During the 2004–05 English football season, West Bromwich Albion competed in the FA Premier League.
Season summary
West Bromwich Albion managed to retain their Premiership status despite being at the bottom of the table on Christmas Day. This marked the first time in the history of the Premiership that a club has done so. Since then, three other teams have matched this feat: Sunderland in 2013–14, Leicester City in 2014–15, and Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2022–23, although they secured survival before the final day.
Final day
For the first time since the inaugural Premiership season in 1992–93, no team was assured of relegation going into the final round of matches. In each of the last three weekends of the season, the team that was bottom of the table at the start of the weekend finished it outside the drop zone. The final round of the season on 15 May started with West Bromwich at the bottom, Southampton and Crystal Palace one point clear and Norwich City in the last safe spot and two points from the bottom. Even worse, only one would survive the drop.[3][4] The final matchday was publicized by Sky Sports as "Survival Sunday", with accompanying promotional material advertising the last matchday like a title fight or epic movie blockbuster.
West Brom, who had been bottom of the table and eight points from safety at Christmas, did their part by beating Portsmouth at home 2–0.[5] Norwich, the only side to have their fate completely in their own hands, needed a first away victory of the season at Craven Cottage against Fulham to secure their top-flight status and relegate everyone else irrespective of their results. Instead, they were thrashed 6–0 and went down.[6] Southampton, despite leading early on, lost 2–1 at home to Manchester United and were relegated.[7] At The Valley, Crystal Palace led Charlton Athletic 2–1 in the 71st minute, but Jonathan Fortune equalised for Charlton with eight minutes left to send them down.[8] As a result, West Brom stayed up, and made history by becoming the first club in Premiership history to avoid relegation after being bottom of the table at Christmas.[9]
After all four matches ended, cameras focused on the Hawthorns, as confirmation of other results began to filter through. Once the realisation dawned on the players and fans that survival had been achieved, a mass pitch invasion was sparked, with huge celebrations. The Portsmouth fans in the away end of the ground also celebrated despite their defeat as, through losing, they had "helped" relegate arch-rivals Southampton. The defeat itself mattered little to Portsmouth, as they would be unable to improve on their 16th position due to 15th-placed Blackburn Rovers' greater goal difference.
Final league table
Source:
[10]Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(R) Relegated
Players
First-team squad
- Squad at end of season
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Left club during season
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Statistics
Appearances and goals
- As of end of season[11]
Starting 11
- Considering starts in all competitions[11]
Transfers
Transfers in
| Date
|
Name
|
From
|
Fee
|
Ref.
|
| 18 May 2004
|
Riccardo Scimeca (ENG) |
Leicester City |
undisclosed |
[12]
|
| 3 June 2004
|
Martin Albrechtsen (DEN) |
København |
£2,700,000 |
[13]
|
| 18 June 2004
|
Darren Purse (ENG) |
Birmingham City |
£750,000 |
[14]
|
| 14 July 2004
|
Tomasz Kuszczak (POL) |
Hertha BSC |
free |
[15]
|
| 29 July 2004
|
Jonathan Greening (ENG) |
Middlesbrough |
£1,250,000 |
[16]
|
| 30 July 2004
|
Zoltán Gera (HUN) |
Ferencváros |
£1,500,000 |
[17]
|
| 30 July 2004
|
Nwankwo Kanu (NGA) |
Arsenal |
free |
[18]
|
| 30 August 2004
|
Robert Earnshaw (WAL) |
Cardiff City |
£3,000,000 (rising to £3,620,000 depending on contractual incentives) |
[19]
|
| 31 August 2004
|
Junichi Inamoto (JPN) |
Gamba Osaka |
£200,000 |
[20]
|
| 10 January 2005
|
Kevin Campbell (ENG) |
Everton |
free |
[21]
|
| 31 January 2005
|
Richard Chaplow (ENG) |
Burnley |
£1,500,000 |
[22]
|
Loans in
Transfers out
Loans out
- Transfers in: £10,800,000
- Transfers out: £1,675,000
- Total spending: £9,125,000
Results
West Bromwich Albion's result comes first
Premier League
Results per matchday
| Matchday | 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 | H | A | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | H | A | A | H | A | A | A | H | H | A | H |
|---|
| Result | D | D | D | L | L | D | L | W | D | L | L | D | L | D | L | L | L | L | L | D | D | D | L | W | D | L | D | W | L | W | W | D | D | L | D | L | D | W |
|---|
| Position | 14 | 12 | 11 | 14 | 17 | 19 | 18 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 18 | 17 | 17 | 19 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 17 |
|---|
Updated to match(es) played on 15 May 2005. Source:
Statto.comA = Away;
H = Home;
W = Win;
D = Draw;
L = Loss
| Round |
Date |
Opponent |
Venue |
Result |
Scorers |
Attendance |
Ref.
