeder 2 February 2006
Sunderland Mick McCarthy 6 March 2006[6] 20th Kevin Ball (caretaker) 7 March 2006

League table
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Chelsea (C) 38 29 4 5 72 22 +50 91 Qualification for the Champions League group stage[lower-alpha 1]
2 Manchester United 38 25 8 5 72 34 +38 83
3 Liverpool 38 25 7 6 57 25 +32 82 Qualification for the Champions League third qualifying round
4 Arsenal 38 20 7 11 68 31 +37 67
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
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[lower-alpha 2]
10 Wigan Athletic 38 15 6 17 45 52 −7 51
11 Everton 38 14 8 16 34 49 −15 50
12 Fulham 38 14 6 18 48 58 −10 48
13 Charlton Athletic 38 13 8 17 41 55 −14 47
14 Middlesbrough 38 12 9 17 48 58 −10 45
15 Manchester City 38 13 4 21 43 48 −5 43
16 Aston Villa 38 10 12 16 42 55 −13 42
17 Portsmouth 38 10 8 20 37 62 −25 38
18 Birmingham City (R) 38 8 10 20 28 50 −22 34 Relegation to the Football League Championship
19 West Bromwich Albion (R) 38 7 9 22 31 58 −27 30
20 Sunderland (R) 38 3 6 29 26 69 −43 15
Source: Premier League
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champion; (R) Relegated.
Notes:
  1. Since Manchester United qualified for the Champions League, their place in the UEFA Cup as League Cup winners passed down to the league and was awarded to Blackburn Rovers as the highest-placed team not already qualified for European competitions.
  2. 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.

Results
Home \ Away ARS AST BIR BLB BOL CHA CHE EVE FUL LIV MCI MUN MID NEW POR SUN TOT WBA WHU WIG
Arsenal 5–0 1–0 3–0 1–1 3–0 0–2 2–0 4–1 2–1 1–0 0–0 7–0 2–0 4–0 3–1 1–1 3–1 2–3 4–2
Aston Villa 0–0 3–1 1–0 2–2 1–0 1–1 4–0 0–0 0–2 0–1 0–2 2–3 1–2 1–0 2–1 1–1 0–0 1–2 0–2
Birmingham City 0–2 0–1 2–1 1–0 0–1 0–0 0–1 1–0 2–2 1–2 2–2 0–3 0–0 5–0 1–0 0–2 1–1 1–2 2–0
Blackburn Rovers 1–0 2–0 2–0 0–0 4–1 1–0 0–2 2–1 0–1 2–0 4–3 3–2 0–3 2–1 2–0 0–0 2–0 3–2 1–1
Bolton Wanderers 2–0 1–1 1–0 0–0 4–1 0–2 0–1 2–1 2–2 2–0 1–2 1–1 2–0 1–0 2–0 1–0 2–0 4–1 1–1
Charlton Athletic 0–1 0–0 2–0 0–2 0–1 0–2 0–0 1–1 2–0 2–5 1–3 2–1 3–1 2–1 2–0 2–3 0–0 2–0 1–0
Chelsea 1–0 2–1 2–0 4–2 5–1 1–1 3–0 3–2 2–0 2–0 3–0 1–0 3–0 2–0 2–0 2–1 4–0 4–1 1–0
Everton 1–0 4–1 0–0 1–0 0–4 3–1 1–1 3–1 1–3 1–0 0–2 1–0 1–0 0–1 2–2 0–1 2–2 1–2 0–1
Fulham 0–4 3–3 0–0 2–1 2–1 2–1 1–0 1–0 2–0 2–1 2–3 1–0 1–0 1–3 2–1 1–0 6–1 1–2 1–0
Liverpool 1–0 3–1 1–1 1–0 1–0 0–0 1–4 3–1 5–1 1–0 0–0 2–0 2–0 3–0 1–0 1–0 1–0 2–0 3–0
Manchester City 1–3 3–1 4–1 0–0 0–1 3–2 0–1 2–0 1–2 0–1 3–1 0–1 3–0 2–1 2–1 0–2 0–0 2–1 0–1
Manchester United 2–0 1–0 3–0 1–2 4–1 4–0 1–0 1–1 4–2 1–0 1–1 0–0 2–0 3–0 0–0 1–1 3–0 1–0 4–0
Middlesbrough 2–1 0–4 1–0 0–2 4–3 0–3 3–0 0–1 3–2 0–0 0–0 4–1 1–2 1–1 0–2 3–3 2–2 2–0 2–3
Newcastle United 1–0 1–1 1–0 0–1 3–1 0–0 1–0 2–0 1–1 1–3 1–0 0–2 2–2 2–0 3–2 3–1 3–0 0–0 3–1
Portsmouth 1–1 1–1 1–1 2–2 1–1 1–2 0–2 0–1 1–0 1–3 2–1 1–3 1–0 0–0 2–1 0–2 1–0 1–1 0–2
Sunderland 0–3 1–3 0–1 0–1 0–0 1–3 1–2 0–1 2–1 0–2 1–2 1–3 0–3 1–4 1–4 1–1 1–1 1–1 0–1
Tottenham Hotspur 1–1 0–0 2–0 3–2 1–0 3–1 0–2 2–0 1–0 0–0 2–1 1–2 2–0 2–0 3–1 3–2 2–1 1–1 2–2
West Bromwich Albion 2–1 1–2 2–3 2–0 0–0 1–2 1–2 4–0 0–0 0–2 2–0 1–2 0–2 0–3 2–1 0–1 2–0 0–1 1–2
West Ham United 0–0 4–0 3–0 3–1 1–2 0–0 1–3 2–2 2–1 1–2 1–0 1–2 2–1 2–4 2–4 2–0 2–1 1–0 0–2
Wigan Athletic 2–3 3–2 1–1 0–3 2–1 3–0 0–1 1–1 1–0 0–1 4–3 1–2 1–1 1–0 1–2 1–0 1–2 0–1 1–2
Source: Barclays Premier League
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Top scorers
Rank Player Club Goals
1 Thierry Henry Arsenal 27
2 Ruud van Nistelrooy Manchester United 21
3 Darren Bent Charlton Athletic 18
4 Robbie Keane Tottenham Hotspur 16
Frank Lampard Chelsea 16
Wayne Rooney Manchester United 16
7 Marlon Harewood West Ham United 14
8 Craig Bellamy Blackburn Rovers 13
Yakubu Middlesbrough 13
10 Henri Camara Wigan Athletic 12
Didier Drogba Chelsea 12

