2002–03 Fulham F.C. season

Fulham

2002–03 season
Chairman	Mohamed Al-Fayed
Manager	Jean Tigana (until 17 April)[1] Chris Coleman (from 17 April)
Stadium	Loftus Road
FA Premier League	14th
FA Cup	Fifth round
League Cup	Fourth round
UEFA Intertoto Cup	Winner
UEFA Cup	Third round
Top goalscorer	League: Steed Malbranque (6) All: Steed Malbranque (13)
Highest home attendance	18,800 (vs. Arsenal, 3 November, Premier League)
Lowest home attendance	4,717 (vs. Sochaux, 31 July, Intertoto Cup)
Average home league attendance	16,707
← 2001–02 2003–04 →

The 2002–03 season was Fulham F.C.'s 105th season in professional football and second consecutive season in the FA Premier League. It was also the first season in over 115 years where Fulham did not play at Craven Cottage. Due to pending decisions on re-vamping the cottage, all home games (apart from two early-season fixtures) were played at Loftus Road, the home of Queens Park Rangers. Jean Tigana remained as Fulham manager up until his sacking in April 2003. Former Fulham player Chris Coleman had not long been retired from the game since suffering a career-ending injury in a car crash when he was appointed caretaker manager for the rest of the season.

Concerning the league, it was another relatively disappointing season for Fulham. Finishing in 14th place, it was seeming Fulham were finding top-flight football more of a struggle than was originally anticipated two years ago. However, an invitation to the Intertoto Cup after the 2001–02 campaign meant that Fulham could play European football for the first time in their history. Upon entering, Fulham went on to be one of the three winners of the competition, allowing them into the first round draw of the UEFA Cup. Performing better than most expected, Fulham reached the third round before being knocked out by German club Hertha BSC.

First-team squad

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

No. Position Player 1 GK Edwin van der Sar 2 DF Steve Finnan 4 DF Andy Melville 6 MF Junichi Inamoto (on loan from Gamba Osaka) 7 FW Steve Marlet 8 MF Lee Clark 9 FW Facundo Sava 10 MF John Collins 11 FW Luís Boa Morte 12 GK Maik Taylor[2] 13 GK Ross Flitney 14 MF Steed Malbranque[3] 15 FW Barry Hayles[4] 16 DF Zat Knight 17 DF Martin Djetou (on loan from Parma) 18 MF Sylvain Legwinski

No. Position Player 19 FW Bjarne Goldbæk 20 FW Louis Saha 21 GK Martín Herrera 23 MF Sean Davis 24 DF Alain Goma 25 DF Abdeslam Ouaddou 26 DF Jon Harley 27 DF Pierre Womé (on loan from Bologna) 31 MF Darren Pratley 33 FW Calum Willock[5] 34 FW Elvis Hammond 36 DF Mark Hudson 38 FW Luke Cornwall 39 DF Dean Leacock 40 MF Andrejs Štolcers

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 3 DF Rufus Brevett (to West Ham United) 5 DF Chris Coleman (retired) 30 GK Glyn Thompson (to Northampton Town)

No. Position Player 31 MF Eddie Lewis (to Preston North End) 35 DF Kieran McAnespie (to Plymouth Argyle)

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 FW Facundo Sava (from Gimnasia – £2,000,000) GK Martín Herrera (from Alavés – free) DF Martin Djetou (two-year loan from Parma)

No. Position Player MF Junichi Inamoto (season-long loan from Gamba Osaka) DF Pierre Womé (season-long loan from Bologna)

Out

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

No. Position Player GK Marcus Hahnemann (released) MF Paul Trollope (to Northampton Town – free)

No. Position Player MF Eddie Lewis (to Preston North End – undisclosed)

Winter

Out

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

No. Position Player FW Luke Cornwall (one-month loan to Lincoln City)

No. Position Player DF Rufus Brevett (to West Ham United - undisclosed)