|
| 1 |
14 August 2004 |
Blackburn Rovers |
Away |
1–1 |
Clement 33' |
23,475 (2,424) |
[40]
|
| 2 |
22 August 2004 |
Aston Villa |
Home |
1–1 |
Clement 38' |
26,601 (2,600) |
[41]
|
| 3 |
25 August 2004 |
Tottenham Hotspur |
Home |
1–1 |
Gera 3' |
27,191 (2,589) |
[42]
|
| 4 |
28 August 2004 |
Everton |
Away |
1–2 |
Dobie 7' |
34,510 |
[43]
|
| 5 |
11 September 2004 |
Liverpool |
Away |
0–3 |
— |
42,947 |
[44]
|
| 6 |
18 September 2004 |
Fulham |
Home |
1–1 |
Kanu 88' |
24,128 (983) |
[45]
|
| 7 |
25 September 2004 |
Newcastle United |
Away |
1–3 |
Horsfield 87' |
52,308 |
[46]
|
| 8 |
2 October 2004 |
Bolton Wanderers |
Home |
2–1 |
Kanu 57', Gera 65' |
23,849 (1,285) |
[47]
|
| 9 |
16 October 2004 |
Norwich City |
Home |
0–0 |
— |
26,257 |
[48]
|
| 10 |
23 October 2004 |
Crystal Palace |
Away |
0–3 |
— |
22,922 |
[49]
|
| 11 |
30 October 2004 |
Chelsea |
Home |
1–4 |
Gera 56' |
27,399 (2,600) |
[50]
|
| 12 |
6 November 2004 |
Southampton |
Away |
2–2 |
Earnshaw 29', 37' |
31,057 (3,188) |
[51]
|
| 13 |
14 November 2004 |
Middlesbrough |
Home |
1–2 |
Earnshaw 37' |
24,008 (1,329) |
[52]
|
| 14 |
20 November 2004 |
Arsenal |
Away |
1–1 |
Earnshaw 79' |
38,109 (2,900) |
[53]
|
| 15 |
27 November 2004 |
Manchester United |
Home |
0–3 |
— |
27,709 (2,600) |
[54]
|
| 16 |
4 December 2004 |
Portsmouth |
Away |
2–3 |
Stefanović 14' (o.g.), Earnshaw 45' |
20,110 |
[55]
|
| 17 |
11 December 2004 |
Charlton Athletic |
Home |
0–1 |
— |
24,697 (1,344) |
[56]
|
| 18 |
18 December 2004 |
Birmingham City |
Away |
0–4 |
— |
28,880 |
[57]
|
| 19 |
26 December 2004 |
Liverpool |
Home |
0–5 |
— |
27,533 (2,599) |
[58]
|
| 20 |
28 December 2004 |
Manchester City |
Away |
1–1 |
Dunne 85' (o.g.) |
47,177 |
[59]
|
| 21 |
1 January 2005 |
Bolton Wanderers |
Away |
1–1 |
Gera 13' |
25,205 (2,300) |
[60]
|
| 22 |
3 January 2005 |
Newcastle United |
Home |
0–0 |
— |
25,259 |
[61]
|
| 23 |
16 January 2005 |
Fulham |
Away |
0–1 |
— |
16,180 |
[62]
|
| 24 |
22 January 2005 |
Manchester City |
Home |
2–0 |
Campbell 5', Wallwork 81' |
25,348 (2,590) |
[63]
|
| 25 |
1 February 2005 |
Crystal Palace |
Home |
2–2 |
Campbell 82', Earnshaw 90' |
25,092 (1,583) |
[64]
|
| 26 |
5 February 2005 |
Norwich City |
Away |
2–3 |
Earnshaw 41', Richardson 49' |
24,292 |
[65]
|
| 27 |
22 February 2005 |
Southampton |
Home |
0–0 |
— |
25,865 |
[66]
|
| 28 |
6 March 2005 |
Birmingham City |
Home |
2–0 |
Clement 53', Campbell 64' |
25,749 (2,600) |
[67]
|
| 29 |
15 March 2005 |
Chelsea |
Away |
0–1 |
— |
41,713 |
[68]
|
| 30 |
19 March 2005 |
Charlton Athletic |
Away |
4–1 |
Horsfield 9', Earnshaw 73', 84', 90' (pen.) |
27,104 (2,996) |
[69]
|
| 31 |
3 April 2005 |
Everton |
Home |
1–0 |
Gera 63' |
26,805 (2,596) |
[70]
|
| 32 |
10 April 2005 |
Aston Villa |
Away |
1–1 |
Robinson 90' |
39,402 (3,400) |
[71]
|
| 33 |
20 April 2005 |
Tottenham Hotspur |
Away |
1–1 |
Gera 24' |
35,885 |
[72]
|
| 34 |
23 April 2005 |
Middlesbrough |
Away |
0–4 |
— |
32,951 (2,394) |
[73]
|
| 35 |
26 April 2005 |
Blackburn Rovers |
Home |
1–1 |
Richardson 32' |
25,154 (856) |
[74]
|
| 36 |
2 May 2005 |
Arsenal |
Home |
0–2 |
— |
27,351 (2,599) |
[75]
|
| 37 |
7 May 2005 |
Manchester United |
Away |
1–1 |
Earnshaw 60' (pen.) |
67,827 (2,500) |
[76]
|
| 38 |
15 May 2005 |
Portsmouth |
Home |
2–0 |
Horsfield 58', Richardson 75' |
27,751 (2,600) |
[77]
|
FA Cup
Notes
- ^ Moore was born in Birmingham, England, but also qualified to represent Jamaica internationally and made his international debut for Jamaica in 1999.
