1997–98 Crystal Palace F.C. season

During the 1997–98 English football season, Crystal Palace competed in the FA Premier League.

Crystal Palace

1997–98 season
Chairman	Ron Noades
Manager	Steve Coppell (until 13 March) Attilio Lombardo (from 13 March to 29 April) Ray Lewington (from 29 April)
Stadium	Selhurst Park
Premiership	20th (relegated)
FA Cup	Fifth round
League Cup	Second round
Top goalscorer	League: Shipperley (7) All: Dyer (8)
Highest home attendance	26,186 (vs. Chelsea, 13 September)
Lowest home attendance	14,410 (vs. Wimbledon, 9 February)
Average home league attendance	21,983
Home colours

Season summary

Experienced Italian midfielder Attilio Lombardo was one of the most famous names to wear a Palace shirt when he arrived at Selhurst Park early in the season, and his influential form looked to have secured Palace's top flight status as they stood 10th as late as November. Within the first 14 games of the season, they were enjoying reasonable mid-table form, losing and winning five each and drawing four games; all of their wins at the time were away from home. Their 1-0 win at Tottenham Hotspur cumulated their good form though and from then on, they would struggle. Lombardo's fellow countryman Michele Padovano was also signed, but proved to be a complete flop, as did Swedish forward Tomas Brolin, and Palace were soon deep in relegation trouble.

With a takeover by computer tycoon Mark Goldberg on the horizon, Steve Coppell relinquished his managerial duties to become Director of Football.[1] Lombardo and Brolin became joint player-managers on a short-term contract,[2] but were unable to stave off relegation, which was confirmed on 27 April after a 3-0 defeat to Manchester United and they were soon on their way out of the club and Ray Lewington was appointed for the final three league games of the season. It was a season to forget for the club which saw them win just two home league games all season and it took them a staggering eight months to record their first home league win: against Derby County in April.

When the Goldberg takeover was completed, Terry Venables returned to the manager's seat after an eventful 18 years away, with the new chairman boasting that Palace would be a European force by 2003.[3]

Kit

Palace retained the previous season's home kit, manufactured by German company Adidas and sponsored by TDK.

Final league table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
16	Sheffield Wednesday	38	12	8	18	52	67	−15	44
17	Everton	38	9	13	16	41	56	−15	40
18	Bolton Wanderers (R)	38	9	13	16	41	61	−20	40	Relegation to the Football League First Division
19	Barnsley (R)	38	10	5	23	37	82	−45	35
20	Crystal Palace (R)	38	8	9	21	37	71	−34	33	Qualification for the Intertoto Cup third round[lower-alpha 1] Relegation to the Football League First Division

Source: Premier League
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(R) Relegated.
Notes:

1. Crystal Palace qualified for the 1998 Intertoto Cup as they were the only English team who applied.

Results summary

Overall								Home						Away
Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
38	8	9	21	37	71	−34	33	2	5	12	15	39	−24	6	4	9	22	32	−10

Source: 1997-98 FA Premier League table

Results by round

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38
Ground	A	H	A	A	H	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	A	A	H	H	A	H	H	A	H	H
Result	W	L	W	L	L	L	W	D	D	L	D	W	D	W	L	L	D	L	D	D	D	L	L	L	L	L	L	L	L	W	L	L	L	W	L	L	D	W
Position	2	9	5	8	9	13	10	9	11	13	14	12	12	10	10	12	12	15	13	13	14	17	17	17	18	19	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	20

Source: 11v11.com: 1997-98 Crystal Palace results
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Results

Crystal Palace's score comes first[4]

