2001 Football League Cup final

April 2014 April 2014 2001 Football League Cup final 2001 Football League Cup Final programme.jpg 200 Match programme cover 2000–01 Football League Cup Birmingham City 1 Liverpool 1 After extra time Liverpool won 5–4 on penalties 25 February 2001 Millennium Stadium Cardiff Robbie Fowler (Liverpool) David Elleray (Harrow) 73,500 2000 2002 The 2001 Football League Cup final was a football match played between Birmingham City and Liverpool on 25 February 2001 at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff. It was the final match of the 2000–01 Football League Cup, the 41st season of the Football League Cup, a football competition for the 92 teams in the Premier League and the English Football League. Liverpool were appearing in their eighth final; they had previously won six and lost two, while Birmingham were there for the second time. During their last appearance, they had previously beaten local rivals Aston Villa in the 1963 final. As Birmingham were in the Football League and outside of the top-flight Premier League, they played two more rounds than Liverpool, who received a bye in the first and second rounds. Therefore, Birmingham progressed through six rounds to reach the final, whereas Liverpool progressed through four. The majority of Liverpool's matches were comfortable victories. They won all their ties by at least three goals except for their third round match with Chelsea, which they won 2–1. Birmingham matches ranged from comfortable victories to close affairs. They won their first round tie with Southend United 5–0, while their fourth round victory over Newcastle United was 2–1. Liverpool won the match 5–4 on penalties after 90 minutes of normal time and 30 minutes of extra time could not split the two sides.Blues shot down as Liverpool lift cup https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/worthington_cup/1187654.stm BBC Sport 25 February 2001 8 May 2012 Liverpool opened the scoring with a 25-yard long-range shot from Robbie Fowler in the 30th minute and appeared to be heading for a win in normal time until Birmingham equalised in injury-time with a penalty from Darren Purse, after Martin O'Connor was brought down by Stéphane Henchoz. Birmingham thought they had a valid claim for a second penalty in extra time, only for referee David Elleray to turn it down, taking the game to a penalty shoot-out. It was the first such penalty shoot-out in a major English domestic cup final (excluding Charity Shield matches). The victory was Liverpool's first major trophy in six years since they won the same competition back in 1995. The club would also go on to win the FA Cup and the UEFA Cup in a unique treble of trophies in 2001. Route to the final Birmingham City Round Opponents Score 1st Southend United (a) 5–0 Southend United (h) 0–0 2nd Wycombe Wanderers (a) 4–3 Wycombe Wanderers (h) 1–0 3rd Tottenham Hotspur (a)3–1 4th Newcastle United (h) 2–1 QF Sheffield Wednesday (h) 2–0 SF Ipswich Town (a) 0–1 Ipswich Town (h) 4–1 As Birmingham were in the First Division, they entered the competition in the first round. They were drawn against Southend United. Birmingham won the first leg at Southend's home ground Roots Hall 5–0, courtesy of goals from Nicky Eaden, Marcelo, Michael Johnson, Dele Adebola and Bryan Hughes. The second leg at Birmingham's home ground, St Andrew's finished 0–0, with Birmingham progressing to the second round with a 5–0 aggregate victory.Haylett 2001 29 Second Division team Wycombe Wanderers were the opposition in the second round. Birmingham established a three-goal lead by the 24th minute, courtesy of an own goal by Paul McCarthy, with goals from Johnson and striker Geoff Horsfield. However, by the 86th minute Wycombe had levelled the match with goals from Andy Rammell, Andy Baird and Jamie Bates. Parity was short-lived, as Birmingham scored a minute later through striker Andrew Johnson to win the first leg 4–3.https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/worthington_cup/930765.stm Wycombe 3–4 Birmingham BBC Sport 19 September 2000 8 September 2015 Birmingham won the second leg at