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Southampton F.C.

1999–2000 season
Chairman	Rupert Lowe
Manager	Dave Jones (until 27 January 2000) Glenn Hoddle (from 28 January 2000)
Stadium	The Dell
FA Premier League	15th
FA Cup	Fourth round
League Cup	Fourth round
Top goalscorer	League: Marians Pahars (13) All: Marians Pahars (13)
Highest home attendance	15,257 v West Ham United (5 February 2000)
Lowest home attendance	10,960 v Manchester City (21 September 1999)
Average home league attendance	15,132
Biggest win	4–2 v Newcastle United (15 August 1999) 2–0 (multiple games)
Biggest defeat	0–5 v Newcastle United (16 January 2000) 2–7 v Tottenham Hotspur (11 March 2000)
Home colours Away colours
← 1998–992000–01 →

The 1999–2000 Southampton F.C. season was the club's 99th season of competitive football, their 30th (and 22nd consecutive) in the top flight of English football, and their eighth in the FA Premier League. After securing their Premier League survival on the final day of the previous season, the Saints fared slightly better in 1999–2000 as the club finished 15th in the table, eight points above the relegation zone. Outside the league, they reached the fourth round of both the FA Cup and the League Cup. 1999–2000 was Southampton's last season to feature Dave Jones as manager – he was suspended in January 2000 whilst facing charges of child abuse in a previous job, with Glenn Hoddle taking his place temporarily. Although the case against Jones was dismissed, Hoddle remained in charge after the season ended.

After barely retaining their top-flight status the year before, Southampton made two key signings in the summer of 1999, bringing in centre-back Dean Richards and midfielder Trond Egil Soltvedt. They also re-signed striker Kevin Davies, who returned from Blackburn Rovers in exchange for Egil Østenstad, the previous season's top scorer. Other new arrivals throughout the season included Portuguese winger Luís Boa Morte, Norwegian midfielder Jo Tessem, Latvian midfielder Imants Bleidelis, and Moroccan defender Tahar El Khalej. The club picked up regular victories throughout the campaign, remaining clear of the bottom three of the league table for the whole year. Their form was slightly better under Hoddle when he took over as manager, with their FA Premier League status for 2000–01 confirmed with five games left to play.

Outside the league, Southampton improved on their previous season's performances in both the FA Cup and the League Cup. In the former, the Saints made it past First Division promotion hopefuls Ipswich Town in the third round with a slender 1–0 victory. They were knocked out in the fourth round by the same scoreline at the hands of Aston Villa, who would end the season in the top six of the FA Premier League. In the League Cup, Southampton beat Manchester City in the second round, winning the second leg 4–3 after extra time following a goalless first leg. In the third round, they beat FA Premier League high-flyers Liverpool 2–1, thanks to a last-minute goal from Trond Egil Soltvedt. They were eliminated in the fourth round by Aston Villa, who beat the Saints 4–0 just over a month before also eliminating them from the FA Cup.

Southampton used 29 players during the 1999–2000 season and had 15 different goalscorers. Latvian striker Marians Pahars finished as the club's top goalscorer for the first time, scoring 13 goals in the FA Premier League – more than twice as many as the second-highest scorer, Kevin Davies, on six league goals. Dean Richards made the most appearances for the side during his first of two seasons at the club, playing in 40 of the team's 44 fixtures across all competitions, and was named Southampton F.C. Player of the Season at the end of the campaign. The average league attendance at The Dell during 1999–2000 was 15,132. The highest attendance was 15,257 against West Ham United in February (Hoddle's first game in charge) and the lowest was 10,960 against Manchester City in the League Cup in September.

Background and transfers

Having spent much of the previous season on loan at the club, in the summer of 1999 striker Steve Basham left Southampton to join Preston North End in the Second Division for a fee of £200,000. Danish goalkeeper Michael Stensgaard, who had joined from Copenhagen just seven months earlier, returned to his former club having failed to make an appearance for the Saints. The club's sole signings prior to the start of the league season were defenders Bruno Leal and Dean Richards, who arrived from Portuguese side Sporting and First Division side Wolverhampton Wanderers, respectively, on free transfers. The day after the second game in the league, Southampton signed Norwegian attacking midfielder Trond Egil Soltvedt from Coventry City for £300,000. He was followed just under a week later by striker Kevin Davies, who returned to the club having left for Blackburn Rovers the previous summer for a Saints record fee of £7.5 million; in exchange, Southampton's 1998–99 top scorer Egil Østenstad moved to the recently relegated Rovers. Ken Monkou left on the same day to join second-flight side Huddersfield Town on a free transfer, while Portuguese winger Luís Boa Morte arrived from Arsenal for a fee of £500,000 a week later.

