Classic Premiership Matches 1-20

In the past 18 seasons, football fans across the globe have been treated to some cracking Premiership matches.  On the eve of the 19th season having begun yesterday, here is a look-back at some classics down the years.

1.             Liverpool                                4-3           Newcastle United                                    Wednesday 3^rd April 1996

The greatest game of the Premiership’s entire history as two attacking sides did battle to keep them in the title race.  A classic header from Robbie Fowler handed Liverpool a dream start, but Newcastle retaliated with goals from Les Ferdinand & David Ginola.  Fowler restored parity early in the second half with a low drilled shot, before Faustino Asprilla curled an attempt around the onrushing David James to put Kevin Keegan’s men back infront.  Stan Collymore tied the game again at 3-3, converting Jason McAteer’s wicked cross and then Stan the Man hit a dramatic stoppage time winner for Liverpool, which funnily enough pushed the title into the hands of their greatest enemies, Manchester United.

2.             Tottenham Hotspur                                3-5           Manchester United                  Saturday 29^th September 2001

This was the greatest turnaround in Premiership history.  Glenn Hoddle’s outfit were in dreamland at half-time, 3-0 to the good against the reigning champions thanks to efforts from new boy Dean Richards, Les Ferdinand & Christian Ziege.  Sir Alex Ferguson rallied his troops at half-time and fought back in the style of champions.  Andy Cole, Laurent Blanc, Ruud Van Nistlerooy, Juan Sebastian Veron and David Beckham all found the net in a breathless second half that left the North London fans stunned into silence.

3.             Blackburn Rovers                   3-4           Chelsea                                    Monday 21^st September 1998

Gianluca Vialli’s foreign superstars found their form in a genuine classic at Ewood Park.  Gianfranco Zola’s magnificent free-kick opened the scoring, but Blackburn got back on terms through Chris Sutton.  A debatable penalty led to Chelsea’s 2^nd, converted by the reliable Franck Lebouef.  Sebastian Perez hooked in Rovers 2^nd equaliser, before being controversially dismissed in a brutal clash with Lancashire old boy Graeme Le Saux.  With both sides at 10 men, Blackburn responded better, Sutton putting them infront after Michael Duberry pushed Martin Dahlin in the box.  Back came Chelsea again, with super sub Tore Andre Flo powering in a header, then coolly converting a long ball from Brian Laudrup to turn a probable defeat into a definite victory.

4.             Leeds United                           4-3           Liverpool                                                Saturday 4^th November 2000

Leeds made an appalling start to this match, failing to deal with two set-pieces from Gary McAllister.  Sami Hyypia & Christian Ziege reaped the rewards.  Step up Marc Viduka with a vintage display, bringing the Yorkshire club level with a cute finish after a dreadful error from Ziege, then a bullet header.  Vladimir Smicer regained Liverpool’s lead after being set-up by fellow Czech, Patrik Berger, before Viduka really took centre stage, twisting and turning his way through the defence for his hat-trick, then chipping an advancing Sander Westerveld when put in the clear by Olivier Dacourt.  The Australian had made his mark in the Premier League and how…

5.             Southampton                          6-3           Manchester United                  Saturday 26^th October 1996

Inspired by the messiah, Matt Le Tissier, Southampton inflicted further pain on Manchester United at the Dell, just six days after United’s 5-0 reverse at Newcastle.  A hat-trick from the unknown Egil Ostenstad plus a majestic chip from Le Tissier and a double by Eyal Berkovic did the damage to give Graeme Souness his finest hour in management.

6.             Tottenham Hotspur                                4-5           Arsenal                                    Saturday 13^th November 2004

It was quite a baptism for new Tottenham boss Martin Jol who witnessed a nine-goal thriller in his first North London Derby.  In a score line more associated to hockey, there were nine different scorers, with common men like Thierry Henry & Robert Pires and more unfamiliar names in the form of Noureddine Naybet & Lauren finding the net.  The pick of the goals was a solo effort from Jermain Defoe.