St Andrew's 1–0, courtesy of a Peter Ndlovu goal to win the tie 5–3 on aggregate.Haylett 2001 29 Premier League team Tottenham Hotspur were the opposition in the third round. Birmingham took the lead in the match held at Tottenham's home ground, White Hart Lane, in the 15th minute when Adebola scored. He scored again in the 28th minute and a goal from Mark Burchill in the 45th minute gave Birmingham a 3–0 lead at half-time. Tottenham pulled a goal back through a penalty kick scored by Darren Anderton, but they were unable to level the match and Birmingham won 3–1.https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/worthington_cup/999084.stm Spurs 1–3 Birmingham BBC Sport 31 October 2000 8 September 2015 They faced Premier League team Newcastle United in the fourth round, with the match held at St Andrew's. Newcastle took the lead in the 14th minute when Kieron Dyer scored, but Birmingham equalised in the 31st minute when Adebola scored. The match remained level until the final minute when Michael Johnson scored to give Birmingham a 2–1 victory.https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/worthington_cup/1045312.stm Birmingham topple Newcastle 29 November 2000 8 September 2015 Fellow First Division team Sheffield Wednesday were the opposition in the quarter-finals. Birmingham won the match 2–0, courtesy of goals from Danny Sonner and Adebola.Haylett 2001 29 Birmingham were drawn against Premier League team Ipswich Town in the semi-finals. The first leg held at Ipswich's home ground, Portman Road, was won by the home side. A Marcus Stewart penalty secured a 1–0 victory.https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/worthington_cup/1108765.stm Clockwatch: Ipswich 1–0 Birmingham BBC Sport 9 January 2001 8 September 2001 Birmingham took the lead in the second leg at St Andrew's when Horsfield scored in the 43rd minute. He scored again in the 55th minute, but Ipswich striker James Scowcroft scored a minute later. No further goals were scored up to full-time with the score at 2–1, but with the tie level at 2–2, it went to extra-time. Goals from Martin Grainger and Andrew Johnson secured a 4–1 victory and a 4–2 aggregate win to send Birmingham into the final.https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/worthington_cup/1144836.stm Birmingham storm into final BBC Sport 31 January 2001 8 September 2015 Liverpool Round Opponents Score 3rd Chelsea (h) 2–1 4th Stoke City (a) 8–0 QF Fulham (h) 3–0 SF Crystal Palace (a) 1–2 Crystal Palace (h) 5–0 As Liverpool were competing in the Premier League, they entered the competition in the third round and were drawn against fellow Premier League team Chelsea. Liverpool took the lead in the match held at their home ground, Anfield when midfielder Danny Murphy scored. Chelsea striker Gianfranco Zola equalised soon afterwards. Neither side was able to score a winning goal before full-time and the match went to extra time. Despite striker Emile Heskey being sent off for a clash with Winston Bogarde, striker Robbie Fowler scored to give Liverpool a 2–1 victory.https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/worthington_cup/1002718.stm Liverpool 2–1 Chelsea (aet) BBC Sport 1 November 2000 8 September 2015 Liverpool were drawn against Second Division side Stoke City in the fourth round. The match held at Stoke's home ground, the Britannia Stadium resulted in an eight-goal victory for Liverpool. Fowler scored a hat-trick, with Murphy, Christian Ziege, Vladimír Šmicer, Nick Barmby and Sami Hyypiä scoring in the victory.https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/worthington_cup/1045418.stm Liverpool blast eight at Stoke BBC Sport 29 November 2000 8 September 2015 Liverpool's opponents in the quarter-finals were First Division team Fulham. The match remained goalless throughout 90 minutes, with no goals scored until extra-time when Michael Owen, Šmicer and Barmby scored to secure a 3–0 victory.https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/worthington_cup/1069468.stm Clockwatch: Liverpool 3–0 Fulham BBC Sport 13 December 2000 8 September 2015 First Division team Crystal