Changes to the squad continued throughout much of the season. During September, the club sent Kevin Gibbens, Garry Monk, Andy Williams and Shayne Bradley all out on loans – all but Bradley to Stockport County, Bradley to Exeter City. Williams' loan was made permanent at the beginning of October. That same month, John Beresford was loaned out to Birmingham City, while Scott Marshall was loaned out – and eventually sold, for £250,000 – to Brentford. In November, Richard Dryden was sent out on loan to Stoke City, where he would spend much of the rest of the season over two separate spells. Also in November, the club made their sixth signing of the season when they brought in Norwegian midfielder Jo Tessem from Molde, against whom they'd played in pre-season, for £600,000. December saw the £50,000 sale of Scott Hiley to local rivals Portsmouth, as well as the cancellation of a season-long loan deal for Portuguese centre-back Marco Almeida, who had made just one substitute appearance for the club since arriving in July.

In January, striker David Hirst was forced to retire from professional football due to a knee injury he had picked up during the 1998–99 pre-season period. He subsequently joined Sheffield-based non-league side Brunsmeer Athletic. The next month, following extended negotiations to secure a work permit, Latvian winger Imants Bleidelis joined from Skonto – the same club from which the Saints signed Marians Pahars a year earlier – for £600,000. In March, striker Mark Hughes was offloaded to Everton on a free transfer after a disappointing 20-month stay at the club which delivered only two goals. Moroccan centre-back Tahar El Khalej joined from Benfica the same month, as did free midfielder Paul Hughes, who had played under Hoddle at Chelsea. Dryden started his second loan spell at Stoke City just before the transfer deadline, remaining until the end of the season.

Players transferred in

Name	Nationality	Pos.	Club	Date	Fee	Ref.
Bruno Leal	Portugal	DF	Sporting	8 July 1999	Free
Dean Richards	England	DF	Wolverhampton Wanderers	14 July 1999	Free
Trond Egil Soltvedt	Norway	MF	Coventry City	12 August 1999	£300,000
Kevin Davies	England	FW	Blackburn Rovers	17 August 1999	Exchange
Luís Boa Morte	Portugal	MF	Arsenal	25 August 1999	£500,000
Jo Tessem	Norway	MF	Molde	20 November 1999	£600,000
Imants Bleidelis	Latvia	MF	Skonto	2 February 2000	£600,000
Tahar El Khalej	Morocco	DF	Benfica	10 March 2000	£350,000
Paul Hughes	England	MF	Chelsea	23 March 2000	Free

Players transferred out

Name	Nationality	Pos.	Club	Date	Fee	Ref.
Stephen Jenkins	England	DF	Brentford	10 June 1999	Free
Steve Basham	England	FW	Preston North End	15 June 1999	£200,000
Michael Stensgaard	Denmark	GK	Copenhagen	1 July 1999	Free
Ken Monkou	Netherlands	DF	Huddersfield Town	17 August 1999	Free
Egil Østenstad	Norway	FW	Blackburn Rovers	17 August 1999	Exchange
Andy Williams	Wales	DF	Swindon Town	1 October 1999	£65,000
Scott Marshall	Scotland	DF	Brentford	29 October 1999	£250,000
Scott Hiley	England	DF	Portsmouth	3 December 1999	£50,000
David Hirst	England	FW	Brunsmeer Athletic	25 January 2000	Free
Mark Hughes	Wales	FW	Everton	14 March 2000	Free

Players loaned in

Name	Nationality	Pos.	Club	Date from	Date to	Ref.
Marco Almeida	Portugal	DF	Sporting	20 July 1999	9 December 1999

Players loaned out

Name	Nationality	Pos.	Club	Date from	Date to	Ref.
Kevin Gibbens	England	MF	Stockport County	9 September 1999	30 September 1999
Garry Monk	England	DF	Stockport County	9 September 1999	30 September 1999
Andy Williams	Wales	DF	Swindon Town	9 September 1999	30 September 1999
Shayne Bradley	England	FW	Exeter City	17 September 1999	3 November 1999
John Beresford	England	DF	Birmingham City	6 October 1999	13 October 1999
Scott Marshall	Scotland	DF	Brentford	15 October 1999	26 October 1999
Richard Dryden	England	DF	Stoke City	2 November 1999	7 December 1999
				22 March 2000	End of season

Pre-season friendlies

Ahead of the 1999–2000 season, Southampton played seven pre-season friendlies. In the first two, the club faced Isthmian League side Aldershot Town and Conference side Kingstonian on the same day in July, winning 3–2 and 2–1, respectively. A few days later, they faced three local sides as part of a short Norwegian tour, winning 3–1 against Førde, drawing 1–1 with Molde, and losing 1–3 to Viking. Another defeat in Europe, 0–1 at Belgian side Lierse, was followed by a 3–0 win over Second Division side Reading, with Matt Le Tissier and Egil Østenstad (two) on the scoresheet for the visitors.

