2003–04 Fulham F.C. season

Fulham F.C.
2003-04 season
LeaguePremier League
Manager Chris Coleman
League position 9th
Top goalscorerLeague:
Louis Saha (13)
All competitions:
Louis Saha (15)
FA Cup Quarter-finals
League Cup Second round
Highest home attendance 25,357 (vs. Chelsea, 1 January 2004)
Lowest home attendance 10,500 (vs. Bolton, 26 September 2003)
Previous season← 2002–03
Next season2004–05 →

The 2003–04 season was Fulham's third consecutive season in the top league of English football, the Barclaycard Premiership. The club was managed by former player Chris Coleman, who replaced Jean Tigana at the end of the 2002-03 season.

Fulham were near the top of the table after the first few months of the season after a great start to the campaign and consistently remained in the top half throughout the course of the season. They ended up finishing in ninth position, only four points behind fifth-placed Newcastle United. It was a great debut season for Chris Coleman as manager, particularly as the club had to cope for half of the season without top goalscorer, Louis Saha, who left for Manchester United.

First-team squad

Squad at end of season[1]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
1 Netherlands GK Edwin van der Sar
2 Germany DF Moritz Volz
3 England DF Jon Harley
5 France DF Sylvain Legwinski
6 Japan MF Junichi Inamoto
7 Wales MF Mark Pembridge
8 United States FW Brian McBride
9 Argentina FW Facundo Sava
10 England MF Lee Clark (captain)
11 Portugal FW Luis Boa Morte
12 Wales GK Mark Crossley
14 France MF Steed Malbranque[2]
15 Jamaica FW Barry Hayles[3]
16 England DF Zat Knight
No. Position Player
17 France DF Martin Djetou
18 France DF Jerome Bonnissel
22 England DF Dean Leacock
23 England MF Sean Davis
24 France DF Alain Goma
25 Ghana DF Malik Buari
26 Netherlands MF Bobby Petta (on loan from Celtic)
27 Latvia FW Andrejs Štolcers
28 England DF Zesh Rehman[4]
30 England DF Adam Green
31 England MF Darren Pratley
34 United States DF Carlos Bocanegra
35 England DF Ian Pearce
36 Netherlands FW Collins John[5]

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. Position Player
4 Wales DF Andy Melville (to West Ham United)
7 France FW Steve Marlet (on loan to Marseille)
8 France FW Louis Saha (to Manchester United)
No. Position Player
26 Saint Kitts and Nevis FW Callum Willock[6] (to Peterborough United)
Northern Ireland GK Maik Taylor[7] (to Birmingham City)

Reserve squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
13 England GK Ross Flitney
19 Ghana FW Elvis Hammond
20 England DF Mark Hudson
21 England GK Dave Beasant
No. Position Player
29 England MF Sean Doherty
32 England MF Tom Davis
33 Scotland FW Stuart Noble
37 England DF Liam Rosenior

Statistics

Starting 11

Considering starts in all competitions[8]
Considering a 4-4-2 formation[9]

Transfers

Summer

In

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
England GK Dave Beasant (from Brighton - free)
France DF Jérôme Bonnissel (from Rangers - free)
Germany DF Moritz Volz (on 4 month loan from Arsenal)
No. Position Player
Wales GK Mark Crossley (from Middlesbrough - £500,000)
Wales MF Mark Pembridge (from Everton - undisclosed)
England DF Liam Rosenior (from Bristol City - undisclosed)

Out

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
Scotland MF John Collins (retired)
England FW Luke Cornwall (released)
Denmark MF Bjarne Goldbæk (released)
Republic of Ireland DF Steve Finnan (to Liverpool - undisclosed)
Argentina GK Martín Herrera (on season-long loan to Estudiantes)
Morocco DF Abdeslam Ouaddou (on season-long loan to Rennes)
No. Position Player
Northern Ireland GK Maik Taylor (on season-long loan to Birmingham City)
Ghana FW Elvis Hammond (on month-long loan to Norwich City)
England DF Mark Hudson (on month-long loan to Oldham Athletic)
France FW Steve Marlet (on season-long loan to Marseille)
England DF Jon Harley (on month-long loan to Sheffield United)

January

In

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
Netherlands MF Bobby Petta (on loan from Celtic for season)
United States DF Carlos Bocanegra (from Chicago Fire - free)
Germany DF Moritz Volz (from Arsenal - undisclosed)
No. Position Player
England DF Ian Pearce (from West Ham United - undisclosed)
United States FW Brian McBride (from Columbus Crew - free)
Netherlands FW Collins John (from FC Twente - undisclosed)

