Great Teams That Fell: Premier League Relegations Reconsidered

Relegation can feel like a blunt instrument. Across Premier League history several sides packed with genuine quality still slipped into the second tier, undone by instability, bad luck or a failure to cohere.

Blackpool arrived in the top flight with a bold identity. Ian Holloway, having taken charge at Bloomfield Road in 2009, adopted an attacking philosophy influenced by Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona side. With a young Charlie Adam pulling the strings in midfield, DJ Campbell leading the line and Gary Taylor-Fletcher supplying support, the Tangerines played with verve. Their top-flight learning curve was steep and, in terms of individual pedigree, the squad was the weakest on this list. Still, Blackpool finished on 39 points, just one short of safety.

Newcastle’s collapse was chaotic and public. By the end of the 2008-09 season the club had managed just seven wins, passed through four managers and suffered relegation from the Premier League for the first time in their history. Kevin Keegan resigned in September after a dispute over transfer control, Joe Kinnear was appointed and became as notable for an expletive-laden press conference and for mistakenly referring to Charles N’Zogbia as “Insomnia.” Kinnear was replaced by Chris Hughton in February, and Alan Shearer took over in April tasked with keeping his boyhood club up. Passion was not enough; the talent at the club included Michael Owen, Obafemi Martins, Mark Viduka, Geremi Njitap, Damien Duff and Nicky Butt, yet relegation followed.

Blackburn Rovers went from title winners to relegated in four seasons. In 1998-99 they collected just 35 points. Only a year earlier Rovers had finished sixth, and several members of their title-winning squad remained, including Chris Sutton, Jason Wilcox and Tim Flowers, alongside emerging talent Damien Duff. A lack of goals was decisive: Kevin Gallacher and Ashley Ward were joint top scorers with five league goals apiece and the team won only five matches all season.

Middlesbrough’s 1996-97 campaign combined individual brilliance and misfortune. Juninho dazzled and Fabrizio Ravanelli scored 31 goals in all competitions, but the side finished on 39 points, two short of safety. Boro reached both the FA Cup and League Cup finals and supporters still recall a three-point deduction for failing to fulfil a fixture as a key factor in their relegation.