1997–98 Leicester City F.C. season

During the 1997–98 English football season, Leicester City competed in the FA Premier League (known as the FA Carling Premiership for sponsorship reasons).

Leicester City

1997–98 season
Chairman	Tom Smeaton
Manager	Martin O'Neill
Stadium	Filbert Street
Premiership	10th
FA Cup	Fourth round
League Cup	Third round
UEFA Cup	First round
Player of the Year	Matt Elliott
Top goalscorer	League: Heskey (10) All: Heskey/Marshall (10)
Highest home attendance	21,699 vs Newcastle United (29 Apr 1998, Premier League)
Lowest home attendance	18,553 vs Wimbledon (10 Nov 1997, Premier League)
Average home league attendance	20,615
Home colours Away colours Third colours

Season summary

Leicester City's return to European competition for the first time since the 1960s was short-lived, and they suffered a first-hurdle defeat at the hands of Spanish team Atlético Madrid. Their challenges in the domestic cups fared little better, and a 10th-place finish in the final table was not enough for another UEFA Cup adventure. But they managed to hold on to star players like Neil Lennon and Emile Heskey, and, most importantly, highly rated manager Martin O'Neill, giving fans hope of another challenge for honours in 1998–99.

Keller

Elliott

Kåmark

Walsh

Savage

Guppy

Parker

Lennon

Izzet

Heskey

Marshall

1997-98 Leicester City team

Final league table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
8	West Ham United	38	16	8	14	56	57	−1	56
9	Derby County	38	16	7	15	52	49	+3	55
10	Leicester City	38	13	14	11	51	41	+10	53
11	Coventry City	38	12	16	10	46	44	+2	52
12	Southampton	38	14	6	18	50	55	−5	48

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

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	13	14	11	51	41	+10	53	6	10	3	21	15	+6	7	4	8	30	26	+4

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	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	H	A
Result	W	W	D	D	L	W	W	D	W	L	L	W	D	L	D	W	D	L	L	L	D	D	D	W	W	D	W	L	L	L	D	W	D	D	W	D	W	L
Position	5	4	4	4	6	5	3	4	3	4	5	4	5	7	6	6	6	7	8	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	7	7	9	12	12	10	10	10	9	9	8	10

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

Results

  Win   Draw   Loss

Pre-season

16 July 1997	Penzance	1–7	Leicester City	Penzance
			Heskey  ?', ?' Whitlow  ?' (pen) Fox  ?' Skeldon  ?' Robins  ?' Izzet  ?'	Stadium: Penlee Park

18 July 1997	Torpoint Athletic	1–3	Leicester City	Torpoint
			McMahon  ?' Guppy  ?' Heskey  ?'	Stadium: The Mill

19 July 1997	Torquay United	3–1	Leicester City	Torquay
			Izzet  ?'	Stadium: Plainmoor

21 July 1997	Grantham Town	0–5	Leicester City	Grantham
			Wilson  ?', ?', ?', ?' Skeldon  ?'	Stadium: South Kesteven Sports Stadium

22 July 1997	Scunthorpe United	0–4	Leicester City	Scunthorpe
19:30 BST			Claridge  ?' Marshall  ?' Wilson  ?' Robins  ?'	Stadium: Glanford Park

23 July 1997	Notts County	1–2	Leicester City	Nottingham
	Cunnington  ?'		Oparaku  ?' Savage  ?'	Stadium: Meadow Lane

28 July 1997	Olympiacos	3–1	Leicester City	Athens
			Campbell  ?'	Stadium: Olympic Stadium

1 August 1997	Preston North End	0–2	Leicester City	Preston
			McMahon  ?' Marshall  ?'	Stadium: Deepdale

3 August 1997	Northampton Town	1–2	Leicester City	Northampton
			Heskey  ?' Campbell  ?'	Stadium: Sixfields Stadium

5 August 1997	Peterborough United	2–2	Leicester City	Peterborough
19:45 BST	de Souza  ?', ?'		Robins  ?' Campbell  ?'	Stadium: London Road Stadium

FA Premier League

9 August 1997	Leicester City	1–0	Aston Villa	Leicester
15:00 BST	Marshall  37'			Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 20,304 Referee: Stephen Lodge

13 August 1997	Liverpool	1–2	Leicester City	Liverpool
19:45 BST	Ince  85'		Elliott  1' Fenton  83'	Stadium: Anfield Attendance: 35,007 Referee: Jeff Winter

23 August 1997	Leicester City	0–0	Manchester United	Leicester
15:00 BST				Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 21,221 Referee: Dermot Gallagher

27 August 1997	Leicester City	3–3	Arsenal	Leicester
19:45 BST	Heskey  84' Elliott  90+2' Walsh  90+5'		Bergkamp  9', 61', 90+3'	Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 21,089 Referee: Graham Barber