13 July 1999 Friendly	Aldershot Town	2–3	Southampton	Aldershot
			Kachloul Le Tissier Wallace	Stadium: Recreation Ground

13 July 1999 Friendly	Kingstonian	1–2	Southampton	London
			Østenstad	Stadium: Kingsmeadow

17 July 1999 Friendly	Førde	1–3	Southampton	Førde, Norway
			M. Hughes Østenstad Pahars	Stadium: Førde Stadion

19 July 1999 Friendly	Molde	1–1	Southampton	Molde, Norway
			Kachloul	Stadium: Aker Stadion

24 July 1999 Friendly	Viking	3–1	Southampton	Stavanger, Norway
			Østenstad	Stadium: Stavanger Stadion

28 July 1999 Friendly	Lierse	1–0	Southampton	Lier, Belgium
				Stadium: Herman Vanderpoortenstadion

31 July 1999 Friendly	Reading	0–3	Southampton	Reading
			Le Tissier Østenstad	Stadium: Madejski Stadium

FA Premier League

For the first time since the 1988–89 season, Southampton won their opening league fixture at the start of the 1999–2000 campaign, beating Coventry City 1–0 at Highfield Road thanks to a late goal from the previous season's top scorer, Egil Østenstad. They lost their first home game 0–3 to Leeds United four days later, with Michael Bridges scoring a hat-trick. This was followed by a second win from three when the Saints beat Newcastle United 4–2 at home, with second-half goals from Hassan Kachloul (two), Marians Pahars and Mark Hughes sending the South Coast side to 6th in the league table. Following the sale of Østenstad to Blackburn Rovers in exchange for the return of Kevin Davies, Southampton lost 1–4 at Everton but beat Sheffield Wednesday 2–0 at home to see out August. The side sat 9th in the table at the end of the month.

The club's form dipped dramatically starting in September, when they lost 2–3 at Middlesbrough and 0–1 at home to Arsenal. In the first game, new winger Luís Boa Morte was sent off in his debut for the club, after which the hosts overturned Southampton's 2–1 lead to make the most of the advantage; in the second, the tie was decided by Thierry Henry's first league goal for the Gunners, scored when he beat another debutant, loanee Marco Almeida, who was ultimately making his only appearance for the club. Two 3–3 draws followed, against defending league champions Manchester United at Old Trafford and at home to Derby County, the latter of which saw the Saints "carelessly surrender" the win by conceding twice late on. The winless run continued through October, as Southampton lost 1–2 at Leicester City, before sacrificing another four points from winning positions when they drew 1–1 with both Liverpool and Wimbledon. A first win in eight games, a late 1–0 victory over Aston Villa, ensured that the side held their position at 14th place in the table.

Southampton saw out 1999 with another poor run of form, failing to pick up a win in their last seven games of the calendar year. The only point they picked up during this period was in a goalless draw at home to Coventry City at the beginning of December. The first two games after the win over Aston Villa saw the Saints ending with ten men and conceding late goals – in a home tie against Tottenham Hotspur, they conceded in the 81st minute before Claus Lundekvam was sent off in the penultimate minute; and in an away trip to Leeds United, they saw Patrick Colleter dismissed in the 88th minute before conceding the only goal of the game in the 90th. Other defeats were faced at the hands of two sides recently promoted to the Premier League, as the Saints lost 0–2 at Sunderland and 2–3 at Watford. Against the third promoted side, Bradford City, Southampton won 1–0 at The Dell in their opening game of 2000, which helped them stay clear of the relegation zone at the Bantams' expense.

After picking up their first win in two months over Bradford City, Southampton faced their joint-heaviest defeat of the season at Newcastle United, who were just one place above them in the table at the time. Trailing 0–2 within three minutes, the Saints conceded two own goals courtesy of Richard Dryden and Garry Monk either side of half time to complete a 0–5 thrashing at St James' Park. This was followed by a 2–0 home win over Everton, who had been unbeaten in eight games. The win marked the last match to feature Dave Jones as manager, who was given a one-year leave of absence and replaced by Glenn Hoddle on 28 January. Jones' future with the club had been in doubt since the beginning of the season, when he had first been charged with offences against children allegedly committed during his time working in a children's home after his retirement from playing. In a statement about the change in manager, Southampton chairman Rupert Lowe assured fans that Jones had not been fired, but instead given a year away to "concentrate fully on his defence and the clearing of his name". Jones was ultimately cleared of all allegations in December 2000, although he did not return to Southampton and had his contract "paid up" by the club.