7.             Portsmouth                             7-4           Reading                                   Saturday 29^th September 2007

The highest aggregated score in Premiership history and a day for Marcus Hahnemann to forget with three goalkeeping blunders.  Benjani took full advantage by striking a hat-trick for Pompey.

8.             West Ham United                   5-4           Bradford City                         Saturday 12^th February 2000

Despite leading 2-0 & 3-1 in this match, Bradford threw it away in this nine goal thriller.  The winner was struck in the closing stages by Joe Cole.

9.             Manchester United                  2-1           Sheffield Wednesday                               Saturday 10^th April 1993

This was a game that ended up changing the history of football.  It looked like Manchester United had thrown the title away again, this time to Aston Villa.  They were 1-0 down to Manchester fanatic John Sheridan, who converted a penalty for the Owls.  Struggling, Alex Ferguson pulled off a tactical masterstroke and threw centre back Steve Bruce forward.  Thanks to a long injury-time stoppage due to an earlier referee issue, Bruce scored twice, the second 7 minutes into injury time.  The celebrations from Ferguson and assistant Brian Kidd said it all, United went on to win the league and start their English dominance.

10.           Chelsea                                    2-3           Arsenal                                    Saturday 23^rd October 1999

Chelsea had been unbeaten at Stamford Bridge since February and hadn’t even conceded a goal at home in the campaign.  They were cruising away with this one, thanks to goals from Gus Poyet & Dan Petrescu.  Inconsistent Arsenal looked dead and buried, but Kanu had other ideas.  The Nigerian hit an 18-minute hat-trick to give the Gunners an improbable victory.  The Blues season never really recovered.

11.           Liverpool                                                3-3           Manchester United                  Tuesday 4^th January 1994

With only 22 minutes gone, Manchester United looked like they were cantering towards another victory at Anfield.  A header from Steve Bruce, stunning lob from Ryan Giggs and a thunderous free-kick from Denis Irwin left Liverpool shell-shocked.  However, the Kop roared their team on, despite their lack of previous form.  Nigel Clough thumped two goals home before half-time and then a bullet header from Neil Ruddock rescued an unlikely point in this masterpiece of a match.

12.           Blackburn Rovers                   7-2           Sheffield Wednesday                               Monday 25^th August 1997

With Englishman Roy Hodgson in charge, Blackburn had been banging in goals, left right and centre.  Infront of the Sky cameras, they gave Sheffield Wednesday a footballing lesson.  Doubles from potent strike force Kevin Gallacher & Chris Sutton, plus further efforts from Jason Wilcox, Lars Bohinen and an own goal left Rovers in seven heaven.  Benito Carbone had a dramatic night, scoring twice and then got sent off for using an elbow on Patrick Valery.

13.           Liverpool                                                4-4           Arsenal                                    Tuesday 21^st April 2009

Liverpool needed to attack, as they attempted to keep up with the red hot pace set by Manchester United, but their moves backfired against Arsenal.  In a belter of a game, Russian newboy Andrei Arshavin profited from shocking defending to score four goals.  Only a stoppage time leveller from Yossi Benayoun salvaged a point for Rafa Benitez, but it ultimately cost them in the final reckoning.

14.           West Ham United                   3-4           Tottenham Hotspur                                Sunday 4^th March 2007

An all-time classic of a London derby gripped fans on a chilly Sunday afternoon.  West Ham had been coasting at half-time, courtesy of Mark Noble and an emotional first strike for the Hammers by popular Argentine ace, Carlos Tevez.  Instead of pushing on, Alan Curbishley saw his side press self-destruct in the 2^nd half.  They were pegged back by a Jermain Defoe penalty and Teemu Tainio.  With five minutes to go, Bobby Zamora headed in to put the East London side back infront, only for a specialised Dimitar Berbatov free-kick to level it up again.  Desperate for the winner, West Ham were caught on the break, with Paul Stalteri snatching a last-gasp winner.  Curbishley’s outfit were now bottom of the table and looked doomed, or were they….