- ^ Johnson was born in Bristol, England, but also qualified to represent Wales internationally and made his international debut for Wales in 1998.
- ^ Earnshaw was born in Mufulira, Zambia, but was raised in Wales and made his international debut for Wales in May 2002.
- ^ Dobie was born in Workington, England, but also qualified to represent Scotland internationally and made his international debut for Scotland in May 2002.
- ^ Haas was born in Vienna, Austria, but also qualified to represent Switzerland internationally and made his international debut for Switzerland in 1996.
References
|
|---|
| 1870s |
- 1870–71
- 1871–72
- 1872–73
- 1873–74
- 1874–75
- 1875–76
- 1876–77
- 1877–78
- 1878–79
- 1879–80
|
|---|
| 1880s | |
|---|
| 1890s | |
|---|
| 1900s |
- 1900–01
- 1901–02
- 1902–03
- 1903–04
- 1904–05
- 1905–06
- 1906–07
- 1907–08
- 1908–09
- 1909–10
|
|---|
| 1910s |
- 1910–11
- 1911–12
- 1912–13
- 1913–14
- 1914–15
- 1915–16
- 1916–17
- 1917–18
- 1918–19
- 1919–20
|
|---|
| 1920s |
- 1920–21
- 1921–22
- 1922–23
- 1923–24
- 1924–25
- 1925–26
- 1926–27
- 1927–28
- 1928–29
- 1929–30
|
|---|
| 1930s |
- 1930–31
- 1931–32
- 1932–33
- 1933–34
- 1934–35
- 1935–36
- 1936–37
- 1937–38
- 1938–39
- 1939–40
|
|---|
| 1940s |
- 1940–41
- 1941–42
- 1942–43
- 1943–44
- 1944–45
- 1945–46
- 1946–47
- 1947–48
- 1948–49
- 1949–50
|
|---|
| 1950s |
- 1950–51
- 1951–52
- 1952–53
- 1953–54
- 1954–55
- 1955–56
- 1956–57
- 1957–58
- 1958–59
- 1959–60
|
|---|
| 1960s |
- 1960–61
- 1961–62
- 1962–63
- 1963–64
- 1964–65
- 1965–66
- 1966–67
- 1967–68
- 1968–69
- 1969–70
|
|---|
| 1970s |
- 1970–71
- 1971–72
- 1972–73
- 1973–74
- 1974–75
- 1975–76
- 1976–77
- 1977–78
- 1978–79
- 1979–80
|
|---|
| 1980s |
- 1980–81
- 1981–82
- 1982–83
- 1983–84
- 1984–85
- 1985–86
- 1986–87
- 1987–88
- 1988–89
- 1989–90
|
|---|
| 1990s | |
|---|
| 2000s | |
|---|
| 2010s | |
|---|
| 2020s | |
|---|
|
|---|
|
| National teams | |
|---|
League competitions | | Level 1 | |
|---|
| Levels 2–4 | |
|---|
| Levels 5–6 | |
|---|
| Levels 7–8 | |
|---|
| Levels 9–10 |
- Isthmian League (Two)
- Combined Counties League (Premier, One)
- Eastern Counties League (Premier, One)
- Essex Senior League (level 9 only)
- Hellenic League (Premier, One East, One West)
- Kent League (level 9 only)
- Midland Alliance (level 9 only)
- Midland Football Combination (level 10 only)
- North West Counties League (One, Two)
- Northern Counties East League (Premier, One)
- Northern League (One, Two)
- Spartan South Midlands League (Premier, One)
- Sussex County League (One, Two)
- United Counties League (Premier, One)
- Wessex League (One, Two)
- West Midlands (Regional) League (level 10 only)
- Western League (Premier, One)
|
|---|
|
|---|
Cup competitions | | FA cups | |
|---|
| Football League cups | |
|---|
|
|---|
|
|