Hoddle's first two games as Southampton manager saw the club picking up their first consecutive wins of the campaign, following the Everton victory with a 2–1 win over West Ham United and a 1–0 win over bottom-placed Sheffield Wednesday. The side began to flounder again, however, with defeats at Arsenal and West Ham flanking a 1–1 draw with Middlesbrough which left the club 16th in the league table. This was followed by the club's joint-heaviest defeat of the campaign and their second game in successive seasons conceding seven goals, when they lost 2–7 to Tottenham Hotspur. The game started well for the Saints, with Jo Tessem opening the scoring in the 26th minute, although it was quickly 1–1 thanks to a Dean Richards own goal; debutant Tahar El Khalej put the visitors ahead again 12 minutes before half-time, but by the break it was 4–2 to Spurs when Darren Anderton, Chris Armstrong and Steffen Iversen all scored in quick succession. In the second half, Armstrong doubled his tally and Iversen completed a hat-trick.

Now just four points clear of the relegation zone, the Saints picked up a 2–0 win over Aston Villa and gained a point at 4th-place Chelsea to move up to 15th in the table, eight points clear of the bottom three, where they would remain for the remainder of the season. They continued to pick up points against fellow strugglers, beating Bradford City 2–1 thanks to a goal from Pahars within 30 seconds of coming on as a substitute, and winning 2–0 against bottom-placed Watford. A poor run of results at the end of April saw Southampton lose 1–3 at home to Manchester United (who secured their second consecutive league title as a result), 0–2 at Derby County (who were just one place below the Saints), and 1–2 at home to Leicester City (in which Richards was sent off in the final minute). The club had already secured its Premier League status for another season, but picked up four points from their last two games to secure their 15th-place finish, drawing 0–0 with Liverpool at Anfield before beating Wimbledon 2–0 on the final day, in which Wayne Bridge scored his first senior goal.

List of match results

7 August 1999 1	Coventry City	0–1	Southampton	Coventry
15:00 BST		Report	Østenstad 85', Dodd	Stadium: Highfield Road Attendance: 19,915 Referee: Peter Jones

11 August 1999 2	Southampton	0–3	Leeds United	Southampton
19:45 BST	Benali M. Hughes Le Tissier Østenstad	Report	Bridges 11', 51', 72' Batty Bakke Bowyer Duberry Mills	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 15,206 Referee: Alan Wiley

15 August 1999 3	Southampton	4–2	Newcastle United	Southampton
16:00 BST	Kachloul 58', 68' Pahars 66' M. Hughes 78', Benali	Report	Shearer 22' (pen.) Speed 84'	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 15,030 Referee: David Elleray

21 August 1999 4	Everton	4–1	Southampton	Liverpool
15:00 BST	Gough 36' Lundekvam 47' (o.g.) Jeffers 48' Campbell 54' Hutchison	Report	Pahars 70' Bradley Davies M. Hughes	Stadium: Goodison Park Attendance: 35,316 Referee: Barry Knight

28 August 1999 5	Southampton	2–0	Sheffield Wednesday	Southampton
15:00 BST	Kachloul 53' Oakley 84'	Report	Atherton Scott Sibon	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 14,815 Referee: Paul Alcock

11 September 1999 6	Middlesbrough	3–2	Southampton	Middlesbrough
15:00 BST	Pallister 17' Gascoigne 67' (pen.) Deane 78', Cooper Ricard	Report	Kachloul 15' Pahars 55' Boa Morte  66'	Stadium: Riverside Stadium Attendance: 32,165 Referee: Stephen Lodge

18 September 1999 7	Southampton	0–1	Arsenal	Southampton
15:00 BST	Beattie Dodd Oakley	Report	Henry 79' Grimandi Winterburn	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 15,242 Referee: Graham Barber

25 September 1999 8	Manchester United	3–3	Southampton	Manchester
15:00 BST	Sheringham 34' Yorke 37', 64' Berg Scholes	Report	Pahars 17' Le Tissier 51', 73'	Stadium: Old Trafford Attendance: 55,249 Referee: Steve Dunn

