2008–09 Stoke City F.C. season
Stoke City 2008–09 football season / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The 2008–09 season was Stoke City's first season in the Premier League and the 53rd in the top tier of English football. This was also their 102nd season of league football.
2008–09 season | |||
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Chairman | Peter Coates | ||
Manager | Tony Pulis | ||
Stadium | Britannia Stadium | ||
Premier League | 12th (45 points) | ||
FA Cup | Third round | ||
League Cup | Quarter-final | ||
Top goalscorer | League: Ricardo Fuller (11) All: Ricardo Fuller (11) | ||
Highest home attendance | 27,500 (capacity, 9 times) | ||
Lowest home attendance | 25,287 vs Fulham (13 December 2008) | ||
Average home league attendance | 26,954 | ||
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After gaining promotion to the top division for the first time since 1985, Stoke were immediately tipped to be relegated from the Premier League by the media. Dave Kitson became the first signing and he was followed by Seyi Olofinjana, Thomas Sørensen, Amdy Faye, Abdoulaye Faye and the returning Danny Higginbotham. Stoke started the campaign at Bolton Wanderers and were dealt a harsh reality check losing 3–1. Stoke's first home game in the Premier League produced an exciting 3–2 win over Aston Villa with Mamady Sidibé getting the winner in the 93rd minute. Stoke claimed a valuable point away at title challenges Liverpool in September and earned wins over Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, Sunderland and West Bromwich Albion in October and November with Rory Delap's long throw-ins causing defences problems.
Stoke hit poor form in December failing to win a match and had to deal with an embarrassing on-field clash between teammates Ricardo Fuller and captain Andy Griffin away at West Ham United. In January Stoke brought in James Beattie and Matthew Etherington who proved to be influential signings. Beattie scored the only goal as Stoke ended a run of nine-matches without a win at the end of January against Man City. Stoke continued to improve and pulled clear of the relegation zone with important victories over Bolton, Middlesbrough and West Brom. Stoke sealed survival with a 2–1 victory away at Hull City in May 2009 and ended their first season in the Premier League in 12th position with 45 points.