During the 2002–03 English football season, Blackburn Rovers competed in the FA Premier League.
Season summary
After a season of consolidation in the Premiership the previous season (capped with victory in the League Cup), Blackburn Rovers enjoyed their best season since winning the title in 1995, finishing in sixth place and qualifying for the UEFA Cup for the second year in a row. While their UEFA Cup campaign was not especially impressive (only beating CSKA Sofia on away goals before being knocked out by eventual runners-up Celtic), their continued progress under Graeme Souness gave the fans much hope for the following season. Blackburn also embarked on another strong run in the League Cup for the second successive year, although they failed to defend their title after suffering a 4-2 aggregate defeat to Manchester United in the semi-finals. The star man for Blackburn this season was American goalkeeper Brad Friedel, who was named as the goalkeeper in the PFA Team of the Year.
Source: Premier League Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored. Notes:
^Since Liverpool qualified for the UEFA Cup via the league, their place in the UEFA Cup as League Cupwinners reverted to the league and was awarded to Blackburn Rovers as the highest-placed team not already qualified for European competitions.
^Since Arsenal qualified for the Champions League, their place in the UEFA Cup as FA Cupwinners went to Southampton, who were the FA Cup runners-up.
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.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.