4 October 1999 9	Southampton	3–3	Derby County	Southampton
20:00 BST	Pahars 22' Oakley 35' Ripley 66' M. Hughes	Report	Delap 21' Laursen 75', Beck 90' Hoult Johnson Powell Prior Schnoor	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 14,208 Referee: Graham Poll

16 October 1999 10	Leicester City	2–1	Southampton	Leicester
15:00 BST	Guppy 8' Cottee 39' Heskey Savage	Report	Davies  76' Kachloul Lundekvam	Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 19,556 Referee: Barry Knight

23 October 1999 11	Southampton	1–1	Liverpool	Southampton
15:00 BST	Soltvedt 39' Dodd Oakley	Report	Camara 81' Henchoz	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 15,241 Referee: Neale Barry

30 October 1999 12	Wimbledon	1–1	Southampton	London
15:00 GMT	Gayle 89' Cort Hreiðarsson	Report		Stadium: Selhurst Park Attendance: 15,754 Referee: Peter Jones

6 November 1999 13	Aston Villa	0–1	Southampton	Birmingham
15:00 GMT	Thompson	Report	Richards 84', Colleter Kachloul	Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 26,474 Referee: Andy D'Urso

20 November 1999 14	Southampton	0–1	Tottenham Hotspur	Southampton
15:00 GMT	Lundekvam   89' Colleter M. Hughes Pahars Richards	Report	Leonhardsen 81', Campbell	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 15,248 Referee: Steve Bennett

28 November 1999 15	Leeds United	1–0	Southampton	Leeds
15:00 GMT	Bridges 90' Bakke Bowyer	Report	Colleter   86' M. Hughes Kachloul Pahars	Stadium: Elland Road Attendance: 39,288 Referee: Rob Harris

4 December 1999 16	Southampton	0–0	Coventry City	Southampton
15:00 GMT		Report	Chippo Whelan	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 15,168 Referee: Jeff Winter

18 December 1999 17	Sunderland	2–0	Southampton	Sunderland
15:00 GMT	Phillips 30', 90', Makin	Report	Beattie Benali Kachloul Le Tissier Lundekvam	Stadium: Stadium of Light Attendance: 40,860 Referee: Mike Reed

26 December 1999 18	Southampton	1–2	Chelsea	Southampton
12:00 GMT	Davies 80' Le Tissier Oakley	Report	Flo 18', 43' Babayaro Deschamps Ferrer Leboeuf	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 15,232 Referee: Paul Alcock

28 December 1999 19	Watford	3–2	Southampton	Watford
15:00 GMT	Perpetuini 17', Gravelaine 31', 65', Hyde Robinson Smith	Report	Boa Morte 61' Davies 63', M. Hughes Richards	Stadium: Vicarage Road Attendance: 18,459 Referee: Mike Riley

3 January 2000 20	Southampton	1–0	Bradford City	Southampton
15:00 GMT	Davies 55'	Report		Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 15,027 Referee: David Elleray

16 January 2000 21	Newcastle United	5–0	Southampton	Newcastle upon Tyne
16:00 GMT	Ferguson 3', 4' Solano 17' Dryden 31' (o.g.) Monk 83' (o.g.)	Report	M. Hughes	Stadium: St James' Park Attendance: 35,623 Referee: Neale Barry

22 January 2000 22	Southampton	2–0	Everton	Southampton
15:00 GMT	Tessem 47' Oakley 56' Boa Morte Lundekvam Marsden Pahars	Report	Barmby Unsworth Weir	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 15,232 Referee: Andy D'Urso

5 February 2000 23	Southampton	2–1	West Ham United	Southampton
15:00 GMT	Pahars 54' Charles 86' (o.g.)	Report	Lampard 65' Charles Štimac	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 15,257 Referee: Barry Knight

12 February 2000 24	Sheffield Wednesday	0–1	Southampton	Sheffield
15:00 GMT		Report	Tessem 26' Marsden	Stadium: Hillsborough Stadium Attendance: 23,470 Referee: Alan Wiley

26 February 2000 25	Arsenal	3–1	Southampton	London
15:00 GMT	Ljungberg 22', 68' Bergkamp 36', Vieira	Report	Richards 61' Davies Dodd Kachloul Marsden	Stadium: Arsenal Stadium Attendance: 38,044 Referee: Jeff Winter

4 March 2000 26	Southampton	1–1	Middlesbrough	Southampton
15:00 GMT	Pahars 44'	Report	Ricard 44' (pen.) Cooper Deane Summerbell Ziege	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 15,223 Referee: Steve Dunn