League table

Pos	Club	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	+/-	Pts	Comments
1	Manchester United	38	25	8	5	74	34	40	83	Champions League group stage
2	Arsenal	38	23	9	6	85	42	43	78
3	Newcastle United	38	21	6	11	63	48	15	69	Champions League Third qualifying round
4	Chelsea	38	19	10	9	68	38	30	67
5	Liverpool	38	18	10	10	61	41	20	64	UEFA Cup first round^1
6	Blackburn Rovers	38	16	12	10	52	43	9	60
7	Everton	38	17	8	13	48	49	-1	59
8	Southampton	38	13	13	12	43	46	-3	52	UEFA Cup first round^2
9	Manchester City	38	15	6	17	47	54	-7	51	UEFA Cup qualifying round
10	Tottenham Hotspur	38	14	8	16	51	62	-11	50
11	Middlesbrough	38	13	10	15	48	44	4	49
12	Charlton Athletic	38	14	7	17	45	56	-11	49
13	Birmingham City	38	13	9	16	41	49	-8	48
14	Fulham	38	13	9	16	41	50	-9	48
15	Leeds United	38	14	5	19	58	57	1	47
16	Aston Villa	38	12	9	17	42	47	-5	45
17	Bolton Wanderers	38	10	14	14	41	51	-10	44
18	West Ham United	38	10	12	16	42	59	-17	42	Relegated to Division 1
19	West Bromwich Albion	38	6	8	24	29	65	-36	26
20	Sunderland	38	4	7	27	21	65	-44	19

Results

Premier League

Fulham v Bolton Wanderers

17 August 2002 1	Fulham	4–1	Bolton Wanderers	Fulham, London
15:00 BST	Saha  11' (pen.) Legwinski  34', 79' Marlet  38'	Report	Ricketts  3' (pen.)	Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 16,338 Referee: Alan Wiley

Middlesbrough v Fulham

24 August 2002 2	Middlesbrough	2–2	Fulham	Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire
15:00 BST	Maccarone  32', 51'	Report	Davis  89' Sava  90'	Stadium: Riverside Stadium Attendance: 28,588 Referee: Mike Dean

West Bromwich Albion v Fulham

31 August 2002 3	West Bromwich Albion	1–0	Fulham	West Bromwich, West Midlands
15:00 BST	Moore  48'	Report		Stadium: The Hawthorns Attendance: 25,461 Referee: Rob Styles

Fulham v Tottenham Hotspur

11 September 2002 4	Fulham	3–2	Tottenham Hotspur	Fulham, London
19:45 BST	Inamoto  68' Malbranque  84' (pen.) Legwinski  90'	Report	Richards  36' Sheringham  44'	Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 16,757 Referee: Mark Halsey

Sunderland v Fulham

14 September 2002 5	Sunderland	0–3	Fulham	Sunderland, Tyne and Wear
15:00 BST		Report	Inamoto  34' Hayles  54' Marlet  78'	Stadium: Stadium of Light Attendance: 35,432 Referee: Chris Foy

Fulham v Chelsea

23 September 2002 6	Fulham	0–0	Chelsea	Fulham, London
20:00 BST		Report		Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 16,503 Referee: Paul Durkin

Everton v Fulham

28 September 2002 7	Everton	2–0	Fulham	Liverpool, Merseyside
15:00 BST	Gravesen  45' Campbell  45+2'	Report		Stadium: Goodison Park Attendance: 34,371 Referee: Steve Dunn

Fulham v Charlton Athletic

6 October 2002 8	Fulham	1–0	Charlton Athletic	Fulham, London
13:00 BST	Sava  36'	Report		Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 14,775 Referee: Jeff Winter

Fulham v Manchester United

19 October 2002 9	Fulham	1–1	Manchester United	Fulham, London
	Marlet  35'	Report	Solskjær  62'	Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 18,103 Referee: Mike Dean

Fulham v West Ham United

23 October 2002 10	Fulham	0–1	West Ham United	Fulham, London
	Knight  90'	Report	Di Canio  90' (pen.)	Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 15,858 Referee: Rob Styles

Southampton v Fulham

27 October 2002 11	Southampton	4–2	Fulham	Southampton, Hampshire
	Beattie  27' (pen.), 42' (53) Ormerod  72'	Report	Clark  15' Malbranque  25'	Stadium: St. Mary's Attendance: 26,188 Referee: Mark Halsey

Fulham v Arsenal

3 November 2002 12	Fulham	0–1	Arsenal	Fulham, London
		Report	Marlet  31' (o.g.)	Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 18,800 Referee: Jeff Winter