30 August 1997	Sheffield Wednesday	1–0	Leicester City	Sheffield
15:00 BST	Carbone  56' (pen.)			Stadium: Hillsborough Attendance: 24,851 Referee: Paul Alcock

13 September 1997	Leicester City	3–0	Tottenham Hotspur	Leicester
15:00 BST	Walsh  55' Guppy  68' Heskey  77'			Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 20,683 Referee: Alan Wilkie

20 September 1997	Leeds United	0–1	Leicester City	Leeds
15:00 BST			Walsh  32'	Stadium: Elland Road Attendance: 29,620 Referee: Keith Burge

24 September 1997	Leicester City	1–1	Blackburn Rovers	Leicester
19:45 BST	Izzet  43'		Sutton  36'	Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 19,921 Referee: Neale Barry

27 September 1997	Barnsley	0–2	Leicester City	Barnsley
15:00 BST			Marshall  55' Fenton  63'	Stadium: Oakwell Attendance: 18,660 Referee: Graham Poll

6 October 1997	Leicester City	1–2	Derby County	Leicester
20:00 BST	Elliott  67'		Baiano  21', 62'	Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 19,585 Referee: Gerald Ashby

18 October 1997	Chelsea	1–0	Leicester City	London
15:00 BST	Leboeuf  88'			Stadium: Stamford Bridge Attendance: 33,356 Referee: Uriah Rennie

27 October 1997	Leicester City	2–1	West Ham United	Leicester
20:00 GMT	Heskey  16' Marshall  82'		Berkovic  58'	Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 20,201 Referee: Mike Reed

1 November 1997	Newcastle United	3–3	Leicester City	Newcastle
15:00 GMT	Barnes  4' (pen.) Tomasson  45' Beresford  90'		Marshall  12', 32' Elliott  54' Heskey  90'	Stadium: St James' Park Attendance: 36,754 Referee: Gary Willard

10 November 1997	Leicester City	0–1	Wimbledon	Leicester
20:00 GMT			Gayle  50'	Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 18,553 Referee: Mike Riley

22 November 1997	Leicester City	0–0	Bolton Wanderers	Leicester
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 20,464 Referee: Graham Barber

29 November 1997	Coventry City	0–2	Leicester City	Coventry
15:00 GMT			Fenton  32' Elliott  75' (pen.)	Stadium: Highfield Road Attendance: 18,309 Referee: Martin Bodenham

6 December 1997	Leicester City	1–1	Crystal Palace	Leicester
15:00 GMT	Izzet  90'		Edworthy  29' Padovano  43'	Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 19,191 Referee: Uriah Rennie

13 December 1997	Southampton	2–1	Leicester City	Southampton
15:00 GMT	Le Tissier  2' Benali  54'		Savage  84'	Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 15,121 Referee: Stephen Lodge

20 December 1997	Leicester City	0–1	Everton	Leicester
15:00 GMT			Speed  89' (pen.)	Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 20,628 Referee: Jeff Winter

26 December 1997	Arsenal	2–1	Leicester City	London
12:00 GMT	Platt  36' Walsh  56' (o.g.)		Lennon  77'	Stadium: Highbury Attendance: 38,023 Referee: David Elleray

28 December 1997	Leicester City	1–1	Sheffield Wednesday	Leicester
15:00 GMT	Guppy  28'		Stefanović   43' Booth  85'	Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 20,800 Referee: Graham Poll

10 January 1998	Aston Villa	1–1	Leicester City	Birmingham
15:00 GMT	Joachim  87'		Parker  53' (pen.)	Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 36,429 Referee: Mike Riley

17 January 1998	Leicester City	0–0	Liverpool	Leicester
15:00 GMT				Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 21,633 Referee: Steve Dunn

31 January 1998	Manchester United	0–1	Leicester City	Manchester
15:00 GMT			Cottee  30'	Stadium: Old Trafford Attendance: 55,156 Referee: Gerald Ashby

7 February 1998	Leicester City	1–0	Leeds United	Leicester
15:00 GMT	Parker  44' (pen.)			Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 21,244 Referee: Neale Barry

14 February 1998	Tottenham Hotspur	1–1	Leicester City	London
15:00 GMT	Calderwood  51'		Cottee  34'	Stadium: White Hart Lane Attendance: 28,355 Referee: Stephen Lodge

21 February 1998	Leicester City	2–0	Chelsea	Leicester
15:00 GMT	Heskey  3', 89'			Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 21,335 Referee: Paul Durkin

28 February 1998	Blackburn Rovers	5–3	Leicester City	Blackburn
15:00 GMT	Dahlin  11' Sutton  25', 45', 47' Hendry  63'		Wilson  68' Izzet  80' Ullathorne  81'	Stadium: Ewood Park Attendance: 24,854 Referee: Neale Barry