15.           Wolves                                    4-3           Leicester City                          Saturday 25^th October 2003

Between two rivals, this defeat highlighted the problems Leicester had in their battle to avoid the drop.  Coasting at the interval with a 3-0 lead, Micky Adams watched a horror show in the second half, as Wolves battled back to claim a sensational win.  Senegal international Henri Camara poked home the deciding goal four minutes from time.

16.           Oldham Athletic                     4-3           Southampton                          Saturday 8^th May 1993

Despite late wins against Aston Villa and Liverpool, Oldham came into the last day of the season needing to beat Southampton and hope that Crystal Palace were beaten at Arsenal.  Oldham romped into a 4-1 lead at Boundary Park, but faced a nervy ending as Matt Le Tissier scored another hat-trick and the Saints started upping the pressure.  But, the Lactics held on and with an Ian Wright hat-trick at Highbury, Palace went down and awesome Athletic stayed in the Premiership.

17.           Arsenal                                    4-2           Wigan Athletic                        Sunday 7^th May 2006

An emotional farewell to Highbury saw Arsenal achieve their aim of securing Champions League football thanks to their hero and a dodgy food chef.  North London rivals, Tottenham saw their squad decimated by food poisoning on the eve of their trip to West Ham and eventually lost 2-1.  Party poopers Wigan did take a brief 2-1 lead to cause shudders for the home supporters, before Thierry Henry settled the nerves with a sublime hat-trick.  The King of Highbury had signed off in style.

18.           Liverpool                                                4-3           Newcastle United                    Monday 10^th March 1997

Just over a year on from their thrilling first encounter, Liverpool & Newcastle repeated the trick on a pulsating night at Anfield.  Liverpool played some mastering football in the first half, earning a 3-0 half-time lead, due to strikes from Steve McManaman, Patrik Berger & Robbie Fowler.  A pathetic piece of goalkeeping from David James gave Newcastle a way back into the game, allowing Keith Gillespie a consolation.  Suddenly, Liverpool got cocky and conceded soft goals to Faustino Asprilla and Warren Barton in the last five minutes.  It looked like they had thrown it away, until a brave header from Robbie Fowler in injury time won the game.  For the second year running, Geordie hearts had been cruelly broken in Merseyside.

19.           Middlesbrough                        4-3           Bolton Wanderers                   Sunday 26^th March 2006

With a draining UEFA Cup campaign in progress, Middlesbrough were struggling in their battle against the Premiership drop, but turned their domestic season around with a last-gasp triumph over European contenders, Bolton.  3-1 up with an hour gone, Steve McLaren’s side got complacent and goals from Jay-Jay Okocha and Ivan Campo placed the game back in the balance.  An 89^th minute winner from defender Stuart Parnaby earned Boro a crucial three points.

20.           Manchester United                  4-3           Manchester City                     Sunday 20^th September 2009

No doubt that this was the greatest Manchester derby of all time.  Rich Manchester City turned up at Old Trafford, expecting to win, rather than hope to win.  They fell behind inside 3 minutes to a Wayne Rooney goal, but were level by half-time, after Gareth Barry capitalised on some poor goalkeeping.  Darren Fletcher and Craig Bellamy exchanged four goals between each other in the second half, Bellamy’s first was a stunner, the second in the 90^th minute looked to have rescued a point for Mark Hughes men.  However, with almost the last kick of the match, Ryan Giggs fed Michael Owen in, who coolly slotted home past Shay Given and send the home supporters into raptures.  This was an absolute belter.

Classic Premiership Matches 61-80

In the past 18 seasons, football fans across the globe have been treated to some cracking Premiership matches.  On the eve of the 19th season having begun yesterday, here is a look-back at some classics down the years.

