|
|
|
|
|
Fa Premier League 1998-99This article describes the 'FA Premier League 1998-99' season.
1998-99 will always be remembered as the season in which Manchester United won a unique treble of the Premiership title, FA Cup and European Cup. They secured their fifth league championship in seven seasons after losing just three league games all season. They won their record tenth F.A Cup after beating Newcastle 2-0 at Wembley Stadium. But their biggest triumph was a 2-1 win over Bayern Munich in the Champions League final at Barcelona's Nou Camp Stadium. The victory in the European final was all the more amazing because United were trailing 0-1 with 90 minutes in the clock, but two injury time goals from Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjr gave United a 2-1 victory - and their second European Cup victory. The previous success had been in 1968, and ironically the second success - on 26 May 1999 - took place on what would have been the 90th birthday of Sir Matt Busby, the man who took charge of the 1968 side. In order to achieve this success, the Manchester United playing squad had been altered substantially during the close season. A total of more than 28million had been spent on signing Dwight Yorke, Jaap Stam and Jesper Blomqvist, while several older players left the club. Gary Pallister had returned to Middlesbrough after nine years for a fee of 2.5million, while Brian McClair returned to Motherwell on a free transfer. In December, however, McClair was back in the Premiership as Brian Kidd's assistant at Blackburn Rovers. At the end of 1998-99, the Premiership would have three Champions League places. As well as Manchester United, runners-up Arsenal and third placed Chelsea would be playing in the following season's Champions League. There would only be one automatic UEFA Cup place - this time it was occupied by fourth-placed Leeds United. Fifth placed West Ham United had to qualify the UEFA Cup via the Intertoto Cup. Bottom of the Premiership in the final table came Nottingham Forest, who suffered their third relegation in seven seasons. Second from bottom came Blackburn Rovers, who just five seasons earlier had been Premiership champions. The final relegation place went to Charlton Athletic, who went down at the end of their first spell in the top flight for nine seasons. The only newly promoted club to survive was Middlesbrough, who finished in a respectable ninth place. None of the teams relegated from the Premiership the previous season regained their top division status in 1999, although First Division champions Sunderland regained their Premiership place after a two-year exile. The other two relegation places went to long-term absentees from the top division. Playoff winners Watford regained their top division place after an absence of 11 years, but runners-up Bradford had been outside of the top division for 77 years. These two promotion winners surprised the observers more than any other Division One side during 1998-99. Management Changes 1998-99 also saw many Premiership managerial departures. Christian Gross was sacked as Tottenham manager in September after less than a year in charge. His successor George Graham (a former manager of their neighbours Arsenal) arrived from Leeds United and within a few months had secured a League Cup victory for the White Hart Lane club. David Bassett of Nottingham Forest following in October, and his successor Ron Atkinson was unable to prevent relegation and left at the end of the season to be replaced by former England captain David Platt. Blackburn sacked Roy Hodgson in early December, with the Premiership champions of 1995 now struggling at the foot of the division. His successor was Manchester United assistant manager Brian Kidd, and Blackburn's relegation was ironically confirmed in the penultimate game of the season when they failed to beat Kidd's old club. Before the start of the season, former French national coach Gerard Houllier had been appointed as joint manager of Liverpool in conjunction with Roy Evans, but the partnership had not worked out and Evans quit in November in order for Houllier to be put in sole charge.
|
 |
|
| Copyright 2005-2009 OnPedia.com. All Rights Reserved |
|
|