Aston Villa v Fulham

9 November 2002 13	Aston Villa	3–1	Fulham	Birmingham, West Midlands
	Ángel  20' Allbäck  66' Leonhardsen  83'	Report	Boa Morte  51'	Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 29,563 Referee: Andy D'Urso

Birmingham City v Fulham

17 November 2002	Birmingham City	0–0	Fulham	Birmingham, West Midlands
15:00 GMT (UTC)			Brevett  37' Marlet  79'	Stadium: St Andrew's Attendance: 26,164 Referee: Matt Messias

Fulham v Liverpool

23 November 2002	Fulham	3–2	Liverpool	Fulham, London
	Sava  5', 68' Davis  38'	Report	Hamann  62' Baroš  86'	Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 18,144 Referee: Graham Poll

Fulham v Leeds United

7 December 2002	Fulham	1–0	Leeds United	Loftus Road
	Djetou  10'	Report		Stadium: Fulham, London Attendance: 17,494 Referee: Paul Durkin

Fulham v Birmingham City

15 December 2002	Fulham	0–1	Birmingham City	Fulham, London
14:00 GMT (UTC)		[ Report]	Kirovski  7' Purse  70'	Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 14,962 Referee: Andy D'Urso

Newcastle United v Fulham

21 December 2002	Newcastle United	2–0	Fulham	Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyneside
15:00	Solano  8' Bellamy  70'	Report	Womé  66'	Stadium: St James' Park Attendance: 51,576 Referee: Alan Wiley

Fulham v Manchester City

28 December 2002	Fulham	0–1	Manchester City	Fulham, London
15:00		[ Report]	Anelka  15'	Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 17,937

Manchester City v Fulham

29 January 2003	Manchester City	4–1	Fulham	Manchester
15:00	Anelka  21' Benarbia  47' Foé  61' Wright-Phillips  70'	[ Report]	Malbranque  2'	Stadium: Maine Road Attendance: 33,260 Referee: Steve Bennett

Arsenal v Fulham

1 February 2003	Arsenal	2–1	Fulham	Islington, London
	Pirès  17', 90'		Malbranque  29'	Stadium: Highbury

Liverpool v Fulham

12 April 2003	Liverpool	2–0	Fulham	Liverpool, Merseyside
	Heskey  36' Owen  59'	Report		Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 42,120 Referee: Alan Wiley

Fulham v Newcastle United

19 April 2003	Fulham	2–1	Newcastle United	Fulham, London
15:00	Lewinski  69' Clark  86'	Report	Shearer  39' Griffin  63'	Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 17,900 Referee: Dermot Gallagher

Leeds United v Fulham

22 April 2003	Leeds United	2–0	Fulham	Leeds, West Yorkshire
	Viduka  4', 49'	Report		Stadium: Elland Road Attendance: 37,220 Referee: Neale Barry

League Cup

Fulham v Bury

6 November 2002 3	Fulham	3–1	Bury	Fulham, London
	Štolcers  40', 53' Clark  73'	Report	Newby  90'	Stadium: Craven Cottage Attendance: 6,700 Referee: David Pugh

Wigan Athletic v Fulham

4 December 2002 4	Wigan Athletic	2–1	Fulham	Wigan, Greater Manchester
	Ellington  20', 28'	Report	Boa Morte  86'	Stadium: JJB Stadium Attendance: 7,651 Referee: Mark Halsey

FA Cup

Fulham v Birmingham City

5 January 2003 3	Fulham	3–1	Birmingham City	Fulham, London
	Sava  11' Goldbæk  23' Saha  46'	Report	John  90'	Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 9,203 Referee: Neale Barry

Fulham v Charlton Athletic

26 January 2003 4	Fulham	3–0	Charlton Athletic	Fulham, London
	Malbranque  59', 66' (pen.), 87' (pen.)	(Report)	Fish  86'	Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 12,203 Referee: Paul Durkin

Fulham v Burnley

16 February 2003 5	Fulham	1–1	Burnley	Fulham, London
	Malbranque  45'	Report	Moore  4'	Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 13,062 Referee: Graham Poll