61.           Chelsea                                    5-0           Manchester United                  Sunday 3^rd October 1999

This was an afternoon that no person will forget, unless you supported Manchester United that was.  Gus Poyet cashed in on another horrendous piece of goalkeeping by Massimo Taibi to hand the home side a lead within of 30 seconds.  Just past the 20 minute mark, Chris Sutton headed home his first and only Premiership goal for Chelsea and soon they were a man up, following a disgraceful kick-out by Nicky Butt on Dennis Wise.  In the second half, United unravelled as Poyet pounced on a third, Henning Berg sliced into his own net then Jody Morris rammed the ball in with ten minutes to go to complete the rout.  Chelsea’s season wouldn’t hit any higher spots again in this campaign.

62.           Manchester City                     3-3           Newcastle United                    Saturday 24^th February 1996

Newcastle’s all-out attack play was being exposed to great effect and it happened again at Maine Road.  An unsavoury pair of incidents involving City captain, Keith Curle and Faustino Asprilla overshadowed an extraordinary game which saw Philippe Albert rescue the Geordies twice from a losing position.  Nigel Clough, Niall Quinn and Uwe Rosler had put the relegation-threatened club ahead three times, but they couldn’t hold on and it was really a result that neither team required.

63.           Arsenal                                    4-0           Everton                                   Sunday 3^rd May 1998

Arsenal had gone on an awesome run and this home rout sealed their maiden Premiership title, under the brilliant guidance of Arsene Wenger.  Never looking in danger, an own goal from Slaven Billic started the party, which got louder when Marc Overmars beat the Everton defence for pace twice in clinical fashion.  The round-off was completed when skipper Tony Adams lashed home from Steve Bould’s pass to create an iconic memory in Premiership history.  In this season, Arsenal had been truly the cream of the crop. 

64.           Oldham Athletic                     2-3           Norwich City                          Monday 9^th November 1992

Norwich was turning into the surprise package of the 1992/93 campaign and this victory put them on top of the table.  For Mark Robins, it was even more bittersweet as the ex-Manchester United reject hit a wonderful hat-trick at Boundary Park.  Twice, Oldham came from behind to draw level but they ended up with nothing in a game that highlighted both of these teams seasons, thrilling attacking and kamikaze defending.

65.           Arsenal                                    2-3           Leeds United                           Sunday 4^th May 2003

Going into this match, Arsenal knew they had to stay in the Premiership title race, but were behind in the Highbury sunshine to a scorcher from Harry Kewell inside of five minutes.  Thierry Henry equalized, but Leeds showed some fight required to get out of a dodgy relegation position.  Ian Harte hit another free-kick at Highbury, but once more Arsenal responded with Dennis Bergkamp’s first home goal in the Premiership for the 02/03 season.  Henry then struck the post as both sides pushed for the winner.  A breakout by the Yorkshire unit saw Marc Viduka power an unstoppable shot past David Seaman to bury Arsenal as far as the Premiership was concerned and hand Leeds an improbable lifeline of another season in the top flight.

66.           Sheffield United                      1-2           Wigan Athletic                        Sunday 13^th May 2007

Wigan had to win to avoid the dreaded drop and made the perfect start on a rain-soaked afternoon in Sheffield.  Paul Scharner’s low-drilled attempt squirmed into the back of the net.  Sheffield United knew they needed a draw to ensure survival and battled back through a brave header from Jon Stead.  Now, Wigan was back in the red, but right on the stroke of half-time, handball by Michael Tonge gave former Blades man, David Unsworth the chance to convert for the Lactics.  He duly delivered and despite United hitting the post in the second half and missing a catalogue of chances, it was Wigan who won the day.  The relief on Paul Jewell’s face was clear to see and with Carlos Tevez steering West Ham to an unlikely win at Old Trafford, Sheffield United had been cruelly relegated.

67,           Fulham                                    2-4           Liverpool                                                Saturday 16^th October 2004

Rafa Beintez had initially struggled to adapt to the English game and his side looked out-of-touch on the road, but in this game, they produced one of the comebacks for the season.  Trailing 2-0 at half-time to Fulham, they stormed back to win 4-2 with an own goal, a tap-in from Milan Baros, a wonderful free-kick by Spanish ace, Xabi Alonso and a spectacular finish from Igor Biscan.  A flash had been provided for the future by the soon-to-be European champions.