Palace were Liverpool's opposition in the semi-finals. The first leg at Palace's home ground, Selhurst Park, was won 2–1 by the home side. Goals from Andrejs Rubins and Clinton Morrison, despite a late goal by Šmicer secured the victory.https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/worthington_cup/1108439.stm Palace leave Liverpool red-faced BBC Sport 10 January 2001 8 September 2015 Liverpool recovered in the second leg, winning 5–0. Two goals from Murphy, with goals for Šmicer, Biscan and Fowler secured a 5–0 victory, which meant they won the tie 6–2 on aggregate to progress to the final.https://www.theguardian.com/football/2001/jan/24/newsstory.sport4 Liverpool 5–0 Crystal Palace The Guardian 24 January 2001 8 September 2015 Matt Biggs Match Background thumb|The Millennium Stadium in Cardiff was chosen to host the final due to the redevelopment of the traditional venue, Wembley Stadium. In October 2000, Wembley Stadium, the final's traditional venue, was closed in anticipation of major redevelopment.Timeline: The new Wembley https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/fa_cup/1326723.stm BBC Sport 21 February 2006 26 February 2016 The decision was made to stage the final at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. The chief executive of the Football League, David Burns, stated: "The stadium was always our first choice. I am absolutely certain it will provide a first-class venue for our games."FA opts for Cardiff final http://www.scotsman.com/sport/football/fa-opts-for-cardiff-final-1-641588 The Scotsman 5 January 2001 25 May 2020 Liverpool were appearing in their eighth final they had won five (1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1995) and lost two (1978, 1987). This was Birmingham's second appearance in the final. They beat local rivals Aston Villa 3–1 over two legs in the 1963 final. The sides had previously met three times in the competition, Liverpool won the first match in the 1980–81 Football League Cup 3–1, while their fourth round tie in the 1983–84 Football League Cup, resulted in a 3–0 victory for Liverpool in a replay after the original match finished 1–1. Both occasions resulted in Liverpool going on to win the competition.https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/2999202/Worthington-Cup-Final-Liverpool-v-Birmingham-City.html Worthington Cup Final: Liverpool v Birmingham City The Daily Telegraph 19 February 2001 9 September 2015 John Ley Cardiff's Millennium Stadium was hosting the final for the first time; it took over as the venue for the event while the new Wembley Stadium underwent a six-year renovation between 2001 and 2006.https://www.theguardian.com/football/2001/feb/24/newsstory.sport2 There's nothing like a knockout The Guardian 24 February 2001 10 September 2015 David Lacey Liverpool's last match before the final was the second leg tie in the fourth round of the 2000–01 UEFA Cup against Italian team Roma. Liverpool lost the match 1–0, but progressed to the quarter-finals, as a result of their 2–0 victory in the first leg.https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/uefa_cup/1183479.stm Liverpool survive Roma onslaught BBC Sport 22 February 2001 9 September 2015 Birmingham faced Preston North End in the First Division before the final. They won the match 2–0 courtesy of goals from Grainger and Andrew Johnson. After the victory, Birmingham manager Trevor Francis stated that his main aim for the season was to win promotion to the Premier League: "By five o'clock on Sunday we will have either won or lost the final, but there will still be 45 points to play for in the Nationwide First Division."https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_div_1/1181904.stm Johnson earns Francis plaudits BBC Sport 21 February 2001 9 September 2015 Liverpool manager Gérard Houllier was eager to win his first trophy at the club: "We always take each competition seriously, we have a duty to ourselves and to our supporters. I have made it clear throughout this run that when there is a place in Europe on offer it is important to try and get it. I have always stressed that we