14 March 1998	Wimbledon	2–1	Leicester City	London
15:00 GMT	Roberts  14' Hughes  62'		Savage  57'	Stadium: Selhurst Park Attendance: 13,229 Referee: Mike Riley

28 March 1998	Bolton Wanderers	2–0	Leicester City	Bolton
15:00 GMT	Bergsson  26' Thompson  52', 89'		Ullathorne  41'	Stadium: Reebok Stadium Attendance: 25,000 Referee: Uriah Rennie

4 April 1998	Leicester City	1–1	Coventry City	Leicester
15:00 BST	Wilson  78'		Whelan  80'	Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 21,137 Referee: Graham Barber

11 April 1998	Crystal Palace	0–3	Leicester City	London
15:00 BST			Heskey  45', 60' Elliott  74'	Stadium: Selhurst Park Attendance: 18,771 Referee: Alan Wilkie

14 April 1998	Leicester City	3–3	Southampton	Leicester
19:45 BST	Lennon  18' Elliott  52' Parker  90' (pen.)		Østenstad  17', 27' Hirst  49'	Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 20,708 Referee: Graham Poll

18 April 1998	Everton	1–1	Leicester City	Liverpool
15:00 BST	Madar  2'		Marshall  38'	Stadium: Goodison Park Attendance: 33,642 Referee: Stephen Lodge

26 April 1998	Derby County	0–4	Leicester City	Derby
16:00 BST			Heskey  1', 8' Izzet  2' Marshall  15'	Stadium: Pride Park Attendance: 29,855 Referee: Gary Willard

29 April 1998	Leicester City	0–0	Newcastle United	Leicester
19:45 BST				Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 21,699 Referee: Martin Bodenham

2 May 1998	Leicester City	1–0	Barnsley	Leicester
15:00 BST	Zagorakis  57'			Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 21,293 Referee: Dermot Gallagher

10 May 1998	West Ham United	4–3	Leicester City	London
16:00 BST	Lampard  15' Abou  31', 74' Sinclair  65'		Cottee  59', 83' Heskey  66'	Stadium: Upton Park Attendance: 25,781 Referee: Uriah Rennie

FA Cup

3 January 1998 R3	Leicester City	4–0	Northampton Town	Leicester
15:00 BST	Marshall  17' Parker  26' (pen.) Savage  53' Cottee  58'		Clarkson  69'	Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 20,608 Referee: Alan Wilkie

24 January 1998 R4	Crystal Palace	3–0	Leicester City	London
15:00 BST	Dyer  33', 62', 66'			Stadium: Selhurst Park Attendance: 15,489 Referee: Paul Alcock

League Cup

14 October 1997 R3	Grimsby Town	3–1	Leicester City	Cleethorpes
19:45 BST	Jobling  68' Livingstone  72', 78'		Marshall  17'	Stadium: Blundell Park Attendance: 7,738 Referee: Mike Riley

UEFA Cup

16 September 1997 R1 1st leg	Atlético Madrid	2–1	Leicester City	Madrid
21:30	Juninho  70' Vieri  72' (pen.)	Report	Marshall  11'	Stadium: Vicente Calderón Stadium Attendance: 35,000 Referee: Roy Helge Olsen

30 September 1997 R1 2nd leg	Leicester City	0–2 (1–4 agg.)	Atlético Madrid	Leicester
19:45 BST	Parker   59'	Report	López  50' Juninho  72' Kiko  88'	Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 20,776 Referee: Rémi Harrel

Squad

[1] 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  USA Kasey Keller 4 DF  ENG Julian Watts 5 DF  ENG Steve Walsh (captain) 6 MF  TUR Muzzy Izzet 7 MF  NIR Neil Lennon 8 MF  ENG Scott Taylor 9 FW  ENG Steve Claridge 10 MF  ENG Garry Parker 11 FW  ENG Emile Heskey 14 MF  WAL Robbie Savage 15 DF  SWE Pontus Kåmark 16 MF  SCO Stuart Campbell 17 DF  ENG Spencer Prior 18 DF  SCO Matt Elliott (vice-captain)

No. Pos. Nation Player 19 DF  ENG Robert Ullathorne 20 FW  ENG Ian Marshall 21 MF  ENG Graham Fenton 22 GK  FRA Pegguy Arphexad 23 MF  ENG Sam McMahon 24 MF  ENG Steve Guppy 25 MF  ENG Stuart Wilson 26 FW  SWE Lars-Gunnar Carlstrand 27 FW  ENG Tony Cottee [nb 1] 29 MF  ENG Stefan Oakes 30 GK  ENG Ian Andrews [nb 2] 33 DF  ENG Martin Fox 37 MF  GRE Theodoros Zagorakis

1. Issued number 8 in the UEFA Cup.
2. Issued number 13 in the UEFA Cup.

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 3 DF  ENG Mike Whitlow (to Bolton Wanderers) 9 FW  ENG Steve Claridge (to Wolves)