Burnley v Fulham

26 February 2002 5R	Burnley	3–0	Fulham	Burnley, Lancashire
	Taylor  27' Moore  35' Diallo  52'	Report	Davis  49'	Stadium: Turf Moor Attendance: 11,635 Referee: Phil Dowd

UEFA Intertoto Cup

Fulham v Haka

6 July 2002 2 Leg 1	Fulham	0–0	Haka	London, England
15:00		Report		Stadium: Craven Cottage Attendance: 7,908 Referee: Ladislav Gadosi

Haka v Fulham

14 July 2002 2 Leg 2	Haka	1–1	Fulham	Valkeakoski, Finland
19:00	Ristilä  66'	Report	Marlet  47'	Stadium: Tehtaan Kenttä Attendance: 3,500 Referee: Emil Laursen

Fulham v Egaleo

20 July 2002 3 Leg 1	Fulham	1–0	Egaleo	London, England
17:00	Saha  77'	Report		Stadium: Craven Cottage Attendance: 5,199 Referee: Ver Eecke

Egaleo v Fulham

27 July 2002 3 Leg 2	Egaleo	1–1	Fulham	Athens, Greece
21:00	Chloros  24'	Report	Marlet  34'	Stadium: Apostolos Nikolaidis Stadium Attendance: 2,500 Referee: Ruud Bossen

Fulham v Sochaux

31 July 2002 Semi-final Leg 1	Fulham	1–0	Sochaux	London, England
19:45	Davis  90+2'	Report		Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 4,717 Referee: Sorin Corpodean

Sochaux v Fulham

7 August 2002 Semi-final Leg 2	Sochaux	0–2	Fulham	Montbéliard, France
21:30		Report	Legwinski  64' Hayles  72'	Stadium: Stade Auguste Bonal Attendance: 11,000 Referee: Franz-Xaver Wack

Bologna v Fulham

13 August 2002 Final Leg 1	Bologna	2–2	Fulham	Bologna, Italy
20:30	Signori  53' (pen.), pen.'	Report	Inamoto  63' Legwinski  87'	Stadium: Stadio Renato Dall'Ara Attendance: 23,620 Referee: Eduardo Iturralde González

Fulham v Bologna

27 August 2002 Final Leg 2	Fulham	3–1	Bologna	London, England
19:30	Inamoto  12', 47', 50'	Report	Locatelli  34'	Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 13,756 Referee: Massimo Busacca

UEFA Cup

Hajduk Split v Fulham

19 September 2002 1 Leg 1	Hajduk Split	0–1	Fulham	Split, Croatia
		Report	Malbranque  50'	Stadium: Poljud Stadium Attendance: 25,000 Referee: Fernando Carmona Mendez

Fulham v Hajduk Split

3 October 2002 1 Leg 2	Fulham	2–2	Hajduk Split	London, England
	Marlet  24' Malbranque  44'	(Report)		Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 18,500 Referee: Stefano Farina

Dinamo Zagreb v Fulham

31 October 2002 2 Leg 1	Dinamo Zagreb	0–3	Fulham	Zagreb, Croatia
	Polovanec , 32'	Report	Boa Morte  35' Marlet  59' Hayles  77'	Stadium: Maksimir Stadium Attendance: 30,000 Referee: Eduardo Iturralde González

Fulham v Dinamo Zagreb

14 November 2002 2 Leg 2	Fulham	2–1	Dinamo Zagreb	London, England
	Malbranque  89' Boa Morte  90'	Report	Olić  52'	Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 7,700 Referee: Laurent Duhamel

Hertha BSC v Fulham

26 November 2002 3 Leg 1	Hertha BSC	2–1	Fulham	Berlin, Germany
	Beinlich  26' Sava  68' (o.g.)	Report	Marlet  53'	Stadium: Olympiastadion Attendance: 14,477 Referee: Dick Van Egmond

Fulham v Hertha BSC

12 December 2002 3 Leg 2	Fulham	0–0	Hertha BSC	London, England
		Report		Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 15,161 Referee: Pierluigi Collina

References

1. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/f/fulham/2957495.stm
2. 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.
3. 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.
4. 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.
5. 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.

External links

• Fulham's official website
• Fulham on BBC Sport