Out

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
England DF Mark Hudson (on three-month-long loan to Crystal Palace)
England DF Jon Harley (on three-month loan to West Ham United)
Wales DF Andy Melville (to West Ham United - nominal)
No. Position Player
France FW Louis Saha (to Manchester United - £12,820,000)
Northern Ireland GK Maik Taylor (to Birmingham City - £1,500,000)

Club

Management

Position Staff
Manager Wales Chris Coleman
Assistant manager Scotland Steve Kean
Goalkeeping coach England Dave Beasant
Head of Youth Development England John Murtough
Secretary England Mark Maunders

Source: Fulham FC

Other information

Chairman Egypt Mohamed Al Fayed
Ground (capacity and dimensions) Loftus Road (19,148 / 112x72 yards)

Source: Fulham article on 15 August 2007

Competitions

Premier League

Pos
Club
Pld
W
D
L
F
A
GD
Pts
Comments
1
 Arsenal (C)
38
26
12
0
73
26
47
90
Champions League Group Stage
2
 Chelsea
38
24
7
7
67
30
37
79
3
 Manchester United
38
23
6
9
64
35
29
75
Champions League Third Qualifying Round
4
 Liverpool
38
16
12
10
55
37
18
60
5
 Newcastle United
38
13
17
8
52
40
12
56
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
8
 Bolton Wanderers
38
14
11
13
48
56
-8
53
9
 Fulham
38
14
10
14
52
46
6
52
10
 Birmingham City
38
12
14
12
43
48
-5
50
11
 Middlesbrough
38
13
9
16
44
52
-8
48
UEFA Cup First Round1
12
 Southampton
38
12
11
15
44
45
-1
47
13
 Portsmouth
38
12
9
17
47
54
-7
45
14
 Tottenham Hotspur
38
13
6
19
47
57
-10
45
15
 Blackburn Rovers
38
12
8
18
51
59
-8
44
16
 Manchester City
38
9
14
15
55
54
1
41
17
 Everton
38
9
12
17
45
57
-12
39
18
 Leicester City (R)
38
6
15
17
48
65
-17
33
Relegation to
Championship
19
 Leeds United (R)
38
8
9
21
40
79
-39
33
20
 Wolverhampton Wanderers (R)
38
7
12
19
38
77
-39
33

Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points
C = Champions; R = Relegated

1. Middlesbrough qualified for the UEFA Cup as League Cup winners

Season statistics

Total Goals: 1012
Average Goals per game: 2.66

Matches

Pre-Season friendlies

2003-07-12
Torquay 1 - 4 Fulham
Gritton  32' Report Buari  23'
Sava  55'
Saha  69', 76'
Plainmoor, Torquay
Attendance: 1 896

2003-07-17
Fulham 1 - 2 Celtic
Sava  59' Report Petrov  8'
Larsson  12'
Loftus Road, Fulham, London
Attendance: 14 247

2003-07-23
ASK Voitsberg 1 - 4 Fulham
Walther Eccher  73' (pen.) Report Sava  8'
Marlet  24'
Hammond  36'
Saha  68' (pen)
Stadium Sportscentre Voitsberg, Voitsberg
Attendance: 400

2003-07-26
AS Roma 2 - 1 Fulham
Cassano  26'
Bombardini  88' 		Report Saha  27'

2003-08-02
Motherwell 2 - 2 Fulham
Burns  40' (pen)  89' Report Saha  18'
Marlet  60'
Fir Park, Motherwell
Referee: Eddie Mack

2003-08-05
Livingston 2 - 0 Fulham
Pasquinelli  23', 31' Report
Almondvale Stadium, Livingston
Attendance: 2 846
Referee: John Underhill

2003-08-10
Fulham 2 - 1 Real Mallorca
Boa Morte  32'
Malbranque  65' 		Report Eto'o  12'
Loftus Road, London
Attendance: 2,489
Referee: Paul Durkin

Premier League

2003-08-16
15:00
Fulham 3 – 2 Middlesbrough
Marlet  18'
Inamoto  56'
Saha  70' 		Report Marinelli  10'
Németh  81'
Christie 63'
Loftus Road, London
Attendance: 14,546
Referee: Graham Poll

2003-08-23
15:00
Everton 3 – 1 Fulham
Hayles  69' Report
Goodison Park, Liverpool
Attendance: 37,604
Referee: Neale Barry

2003-08-30
15:00
Tottenham 0 – 3 Fulham
Report Hayles  23', 67'
Boa Morte  71'
White Hart Lane, London
Attendance: 33,421
Referee: Jeff Winter

2003-09-14
16:05
Birmingham 2 – 2 Fulham
Forssell  45', 82' Report Saha  1'
Boa Morte  78'
St Andrews, Birmingham
Attendance: 27,250
Referee: Steve Dunn

