2000–01 Blackburn Rovers F.C. season
During the 2000–01 English football season, Blackburn Rovers F.C. competed in the Football League First Division.
Season summary
Rovers returned to the top flight of English football, thanks to a second-place finish in Division One which came two seasons after relegation. Rovers looked intent on returning to the top flight in style fulfilling the wishes of late owner Jack Walker who died shortly after the season began. Striker Matt Jansen, signed during the relegation campaign, was the club's top scorer with 23 Division One goals. Rovers also re-signed Henning Berg just after the start of the season, three years after they sold him to Manchester United. Berg was one of the club's last remaining links with the 1995 title winning side.Final league table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | W | D | L | F | A | F | A | GD | Pts | ||||
| 1 | Fulham | 46 | 16 | 5 | 2 | 49 | 14 | 14 | 6 | 3 | 41 | 18 | 90 | 32 | +58 | 101 | ||||
| 2 | Blackburn Rovers | 46 | 15 | 5 | 3 | 43 | 20 | 11 | 8 | 4 | 33 | 19 | 76 | 39 | +37 | 91 | ||||
| 3 | Bolton Wanderers | 46 | 10 | 10 | 3 | 40 | 28 | 14 | 5 | 4 | 36 | 17 | 76 | 45 | +31 | 87 | ||||
| 4 | Preston North End | 46 | 12 | 6 | 5 | 32 | 18 | 11 | 3 | 9 | 32 | 34 | 64 | 52 | +12 | 78 | ||||
| 5 | Birmingham City | 46 | 14 | 3 | 6 | 34 | 22 | 9 | 6 | 8 | 25 | 26 | 59 | 48 | +11 | 78 | ||||
| 6 | West Bromwich Albion | 46 | 13 | 5 | 5 | 37 | 23 | 8 | 6 | 9 | 23 | 29 | 60 | 52 | +8 | 74 | ||||
| 7 | Burnley | 46 | 14 | 5 | 4 | 30 | 17 | 7 | 4 | 12 | 20 | 37 | 50 | 54 | –4 | 72 | ||||
| 8 | Wimbledon | 46 | 7 | 11 | 5 | 33 | 26 | 10 | 7 | 6 | 38 | 24 | 71 | 50 | +21 | 69 | ||||
| 9 | Watford | 46 | 11 | 6 | 6 | 46 | 29 | 9 | 3 | 11 | 30 | 38 | 76 | 67 | +9 | 69 | ||||
| 10 | Sheffield United | 46 | 14 | 4 | 5 | 34 | 18 | 5 | 7 | 11 | 18 | 31 | 52 | 49 | +3 | 68 | ||||
| 11 | Nottingham Forest | 46 | 11 | 3 | 9 | 28 | 24 | 9 | 5 | 9 | 27 | 29 | 55 | 53 | +2 | 68 | ||||
| 12 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 46 | 7 | 9 | 7 | 25 | 20 | 7 | 4 | 12 | 20 | 28 | 45 | 48 | –3 | 55 | ||||
| 13 | Gillingham | 46 | 9 | 6 | 8 | 32 | 28 | 4 | 10 | 9 | 29 | 38 | 61 | 66 | –5 | 55 | ||||
| 14 | Crewe Alexandra | 46 | 12 | 5 | 6 | 30 | 24 | 3 | 5 | 15 | 17 | 38 | 47 | 62 | –15 | 55 | ||||
| 15 | Norwich City | 46 | 10 | 7 | 6 | 25 | 18 | 4 | 5 | 14 | 21 | 40 | 46 | 58 | –12 | 54 | ||||
| 16 | Barnsley | 46 | 11 | 3 | 9 | 32 | 26 | 4 | 6 | 13 | 17 | 36 | 49 | 62 | –13 | 54 | ||||
| 17 | Sheffield Wednesday | 46 | 9 | 4 | 10 | 34 | 38 | 6 | 4 | 13 | 18 | 33 | 52 | 71 | –19 | 53 | ||||
| 18 | Grimsby Town | 46 | 10 | 4 | 9 | 26 | 27 | 4 | 6 | 13 | 17 | 35 | 43 | 62 | –19 | 52 | ||||
| 19 | Stockport County | 46 | 6 | 11 | 6 | 29 | 26 | 5 | 7 | 11 | 29 | 39 | 58 | 65 | –7 | 51 | ||||
| 20 | Portsmouth | 46 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 31 | 25 | 1 | 11 | 11 | 16 | 34 | 47 | 59 | –12 | 49 | ||||
| 21 | Crystal Palace | 46 | 6 | 6 | 11 | 28 | 34 | 6 | 7 | 10 | 29 | 36 | 57 | 70 | –13 | 49 | ||||
| 22 | Huddersfield Town | 46 | 7 | 6 | 10 | 29 | 26 | 4 | 9 | 10 | 19 | 31 | 48 | 57 | –9 | 48 | ||||
| 23 | Queens Park Rangers | 46 | 6 | 9 | 8 | 24 | 28 | 1 | 10 | 12 | 21 | 47 | 45 | 75 | –30 | 40 | ||||
| 24 | Tranmere Rovers | 46 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 30 | 33 | 1 | 4 | 18 | 16 | 44 | 46 | 77 | –31 | 38 |
- Pld = Matches ; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points
| Key | |
| Football League Champions, promoted to FA Premier League | |
| Promoted to FA Premier League | |
| Participated in play-offs | |
| Promoted to Premier League through play-offs | |
| Relegated |
Results
Blackburn Rovers' score comes firstLegend
Football League First Division
FA Cup
| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| R3 | 6 January 2001 | Chester City | H | 2-0 | 15,223 | Taylor, Bent |
| R4 | 27 January 2001 | Derby County | H | 0-0 | 18,858 | |
| R4R | 7 February 2001 | Derby County | A | 5-2 | 15,203 | Flitcroft, Bent, Dunn, Jansen |
| R5 | 17 February 2001 | Bolton Wanderers | A | 1-1 | 22,048 | Dunn |
| R5R | 7 March 2001 | Bolton Wanderers | H | 3-0 | 20,318 | Flitcroft, Hignett |
| QF | 10 March 2001 | Arsenal | A | 0-3 | 36,304 |
League Cup
| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| R1 1st Leg | 22 August 2000 | Rochdale | A | 1-1 | 4,873 | Blake |
| R1 2nd Leg | 6 September 2000 | Rochdale | H | 6-1 | 12,977 | Duff, Dunn, Diawara |
| R2 1st Leg | 19 September 2000 | Portsmouth | H | 4-0 | 10,360 | Carsley, Thomas, Østenstad |
| R2 2nd Leg | 26 September 2000 | Portsmouth | A | 1-1 | 2,731 | Dunn |
| R3 | 31 October 2000 | West Ham United | A | 0-2 | 21,863 |
First-team squad
Left club during season
Reserve squad
Top scorers
First Division
- Matt Jansen 23
- David Dunn 12
- Marcus Bent 8
- Nathan Blake 5
- Mark Hughes 4