No. Pos. Nation Player 12 FW  ENG Mark Robins (to CD Ourense)

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 - DF  ENG Guy Branston - FW  ENG Lawrie Dudfield

No. Pos. Nation Player - DF  SCO Gary Neil

Club staff

Directors & Senior Management
Role	Person
President	Ken Brigstock
Chairman	Tom Smeaton
Vice Chairman	John Elsom
Directors	Roy Parker
	Martin George
	Terry Shipman
	John Sharp
Chief Executive	Barrie Pierpoint
Deputy Chief Executive	Charles Rayner

First Team Management & Youth Team Management
Role	Person
First Team Manager	Martin O'Neill
First Team Assistant Manager	John Robertson
First Team Coach	Steve Walford
Goalkeeping Team Coach	Jim McDonagh
Reserve Team Coach	Paul Franklin
Physiotherapist	Mick Yeoman
Physiotherapist	Alan Smith
Youth Academy Manager	David Nish
Head Coach of Youth Development	Neville Hamilton
Youth Development Officer	Steve Sims
Chief Scout	Jim Melrose
Kit Manager	Paul McAndrew

Source: Leicester City F.C.

Transfers

In

Date	Pos.	Name	From	Fee
23 July 1997	MF	Robbie Savage	Crewe Alexandra	£400,000
8 August 1997	MF	Graham Fenton	Blackburn Rovers	£1,100,000
14 August 1997	FW	Tony Cottee	Selangor	£500,000
20 August 1997	GK	Pegguy Arphexad	Lens	Free transfer
5 February 1998	MF	Theodoros Zagorakis	PAOK	£750,000

Out

Date	Pos.	Name	To	Fee
17 June 1997	MF	Jamie Lawrence	Bradford City	£50,000
22 June 1997	DF	Neil Lewis	Peterborough United	£75,000
23 July 1997	DF	Simon Grayson	Aston Villa	£1,350,000
2 August 1997	GK	Kevin Poole	Birmingham City	Free transfer
19 September 1997	DF	Mike Whitlow	Bolton Wanderers	£500,000
16 January 1998	FW	Mark Robins	Ourense	Signed
26 March 1998	FW	Steve Claridge	Wolverhampton Wanderers	£350,000

Transfers in: £2,750,000

Transfers out: £2,325,000

Total spending: £525,000

Statistics

Appearances, goals and cards

(Starting appearances + substitute appearances)

No.	Pos.	Name	League		FA Cup		League Cup		UEFA Cup		Total		Discipline
			Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1	GK	Kasey Keller	32	0	2	0	1	0	2	0	37	0	2	0
4	DF	Julian Watts	0+3	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	2+3	0	0	0
5	DF	Steve Walsh	23+3	3	1	0	1	0	1	0	26+3	3	3	0
6	MF	Muzzy Izzet	36	4	2	0	0	0	2	0	40	4	6	0
7	MF	Neil Lennon	37	2	2	0	1	0	2	0	42	2	8	0
9	FW	Steve Claridge	10+7	0	0	0	0	0	0+1	0	10+8	0	0	0
10	MF	Garry Parker	15+7	3	2	1	0	0	2	0	19+7	4	1	0
11	FW	Emile Heskey	35	10	2	0	0	0	2	0	39	10	4	1
14	MF	Robbie Savage	28+7	2	2	1	1	0	0+1	0	31+8	3	4	0
15	DF	Pontus Kåmark	35	0	2	0	0	0	2	0	39	0	2	0
16	MF	Stuart Campbell	6+5	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	7+5	0	1	0
17	DF	Spencer Prior	28+2	0	1	0	0	0	2	0	31+2	0	2	0
18	DF	Matt Elliott	37	7	2	0	1	0	2	0	42	7	7	0
19	DF	Robert Ullathorne	3+3	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	3+3	1	0	1
20	FW	Ian Marshall	22+2	7	2	1	1	1	2	1	27+2	10	2	0
21	FW	Graham Fenton	9+13	3	0+1	0	1	0	0+2	0	10+17	3	1	0
22	GK	Pegguy Arphexad	6	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	6	0	0	0
23	MF	Sam McMahon	0+1	0	0	0	0+1	0	0	0	0+2	0	0	0
24	MF	Steve Guppy	37	2	2	0	1	0	2	0	42	2	4	0
25	MF	Stuart Wilson	0+11	2	0+2	0	0+1	0	0	0	0+14	2	0	0
27	FW	Tony Cottee	7+12	4	0+2	1	1	0	0+1	0	8+15	5	0	0
37	MF	Theodoros Zagorakis	12+2	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	12+2	1	1	0

Notes

References

1. http://www.footballsquads.co.uk/eng/1997-1998/faprem/leicester.htm