Legend

Win

Draw

Loss

FA Premier League

Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorers
9 August 1997	Everton	A	2–1	35,716	Lombardo, Dyer (pen)
12 August 1997	Barnsley	H	0–1	21,547
23 August 1997	Leeds United	A	2–0	29,076	Warhurst, Lombardo
27 August 1997	Southampton	A	0–1	15,032
30 August 1997	Blackburn Rovers	H	1–2	20,849	Dyer
13 September 1997	Chelsea	H	0–3	26,186
20 September 1997	Wimbledon	A	1–0	16,747	Lombardo
24 September 1997	Coventry City	A	1–1	15,900	Fullarton
27 September 1997	Bolton Wanderers	H	2–2	17,134	Warhurst, Gordon
4 October 1997	Manchester United	A	0–2	55,143
18 October 1997	Arsenal	H	0–0	26,180
25 October 1997	Sheffield Wednesday	A	3–1	22,072	Hreidarsson, Rodger, Shipperley
8 November 1997	Aston Villa	H	1–1	21,097	Shipperley
24 November 1997	Tottenham Hotspur	A	1–0	25,634	Shipperley
29 November 1997	Newcastle United	H	1–2	26,085	Shipperley
3 December 1997	West Ham United	A	1–4	23,335	Shipperley
6 December 1997	Leicester City	A	1–1	19,191	Padovano
13 December 1997	Liverpool	H	0–3	25,790
20 December 1997	Derby County	A	0–0	26,590
26 December 1997	Southampton	H	1–1	22,853	Shipperley
28 December 1997	Blackburn Rovers	A	2–2	23,872	Dyer, Warhurst
10 January 1998	Everton	H	1–3	23,311	Dyer (pen)
17 January 1998	Barnsley	A	0–1	17,819
31 January 1998	Leeds United	H	0–2	25,248
9 February 1998	Wimbledon	H	0–3	14,410
21 February 1998	Arsenal	A	0–1	38,094
28 February 1998	Coventry City	H	0–3	21,810
11 March 1998	Chelsea	A	2–6	31,917	Hreidarsson, Bent
14 March 1998	Aston Villa	A	1–3	33,781	Jansen
18 March 1998	Newcastle United	A	2–1	36,565	Lombardo, Jansen
28 March 1998	Tottenham Hotspur	H	1–3	26,116	Shipperley
11 April 1998	Leicester City	H	0–3	18,771
13 April 1998	Liverpool	A	1–2	43,007	Bent
18 April 1998	Derby County	H	3–1	18,101	Jansen, Ćurčić, Bent
27 April 1998	Manchester United	H	0–3	26,180
2 May 1998	Bolton Wanderers	A	2–5	24,449	Gordon, Bent
5 May 1998	West Ham United	H	3–3	19,129	Bent, Rodger, Lombardo
10 May 1998	Sheffield Wednesday	H	1–0	16,876	Morrison

FA Cup

Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Goalscorers
R3	3 January 1998	Scunthorpe United	H	2–0	11,624	Emblen (2)
R4	24 January 1998	Leicester City	H	3–0	15,489	Dyer (3)
R5	15 February 1998	Arsenal	A	0–0	37,164
R5R	25 February 1998	Arsenal	H	1–2	15,674	Dyer

League Cup

Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Goalscorers
R2 1st Leg	16 September 1997	Hull City	A	0–1	9,323
R2 2nd Leg	30 September 1997	Hull City	H	2–1 (lost on away goals)	6,407	Veart, Ndah

First-team squad

Squad at end of season[5]

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

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK  ENG Kevin Miller 2 DF  ENG Marc Edworthy 3 DF  ENG Dean Gordon 4 MF  YUG Saša Ćurčić 5 DF  ENG Dave Tuttle 6 DF  ENG Andy Linighan (captain) 7 MF  ITA Attilio Lombardo 8 DF  ENG Paul Warhurst 9 FW  ENG Neil Shipperley 10 FW  ENG Bruce Dyer[notes 1] 11 FW  ITA Michele Padovano 12 FW  SWE Tomas Brolin 13 GK  ENG Carlo Nash 14 MF  ENG Simon Rodger

No. Pos. Nation Player 15 FW  ENG Marcus Bent 16 MF  IRL Rob Quinn[notes 2] 17 DF  ENG Jamie Smith 18 DF  FRA Valérien Ismaël 20 FW  ENG Leon McKenzie 21 DF  ENG Sagi Burton[notes 3] 22 DF  ISL Hermann Hreiðarsson 26 MF  SCO Jamie Fullarton 27 FW  ENG Matt Jansen 32 DF  IRL Danny Boxall[notes 4] 34 MF  IRL Rory Ginty 35 FW  ENG Clinton Morrison[notes 5] 40 MF  IRL Tony Folan[notes 6]