want to get into the Champions League this season. But I believe our chances of doing that will improve if we win the Worthington Cup. If that were to happen, we would be able to concentrate on our remaining league games under less pressure, which would be a huge help."Haylett 2001 44 Striker Fowler was delighted to be in the final, despite not being held at Wembley: "It doesn't matter that it's not at Wembley, it could be in my mate's back garden. It's a long time since we qualified for a final, we're just pleased to have one after all this time. The result will be so important, hopefully it will be a starting point for us."Haylett 2001 47 Francis was pleasantly surprised that Birmingham had reached the final: "It has always been my ambition to take this club to the Premiership, getting to a cup final is not something I ever thought would happen. When you enter a competition as a First Division team, you hope for a good run but you don't realistically think you can get to the final. So to actually succeed in getting this far, becoming only the second Birmingham manager to do so, has given me unbelievable pleasure, it really has."Haylett 2001 22 Defender Grainger was delighted to have reached the final: "Some players never get through to a major final in their careers and you could see that a few of our lads were choked up immediately after the semi-final when they realised what we had achieved. For most of us the final will probably be the biggest game we will ever face. We've got a chance of winning a trophy and will give it our best shot."Haylett 2001 25 Details 25 February 2001 15:00 GMT Birmingham City 1–1 (a.e.t.) Report Liverpool Purse 90 pen. Fowler 30 Millennium Stadium, Cardiff 73,500 David Elleray (London) McAllister Barmby Ziege Hamann Fowler Carragher 4–5 Grainger Purse Marcelo Lazaridis Hughes A. Johnson _collarwhite 0000FF 0000FF 0000FF FFFFFF 0000FF Birmingham City _whiteline _collar _whiteline FF0000 FF0000 FF0000 FF0000 FF0000 Liverpool GK 1 ENG Ian BennettRB 2 ENG Nicky EadenCB 5 ENG Darren PurseCB 17JAM Michael JohnsonLB 3 ENG Martin GraingerRM 7 NIR Jon McCarthyCM 12CAY Martin O'Connor (c)CM 32NIR Danny Sonner 71LM 11AUS Stan LazaridisCF 24NGA Dele Adebola 45CF 9 ENG Geoff Horsfield 80Substitutes:GK 13ENG Kevin PooleDF 6 ENG David HoldsworthMF 10ENG Bryan Hughes 71FW 8 BRA Marcelo 80FW 19ENG Andrew Johnson 45Manager:ENG Trevor Francis300px GK 1 NED Sander WesterveldRB 6 GER Markus Babbel CB 2 SUI Stéphane Henchoz 109CB 12FIN Sami HyypiäLB 23ENG Jamie CarragherRM 17ENG Steven Gerrard 78CM 16GER Dietmar Hamann 108CM 25CRO Igor Bišćan 96 LM 7 CZE Vladimír Šmicer 83CF 8 ENG Emile HeskeyCF 9 ENG Robbie Fowler (c)Substitutes:GK 19FRA Pegguy ArphexadDF 3 GER Christian Ziege 96MF 20ENG Nick Barmby 83MF 21SCO Gary McAllister 78FW 10ENG Michael Owen Manager:FRA Gérard Houllier Man of the match Robbie Fowler (Liverpool)Alan Hardaker Trophy Winners http://www.football-league.co.uk/page/AlanHardakerTrophyWinners/0,,10794~1354852,00.html The Football League 26 February 2012 8 May 2012 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20120421013843/http://www.football-league.co.uk/page/AlanHardakerTrophyWinners/0%2C%2C10794~1354852%2C00.html 21 April 2012 Match officialsHaylett 2001 43 Assistant referees: K. Pike (Dorset) P. R. Sharp (Hertfordshire) Fourth official: Paul Danson (Leicestershire and Rutland)Match rules 90 minutes 30 minutes of extra-time if necessary Penalty shoot-out if scores still level Five named substitutes, of which up to three may be used Footnotes Worthington Cup Final: Official Matchday Programme The Football League Preston 2001 1-903381-09-6 Trevor Haylett References External links Match review at soccerbase.com https://web.archive.org/web/20050522054858/http://www.soccerbase.com/results3.sd?gameid=301858 22 May 2005 LFC History Match Report Category:2000–01 in English men's football cups Category:EFL Cup seasons League Cup final 2001 League Cup final 2001 Category:EFL Cup finals Category:2000s in Cardiff Category:February 2001 sports events in the United Kingdom Category:Football finals in Wales Category:Football competitions in Cardiff