8 March 2000 27	West Ham United	2–0	Southampton	London
19:45 GMT	Wanchope 18' Sinclair 48'	Report	Davies	Stadium: Boleyn Ground Attendance: 23,484 Referee: Stephen Lodge

11 March 2000 28	Tottenham Hotspur	7–2	Southampton	London
15:00 GMT	Richards 28' (o.g.) Anderton 39' Armstrong 41', 64' Iversen 45', 78', 90' Carr Freund	Report	Tessem 26' El Khalej 33' Benali Kachloul	Stadium: White Hart Lane Attendance: 36,024 Referee: Mark Halsey

18 March 2000 29	Southampton	2–0	Aston Villa	Southampton
15:00 GMT	Davies 39', 63', El Khalej Kachloul Marsden	Report	Ehiogu	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 15,218 Referee: Mike Riley

25 March 2000 30	Chelsea	1–1	Southampton	London
15:00 GMT	Richards 75' (o.g.)	Report	Tessem 69'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge Attendance: 34,956 Referee: Dermot Gallagher

1 April 2000 31	Southampton	1–2	Sunderland	Southampton
15:00 BST	Le Tissier 89' (pen.) Richards	Report	Quinn 14' Phillips 86' (pen.) Roy	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 15,245 Referee: Paul Durkin

8 April 2000 32	Bradford City	1–2	Southampton	Bradford
15:00 BST	Blake 77' Beagrie Halle	Report	Windass 56' (o.g.) Pahars 76' El Khalej Ripley	Stadium: Valley Parade Attendance: 17,439 Referee: David Elleray

15 April 2000 33	Southampton	2–0	Watford	Southampton
15:00 BST	Davies 4' Pahars 75'	Report	Smart	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 15,252 Referee: Alan Wilkie

22 April 2000 34	Southampton	1–3	Manchester United	Southampton
15:00 BST	Pahars 83', Davies	Report	Beckham 7' Benali 15' (o.g.) Solskjær 29' Keane	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 15,245 Referee: Neale Barry

24 April 2000 35	Derby County	2–0	Southampton	Derby
13:00 BST	Powell 5' Christie 42' Burley	Report	Kachloul Marsden	Stadium: Pride Park Stadium Attendance: 29,403 Referee: Peter Jones

29 April 2000 36	Southampton	1–2	Leicester City	Southampton
15:00 BST	Kachloul 4' Richards  89' Davies El Khalej Kachloul Marsden	Report	Cottee 22' Izzet 60' Walsh	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 15,178 Referee: Mike Reed

7 May 2000 37	Liverpool	0–0	Southampton	Liverpool
16:00 BST		Report	Dodd	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 44,015 Referee: Paul Alcock

14 May 2000 38	Southampton	2–0	Wimbledon	Southampton
16:00 BST	Bridge 57' Pahars 79'	Report	Blackwell Euell Kimble	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 15,249 Referee: Stephen Lodge

Final league table

Results by matchday

FA Cup

Southampton entered the 1999–2000 FA Cup in the third round against First Division side Ipswich Town, who were tipped for – and ultimately achieved – promotion to the FA Premier League at the end of the season. Both sides had chances to open the scoring early on, but it was the visiting Saints who broke the deadlock just before half-time when Dean Richards headed in a free kick from Jo Tessem to put his side 1–0 up. After the break, Southampton continued to enjoy the majority of chances, with Richards coming close to doubling their lead on 65 minutes when he headed in from a corner, but hit the crossbar. Advancing to the fourth round, the Saints faced league rivals Aston Villa, who had knocked them out of the League Cup with a 4–0 thrashing just over a month before. In a game described by club historians as a "dismal afternoon", the Saints struggled to gain any momentum in the tie and conceded the only goal of the game after 20 minutes, when centre-back Gareth Southgate headed in a Paul Merson free kick.

13 December 1999 Round 3	Ipswich Town	0–1	Southampton	Ipswich
			M. Hughes  11' Richards 40'	Stadium: Portman Road Attendance: 14,383 Referee: Graham Barber

8 January 2000 Round 4	Aston Villa	1–0	Southampton	Birmingham
	Southgate 20' Carbone		Davies Kachloul Lundekvam	Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 25,025 Referee: Neale Barry