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. Pos. Nation Player 4 MF  ENG Andy Roberts (to Wimbledon) 11 FW  SCO Dougie Freedman (to Wolves) 12 FW  AUS Carl Veart (to Millwall) 15 DF  WAL Gareth Davies[notes 7] (to Reading) 17 DF  AUS Kevin Muscat[notes 8] (to Wolves) 18 FW  ENG George Ndah[notes 9] (to Swindon Town) 24 MF  ENG Neil Emblen (to Wolves)

No. Pos. Nation Player 27 MF  ISR Itzik Zohar (to Maccabi Haifa) 33 DF  ENG Dean Wordsworth (to Stevenage Borough) 33 MF  ITA Ivano Bonetti (to Genoa) 33 MF  ITA Patrizio Billio (on loan from AC Milan) 34 MF  IRL Tony Scully (to Manchester City) — FW  ENG Jason Harris (to Leyton Orient)

Reserve squad

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

No. Pos. Nation Player 19 MF  ENG Darren Pitcher 23 MF  ENG Hayden Mullins 25 GK  RSA Gareth Ormshaw 28 MF  SCO Steven Thomson 29 FW  ENG David Stevens 30 MF  NIR Gareth Graham 36 FW  WAL Andy Martin

No. Pos. Nation Player 37 DF  IRL Richard Kennedy 38 DF  ENG Jimmy Hibburt 41 DF  NIR Wayne Carlisle 42 MF  IRL Jonathan Clarke — DF  ENG David Woozley — FW  ENG Richard Harris

Transfers

In

Date	Pos	Name	From	Fee
12 June 1997	GK	Kevin Miller	Watford	£1,550,000
1 August 1997	MF	Attilio Lombardo	Juventus	£1,600,000
1 August 1997	GK	Gareth Ormshaw	Ramblers	Free transfer
1 August 1997	DF	Paul Warhurst	Blackburn Rovers	Signed
1 August 1997	DF	Hermann Hreiðarsson	ÍBV	Unknown
1 August 1997	MF	Jamie Fullarton	SC Bastia	Free transfer
12 August 1997	MF	Neil Emblen	Wolverhampton Wanderers	£2,000,000
19 August 1997	MF	Itzik Zohar	Beitar Jerusalem	£1,200,000
21 October 1997	DF	Jamie Smith	Wolverhampton Wanderers	£1,000,000
12 November 1997	FW	Michele Padovano	Juventus	£1,700,000
8 January 1998	FW	Marcus Bent	Brentford	£300,000
15 January 1998	DF	Valérien Ismaël	Strasbourg	£2,750,000
10 February 1998	FW	Matt Jansen	Carlisle United	£1,000,000
26 March 1998	MF	Saša Ćurčić	Aston Villa	£1,000,000

Out

Date	Pos	Name	To	Fee
15 July 1997	MF	Ray Houghton	Reading	Free transfer
21 July 1997	MF	David Hopkin	Leeds United	£3,250,000
1 August 1997	DF	Andy Cyrus	Exeter City	Free transfer
1 August 1997	GK	Chris Day	Watford	Swap
10 August 1997	MF	Tony Scully	Manchester City	£200,000
26 September 1997	FW	Jason Harris	Leyton Orient	£25,000
2 October 1997	DF	Dean Wordsworth	Bromley	Free transfer
21 October 1997	DF	Kevin Muscat	Wolverhampton Wanderers	£200,000
21 October 1997	FW	Dougie Freedman	Wolverhampton Wanderers	£800,000
30 October 1997	MF	Ivano Bonetti	Genoa	Free transfer
21 November 1997	FW	George Ndah	Swindon Town	£500,000
11 December 1997	FW	Carl Veart	Millwall	£100,000
9 March 1998	MF	Andy Roberts	Wimbledon	£2,000,000
26 March 1998	MF	Neil Emblen	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Signed