68.           Newcastle United                    4-3           Manchester United                  Saturday 15^th September 2001

Following the recent terrorist attacks on September 11^th, football paid its respects in typically, fond fashion and these two teams served up a real treat.  Laurent Robert powered the home side infront with a typical free-kick, pegged by Ruud Van Nistlerooy.  A horror moment from Fabien Barthez allowed Rob Lee to celebrate a rare goal and when Nicolas Dabizas smashed home from close range early in the second half, the game looked done and dusted.  However, never write Until off at your peril and efforts from Ryan Giggs and Juan Sebastian Veron tied the game all-square again.  With less then ten minutes remaining, Alan Shearer’s strike took a wicked deflection off Wes Brown to earn three famous points for Sir Bobby Robson’s side.  Once again, Roy Keane made the headlines for the wrong reasons, sent off following a tedious clash with Shearer.

69.           Wigan Athletic                        5-3           Blackburn Rovers                   Saturday 15^th December 2007

It is a rarity for two different players to score hat-tricks in the same game, but it happened in this local derby.  Wigan had been cruising at 3-0 up until Roque Santa Cruz dragged his Blackburn side back into the contest with three goals either side of half-time.  Back came the home side through Emile Heskey and a 3^rd goal from Marcus Bent to round off a stunning match managed by former Manchester United legends, Steve Bruce and Mark Hughes.

 

70.           Arsenal                                    7-0           Everton                                   Wednesday 11^th May 2005

Three days earlier, Champions League finalists Liverpool had been played off the park at Highbury, losing 3-1.  Now, their Merseyside rivals faired even worse when taking on the Highbury medicine.  7-0 was the final score, including a virtuoso performance from Dennis Bergkamp, a double by Robin Van Persie and a final Gunner goal from talismanic midfielder, Edu.  This was an absolute masterclass.

71.           Manchester United                  5-2           Tottenham Hotspur                                Saturday 25^th April 2009

At 2-0 up at half-time through goals by Darren Bent and Luka Modric, Tottenham looked on the cards for a shock win at the Theatre of Dreams, but it turned into the Theatre of Nightmares in the second half, as the fabulous four from United, Ronaldo, Rooney, Tevez & Berbatov showed their stuff in the second half.  A scandalous penalty decision from Howard Webb started the comeback, but Tottenham’s pitiful second half collapse was almost unthinkable and would have had Harry Redknapp tearing his hair out.  This was the result that effectively sealed Manchester United’s grip on a record-equalling 18^th league championship.

72.           Blackburn Rovers                   2-3           Chelsea                                    Sunday 1^st February 2004

Despite the guile of Manchester United and Arsenal, Chelsea were hanging onto the coat-tails of the top two and their true spirit was underlined in a physical encounter at Ewood Park.  Down after three minutes through Garry Flitcroft, Chelsea came back with a neat, tidy double by Frank Lampard.  In the second half, super sub Paul Gallagher netted twice.  One was ruled offside, the other stood, whilst at the other end, Brad Friedel was repelling the attack of Lampard, Emmanuel Petit and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink.  With three minutes to go, Adrian Mutu over hit a corner, but it found Glen Johnson, who produced a breathtaking piece of individual skill that would make him an England regular.  It was a goal worthy of winning any game and kept Claudio Ranieri’s side onto the back of the top two.

73.           Newcastle United                    4-3           Aston Villa                              Monday 30^th September 1996

Once again, Newcastle were part of another breathtaking, free-flowing game, this time against an in-form Aston Villa side.  Brian Little’s side grabbed an early lead thanks to Dwight Yorke, his first goal of the season.  The visitors then had a nightmare 15 minutes before half-time which saw them 3-1 down to goals from Les Ferdinand (2) & Alan Shearer, before Mark Draper was given his marching orders for two yellow cards.  What Little had installed into his side was belief and they kept attacking, which paid off with a brilliant solo effort from Yorke.  Quickly, Steve Howey’s flying header re-installed the two goal advantage, before Yorke helped himself to another, completing his hat-trick.  In the end, Newcastle grimly hung on during an entertaining match at St. James Park.