League Cup

Southampton entered the 1999–2000 League Cup in the second round, drawn against Manchester City, who were on their way to automatic promotion back to the FA Premier League as First Division runners-up. After a goalless first leg at Maine Road, the Saints edged through the return leg 4–3 after extra time. After Paul Dickov put City 1–0 up within ten minutes, Jason Dodd equalised five minutes later from the penalty spot following a foul on Trond Egil Soltvedt. Either side of the half-time break, Matt Oakley made it 2–1 and then 3–1, before a late brace from Shaun Goater forced an extra 30 minutes. Just after the restart, Dean Richards scored from a Matt Le Tissier corner to send the hosts through. In the third round, Southampton hosted Liverpool, beating the Reds 2–1 thanks to a last-minute winner from Soltvedt after second-half goals from Michael Owen and Richards. Another FA Premier League side, Aston Villa, hosted the Saints in the fourth round, less than a month after the South Coast side had beaten them 1–0 at Villa Park in the league. Fortunes were dramatically reversed in the cup, however, as Villa won 4–0 thanks to goals from Steve Watson, Julian Joachim and Dion Dublin (two).

15 September 1999 Round 2 Leg 1	Manchester City	0–0	Southampton	Manchester
	Weaver			Stadium: Maine Road Attendance: 17,476 Referee: Kevin Lynch

21 September 1999 Round 2 Leg 2	Southampton	4–3 (a.e.t.) (4–3 agg.)	Manchester City	Southampton
	Dodd 16' (pen.), Oakley 28', 57', Richards 92' M. Hughes   89' Lundekvam		Dickov 10' Goater 76', 82' Bishop Jobson Tiatto	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 10,960 Referee: Rob Harris

13 October 1999 Round 3	Southampton	2–1	Liverpool	Southampton
	Richards 67' Soltvedt 90'		Owen 53' Henchoz	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 13,822 Referee: Dermot Gallagher

1 December 1999 Round 4	Aston Villa	4–0	Southampton	Birmingham
	Watson 22' Joachim 66', Dublin 72', 90' Boateng		Oakley	Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 17,608 Referee: Barry Knight

Player details

Southampton used 29 players during the 1999–2000 season, 15 of whom scored during the campaign. Seven players made their debut appearances for the club, including six of their ten first team signings (Marco Almeida, Luís Boa Morte, Tahar El Khalej, Dean Richards, Trond Egil Soltvedt, and Jo Tessem) and one signing from the previous season (Dani Rodrigues). Three of these – Almeida, Boa Morte, and Rodrigues – also made their last appearances for the Saints during the campaign, as did mid-season departees Scott Hiley, Mark Hughes, Egil Østenstad, plus three players sold the following season (Shayne Bradley, Richard Dryden, and Patrick Colleter), and one forced to retire the next season (John Beresford). New centre-back Richards made the most appearances for Southampton during the season, playing in 40 of the side's 44 games across all three competitions. Marians Pahars, who made the second-most appearances on 38 in all competitions, finished as the club's top goalscorer in his first full season at the club, with 13 goals in the league. Richards won the Southampton F.C. Player of the Season award for the 1999–2000 season.

Squad statistics

No.	Name	Pos.	Nat.	League		FA Cup		League Cup		Total		Discipline
				Apps.	Goals	Apps.	Goals	Apps.	Goals	Apps.	Goals
1	Paul Jones	GK		31	0	2	0	4	0	37	0	0	0
2	Jason Dodd	DF		30(1)	0	2	0	3(1)	1	35(2)	1	6	0
3	John Beresford	DF		0(3)	0	0	0	0	0	0(3)	0	0	0
4	Chris Marsden	MF		19(2)	0	1	0	0(2)	0	20(3)	0	6	0
5	Claus Lundekvam	DF		25(2)	0	2	0	4	0	31(2)	0	5	1
6	Dean Richards	DF		35	2	1	1	4	2	40	5	4	1
7	Matt Le Tissier	MF		9(9)	3	0	0	1(2)	0	10(11)	3	3	0
8	Matt Oakley	MF		26(5)	3	1	0	4	2	31(5)	5	5	0
10	Kevin Davies	FW		19(4)	6	1	0	0(1)	0	20(5)	6	8	1
11	David Howells	MF		0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
13	Neil Moss	GK		7(2)	0	0	0	0	0	7(2)	0	0	0
14	Stuart Ripley	MF		18(5)	1	2	0	2	0	22(5)	1	1	0
15	Francis Benali	DF		25(1)	0	1	0	3	0	29(1)	0	4	0
16	James Beattie	FW		8(10)	0	0(1)	0	1(2)	0	9(13)	0	2	0
17	Marians Pahars	FW		31(2)	13	2	0	3	0	36(2)	13	4	0
18	Wayne Bridge	DF		15(4)	1	2	0	2	0	19(4)	1	0	0
19	Dani Rodrigues	MF		0(2)	0	0	0	0	0	0(2)	0	0	0
20	Scott Bevan	GK		0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
21	Jo Tessem	MF		23(2)	4	2	0	1	0	26(2)	4	0	0
22	David Hughes	MF		0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
24	Patrick Colleter	DF		8	0	0	0	1	0	9	0	2	1
25	Garry Monk	DF		1(1)	0	0	0	0	0	1(1)	0	0	0
26	Imants Bleidelis	MF		0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
27	Tahar El Khalej	DF		11	1	0	0	0	0	11	1	3	0
28	Kevin Gibbens	MF		0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
29	Marco Almeida	DF		0(1)	0	0	0	0	0	0(1)	0	0	0
30	Hassan Kachloul	MF		29(3)	5	0(1)	0	4	0	33(4)	5	10	0
31	Shayne Bradley	FW		0(1)	0	0	0	0	0	0(1)	0	1	0
32	Trond Egil Soltvedt	MF		17(7)	1	1(1)	0	4	1	22(8)	2	0	0
33	Adam Sims	MF		0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
34	Bruno Leal	DF		0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
35	Luís Boa Morte	MF		6(8)	1	1	0	0(2)	0	7(10)	1	1	1
37	Phil Warner	DF		0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
—	Paul Hughes	MF		0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Squad members who left before the end of the season
9	Mark Hughes	FW		18(2)	1	1(1)	0	3	0	22(3)	1	9	1
10	Egil Østenstad	FW		3	1	0	0	0	0	3	1	2	0
21	Andy Williams	MF		0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
23	Scott Hiley	DF		3	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	0	0
26	Scott Marshall	DF		0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Squad members who ended the season out on loan
12	Richard Dryden	DF		1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0