Transfers in: £14,100,000

Transfers out: £7,075,000

Total spending: £7,025,000

Statistics

Appearances and goals

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		Premier League		FA Cup		League Cup
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Goalkeepers
1	GK		Kevin Miller	44	0	38	0	4	0	2	0
Defenders
2	DF		Marc Edworthy	39	0	33+1	0	4	0	1	0
3	DF		Dean Gordon	43	2	36+1	2	4	0	2	0
5	DF		Dave Tuttle	10	0	8+1	0	0	0	1	0
6	DF		Andy Linighan	31	0	26	0	2+1	0	2	0
8	DF		Paul Warhurst	24	3	22	3	1	0	1	0
17	DF		Jamie Smith	22	0	16+2	0	4	0	0	0
18	DF		Valérien Ismaël	16	0	13	0	3	0	0	0
21	DF		Sagi Burton	3	0	1+1	0	0+1	0	0	0
22	DF		Hermann Hreiðarsson	36	2	26+4	2	4	0	2	0
32	DF		Danny Boxall	2	0	0+1	0	0	0	1	0
Midfielders
4	MF		Saša Ćurčić	8	1	6+2	1	0	0	0	0
7	MF		Attilio Lombardo	24	5	21+3	5	0	0	0	0
12	MF		Tomas Brolin	16	0	13	0	3	0	0	0
14	MF		Simon Rodger	33	2	27+2	2	3	0	0+1	0
16	MF		Rob Quinn	1	0	0+1	0	0	0	0	0
26	MF		Jamie Fullarton	30	1	19+6	1	3	0	2	0
34	MF		Rory Ginty	6	0	2+3	0	0+1	0	0	0
40	MF		Tony Folan	2	0	0+1	0	0	0	0+1	0
Forwards
9	FW		Neil Shipperley	28	7	17+9	7	0	0	2	0
10	FW		Bruce Dyer	29	8	21+3	4	4	4	0+1	0
11	FW		Michele Padovano	10	1	8+2	1	0	0	0	0
15	FW		Marcus Bent	16	5	10+6	5	0	0	0	0
20	FW		Leon McKenzie	4	0	0+3	0	0+1	0	0	0
27	FW		Matt Jansen	8	3	5+3	3	0	0	0	0
35	FW		Clinton Morrison	1	1	0+1	1	0	0	0	0
Players transferred out during the season
4	MF		Andy Roberts	30	0	25	0	4	0	1	0
11	FW		Dougie Freedman	9	0	2+5	0	0	0	1+1	0
12	FW		Carl Veart	8	1	1+5	0	0	0	1+1	1
15	DF		Gareth Davies	1	0	0+1	0	0	0	0	0
17	DF		Kevin Muscat	10	0	9	0	0	0	1	0
18	FW		George Ndah	4	1	2+1	0	0	0	0+1	1
24	MF		Neil Emblen	15	2	8+5	0	1+1	2	0	0
27	MF		Itzik Zohar	8	0	2+4	0	0	0	2	0
33	MF		Patricio Billio	3	0	1+2	0	0	0	0	0
33	MF		Ivano Bonetti	2	0	0+2	0	0	0	0	0

Last updated: 11 May 1998
Source: Competitions

Notes

1. Dyer was born in Redbridge, England, and represented them at U-21 level, but also qualified to represent Montserrat internationally and would make his international debut for Montserrat in September 2007.
2. Quinn was born in London, England, but also qualified to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally and has represented them at U-21 and B level.
3. Burton was born in Birmingham, England, but also qualified to represent Saint Kitts and Nevis internationally and would make his international debut for Saint Kitts and Nevis in June 2004.
4. Boxall was born in Croydon, England, but also qualified to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally and has represented them at U-21 level.
5. Morrison was born in Wandsworth, England, but also qualified to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally through his grandmother and would make his international debut for the Republic of Ireland in August 2001.
6. Folan was born in Lewisham, England, but also qualified to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally and has represented them at U-17, U-19 and U-21 level.
7. Davies was born in Hereford, England, but was raised in Wales and has represented them at U-21 level.
8. Muscat was born in Crawley, England, but also qualified to represent Australia internationally and represented them at U-20 and U-23 level before making his international debut for Australia in September 1994.
9. Ndah was born in Southwark, England, but also qualified to represent Nigeria internationally and was called up by Nigeria in 1999, but was prevented from playing due to injury.

References

1. "Palace target Venables as Coppell steps aside". BBC News. 25 February 1998. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
2. "Lombardo rules at Palace". BBC News. 13 March 1998. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
3. Haylett, Trevor (10 June 1998). "Football: Venables launches new era at Palace". The Independent. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
4. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 11 June 2015. Retrieved 12 September 2015.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
5. http://www.footballsquads.co.uk/eng/1997-1998/faprem/cpalace.htm