2003-09-23
15:00
Fulham 2 – 2 Manchester City
Malbranque  73'
Saha  79' 		Report Anelka  46'
Wanchope  90'
Loftus Road, London
Attendance: 16,124
Referee: Phil Dowd

2003-09-28
15:00
Blackburn 0 – 2 Fulham
Report Boa Morte  5'
Saha  56'
Ewood Park, Blackburn
Attendance: 21,985
Referee: Matt Messias

2003-10-04
15:00
Fulham 2 – 0 Leicester City
Boa Morte  36', 73' Report
Loftus Road, London
Attendance: 14,562
Referee: Chris Foy

2003-10-18
15:00
Fulham 0 – 0 Wolves
(Report)
Loftus Road, London
Attendance: 17,031
Referee: Howard Webb

2003-10-21
19:45
Fulham 2 – 3 Newcastle
Clark  6'
Saha  8' 		(Report) Robert  16'
Shearer  51' (pen.), 56'
Loftus Road, London
Attendance: 16,506
Referee: Barry Knight

2003-10-25
15:00
Manchester United 1 – 3 Fulham
Diego Forlán  45' Report Clark  3'
Malbranque  66'
Inamoto  79'
Old Trafford, Manchester
Attendance: 67,727
Referee: Mike Riley

2003-11-02
15:00
Fulham 1 – 2 Liverpool
Saha  40' Report Heskey  17'
Murphy  89' (pen.)
Loftus Road, London
Attendance: 17,682
Referee: Rob Styles

2003-11-08
15:00
Charlton Athletic 3 – 1 Fulham
Stuart  10'
Johansson  69', 76' 		Report S. Davis  89'
The Valley, Charlton, London
Attendance: 26,344
Referee: Andy D'Urso

2003-11-24
20:00
Fulham 2 – 0 Portsmouth
Saha  30', 33' Report
Loftus Road, London
Attendance: 15,624
Referee: Alan Wiley

2003-11-30
14:00
Arsenal 0 – 0 Fulham
Report
Highbury, London
Attendance: 38,063
Referee: Graham Barber

2003-12-06
15:00
Fulham 2 – 1 Bolton Wanderers
S. Davis  75'
Sava  76' 		Report Kevin Davies  53'
Loftus Road, London
Attendance: 14,393
Referee: Andy D'Urso

2003-12-14
16:05
Leeds United 3 – 2 Fulham
Duberry  41'
Viduka  46'
Matteo  88' 		Report Saha  47', 86'
Elland Road, Leeds, Yorkshire
Attendance: 30,544
Referee: Neale Barry

2003-12-20
20:00
Fulham 0 – 1 Chelsea
Report Crespo  62'
Loftus Road, London
Attendance: 18,244
Referee: Alan Wiley

2003-12-26
12:00
Fulham 2 – 0 Southampton
Saha  19', 63' (pen.) Report
Loftus Road, London
Attendance: 16,767
Referee: Alan Wiley

2003-12-28
15:00
Aston Villa 3 – 0 Fulham
Angel  33'
Vassell  67', 82' 		Report
Villa Park, Birmingham
Attendance: 35,617
Referee: Barry Knight

2004-01-07
19:45
Middlesbrough 2 – 1 Fulham
Job  15'
Németh  67' 		Report Hayles  90'
The Riverside, Middlesbrough
Attendance: 27,869
Referee: Paul Durkin

References

  1. ↑ http://www.footballsquads.co.uk/eng/2003-2004/faprem/fulham.htm
  2. ↑ Malbranque was born in Mouscron, Belgium, but also qualifies to represent France internationally; he represented them at U-21 level and would be called up to the senior international side in February 2004, but he would not play.
  3. ↑ Hayles was born in Lambeth, England, but also qualifies to represent Jamaica internationally and made his international debut for Jamaica in June 2001, having previously represented the Cayman Islands internationally despite being ineligible to do so.
  4. ↑ Rehman was born in Birmingham, England, and has represented England at youth level, but also qualifies to represent Pakistan internationally and would make his international debut for Pakistan in December 2005.
  5. ↑ John was born in Zwedru, Liberia, but also qualifies to represent The Netherlands internationally and would make his full international debut for The Netherlands in August 2004.
  6. ↑ Willock was born in Lambeth, England, but also qualifies to represent Saint Kitts and Nevis internationally and would make his international debut for Saint Kitts and Nevis in 2004.
  7. ↑ Taylor was born in Hildesheim, West Germany (now Germany), but qualifies to represent any of the home nations internationally as he holds a British passport; he made his international debut for Northern Ireland in 1999.
  8. ↑ http://www.11v11.com/teams/fulham/tab/players/season/2004
  9. ↑ http://www.football-lineups.com/team/Fulham/FA_Premier_League_2003-2004/Fixture/

External links