Most appearances

Top goalscorers

References

1. ^ "Steve Basham". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
2. ^ "Michael Stensgaard Football Stats". Soccerbase. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
3. ^ "Bruno Leal Football Stats". Soccerbase. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
4. ^ "Dean Richards". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
5. ^ "Trond Solvedt". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
6. ^ "Kevin Davies". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
7. ^ "Egil Ostenstad". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
8. ^ "Ken Monkou". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
9. ^ "Luis Boa Morte". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
10. ^ "Kevin Gibbins". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
11. ^ "Garry Monk". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
12. ^ "Andy Williams". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
13. ^ "Shayne Bradley". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
14. ^ "John Beresford". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
15. ^ "Scott Marshall". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
16. ^ "Richard Dryden". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
17. ^ "Jo Tessem". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
18. ^ "Scott Hiley". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
19. ^ "Marco Almeida". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
20. ^ "David Hirst". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
21. ^ "Imants Bleidelis". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
22. ^ "Mark Hughes". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
23. ^ "Tahar El Khalej". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
24. ^ Holley & Chalk 2003, p. 262
25. "Stephen Jenkins Football Stats". Soccerbase. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
26. ^ Holley & Chalk 2003, p. 431
27. ^ Holley & Chalk 2003, p. 260
28. "Premier League table after close of play on 15 August 1999". 11v11.com. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
29. "Premier League table after close of play on 28 August 1999". 11v11.com. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
30. ^ Holley & Chalk 2003, p. 261
31. "Premier League table after close of play on 06 November 1999". 11v11.com. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
32. "Premier League table after close of play on 03 January 2000". 11v11.com. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
33. "Stunned!". Southern Daily Echo. 28 January 2000. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
34. "Premiership manager on child abuse charges". BBC News. 27 September 1999. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
35. "Dave Jones: what the chairman said". The Guardian. 29 January 2000. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
36. Szczepanik, Nick (30 October 2011). "Dave Jones: 'I'd rather have been accused of murder'". The Independent. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
37. "Premier League table after close of play on 08 March 2000". 11v11.com. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
38. "Premier League table after close of play on 11 March 2000". 11v11.com. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
39. "Premier League table after close of play on 25 March 2000". 11v11.com. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
40. ^ Holley & Chalk 2003, p. 263
41. ^ Holley & Chalk 2003, p. 408
42. ^ Holley & Chalk 2003, p. 409
43. ^ Holley & Chalk 2003, p. 295
44. ^ Holley & Chalk 2003, pp. 264, 295, 408–409
45. ^ "Dani Rodrigues". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
46. "Patrick Colleter". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2024.

Bibliography

• Holley, Duncan; Chalk, Gary (2003), Bull, David (ed.), In That Number: A Post-War Chronicle of Southampton FC, Bristol, England: Hagiology Publishing, ISBN 0-9534474-3-X

External links

• Southampton F.C. official website

• Southampton F.C. seasons
• English football clubs 1999–2000 season