74.           Southampton                          4-3           Norwich City                          Saturday 30^th April 2005

In the relegation scrap, there were some stunning games between the bottom four clubs, none more so than this affair at St. Mary’s.  On a day for defenders to forget, Henri Camara struck a 90^th minute winner for Southampton after the score were pegged at 3-3 in the interlude.  It kept Southampton out of the bottom three and halted Norwich’s recent momentum.  Both would suffer the similar fate though just a fortnight later.

75.           Tottenham Hotspur                                4-4           Aston Villa                              Monday 1^st October 2007

Martin Jol was fighting to hang to his Spurs job following a dismal start to this season and going 4-1 down with half an hour to play against Aston Villa was not the tonic required.  To give them credit, the home side dug in deep with all their possible reserves and claimed an unlikely draw, due to a do-or-die header by under-fire centre-back Younes Kaboul in the last minute.

76.           Coventry City                         3-2           Manchester United                  Sunday 28^th December 1997

December 28^th 1997 turned out to be a pivotal day in the 97/98 title battle, as it seriously highlighted Manchester United’s defensive vulnerabilities.  An ever improving Coventry was infront through Noel Whelan but goals from Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer looked to have got United out of jail again.  Not on this occasion however, due to old lad Dion Dublin via the penalty spot, then a sensational solo strike by Darren Huckerby.  It was a richly deserved result for Gordon Strachan’s side, who comfortably avoided relegation in this campaign.

77.           Newcastle United                    8-0           Sheffield Wednesday                               Sunday 19^th September 1999

A meeting of the Premiership bottom two turned into a one-horse race.  Sheffield Wednesday totally ripped apart in Sir Bobby Robson’s first home match in charge of Newcastle.  Alan Shearer equalled another Premiership scoring record with 5 goals in the same match as the Magpies started their climb up the Premiership leaderboard.  Meanwhile, the writing was already on the wall for the Owls.

78.           Charlton Athletic                    3-3           Manchester United                  Saturday 9^th December 2000

Despite conceding to South African Shaun Bartlett after only ten minutes, Manchester United was totally in control of this scrap in East London.  Just before half-time, their dominance was rewarded with two goals in a minute, courtesy of Ryan Giggs and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.  When Roy Keane added a 3^rd, halfway through the 2^nd half, there looked like no way back for Charlton.  Despite the odds being against them, they showed great character and rescued a point in the last ten minutes, through another Bartlett goal and a close-range shave from John Robinson.  This was a minor slip in an almost imperious season for the champions.

79.           Bolton Wanderers                   5-2           Crystal Palace                        Saturday 2^nd May 1998

It rained goals in the first twenty minutes at the Reebok at Bolton were playing for their lives as far as Premiership football was concerned.  Having grabbed an early lead, two thunderbolts by Dean Gordon and Marcus Bent stunned the home supporters.  The lead for already relegated Palace didn’t last long, due to Mark Fish’s header and another bullet, this time through Jimmy Phillips.  Nathan Blake added a 4^th and Dean Holdsworth scored his first in Bolton colours in the closing stages.  This result gave Colin Todd’s side a great chance to stay in the Premiership, but as it transpired, it wasn’t to be…..

80.           Manchester United                  5-3           Newcastle United                    Saturday 23^rd November 2002

The first of two goal-fests between these two sides ended up rocketing Manchester United’s stuttering season back into life.  Although Alan Shearer’s free-kick saw him become the first player to score 100 Premier League goals for two different clubs (Blackburn & Newcastle), it was a classy Ruud Van Nistlerooy hat-trick that was the difference in this one.