Awards

Monthly awards
MonthManager of the MonthPlayer of the Month
August Stuart Pearce (Manchester City) Darren Bent (Charlton Athletic)
September Paul Jewell (Wigan Athletic) Danny Murphy (Charlton Athletic)
October Paul Jewell (Wigan Athletic) Frank Lampard (Chelsea)
November Rafael Benítez (Liverpool) Robin van Persie (Arsenal)
December Rafael Benítez (Liverpool) Wayne Rooney (Manchester United)
January David Moyes (Everton) Anton Ferdinand (West Ham United)
February Alan Pardew (West Ham United) Kevin Nolan (Bolton Wanderers)
March Sir Alex Ferguson (Manchester United) Wayne Rooney (Manchester United)
April Harry Redknapp (Portsmouth) Steven Gerrard (Liverpool)

Annual awards

PFA Players' Player of the Year

The PFA Players' Player of the Year award for 2006 was won by Steven Gerrard.[7]

The shortlist for the PFA Players' Player of the Year award was as follows:

PFA Young Player of the Year

The PFA Young Player of the Year award was won by Wayne Rooney.[8]

The shortlist for the award was as follows:

PFA Team of the Year

Goalkeeper: Shay Given (Newcastle United)
Defence: Pascal Chimbonda (Wigan Athletic), Jamie Carragher (Liverpool), John Terry, William Gallas (both Chelsea)
Midfield: Steven Gerrard (Liverpool), Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United), Frank Lampard (Chelsea), Joe Cole (Chelsea)
Attack: Thierry Henry (Arsenal), Wayne Rooney (Manchester United)

PFA Fans' Player of the Year

Wayne Rooney, was named the PFA Fans' Player of the Year for 2006.

FWA Footballer of the Year

The FWA Footballer of the Year award for 2006 was won by Thierry Henry for a record third time. No other player has won the accolade on as many occasions as the Arsenal player in the award's long history.[9]

Premier League Player of the Season

Arsenal's Thierry Henry[10][11] won the Premier League Player of the Season award for the second time.

Premier League Manager of the Season

José Mourinho was awarded the Premier League Manager of the Season award after he led Chelsea to their second premier league title in two years, their third league title in their history. This title was also his second time of winning the award in as many seasons.

Premier League Golden Boot

Thierry Henry was named the winner of the Premier League Golden Boot award. The Arsenal striker scored 27 goals in the league and was presented with the award at Arsenal's last game at Highbury.[12][13]

Premier League Golden Glove

Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina won the Premier League Golden Glove award for the first time. He achieved clean sheets in 20 Premier League games.[14]

Premier League Fair Play League

The Premier League Fair Play League was won by Charlton Athletic, ahead of fellow London team Arsenal. The least sporting side was Blackburn Rovers.[15]

See also

References
  1. "English Premier League 2005–06". statto.com. Archived from the original on 9 November 2014. Retrieved 19 February 2015.
  2. "Henry delight at Highbury finale". BBC News. 7 May 2006. Retrieved 14 January 2011.
  3. Charlton changed sponsors during the season, as previous sponsors All:Sports went into administration.
  4. "Portsmouth dismiss manager Perrin". BBC Sport. 24 November 2005. Retrieved 24 November 2005.
  5. "Newcastle dismiss manager Souness". BBC Sport. 2 February 2006. Retrieved 2 February 2006.
  6. "Sunderland sack manager McCarthy". BBC Sport. 6 March 2006. Retrieved 6 March 2006.
  7. "GERRARD NAMED PFA PLAYER OF THE YEAR". Sporting Life. Archived from the original on 22 November 2007. Retrieved 14 January 2011.
  8. "Gerrard named player of the year". BBC News. 23 April 2006. Retrieved 14 January 2011.
  9. "BBC SPORT | Football | My Club | Arsenal | Henry picks up award from writers". BBC News. 27 April 2006. Retrieved 14 January 2011.
  10. "Premier League History - 2005/06 Season Review". www.premierleague.com.
  11. "Henry collects Premiership award". BBC News. 5 May 2006.
  12. Wallace, Sam (8 May 2006). "Arsenal 4 Wigan Athletic 2: Highbury story ends with last act of sublime skill from Henry – Premier League, Football". The Independent. UK. Retrieved 14 January 2011.
  13. "Thierry Henry with his Golden Boot Award. Arsenal 4:2 Wigan Athletic. Arsenal FC, Arsenal v Wigan 2005/06". Arsenalpics.com. Archived from the original on 2 December 2008. Retrieved 14 January 2011.
  14. "Reina collects Barclays Golden Glove Award". Premierleague.com. Archived from the original on 18 September 2008. Retrieved 14 January 2011.
  15. "BARCLAYS PREMIERSHIP 2005/2006 FAIR PLAY LEAGUE" (PDF). 23 September 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 September 2006.
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