The 2008–09 season was the 112th season in Sunderland A.F.C.'s history and 104th in the league system of English football.

Background

In preparation for their

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

campaign, Sunderland spent around £40,000,000 in the 2007–08 season. Signings included the club's record signing of Craig Gordon for £9,000,000, Michael Chopra for £5,000,000, and Kieran Richardson for an undisclosed fee believed to be in the region of £5,500,000.

Roy Keane Roy Maurice Keane (born 10 August 1971) is an Irish football pundit, former coach, and former professional player. He is best known for his career in the Premier League, in particular his captaincy of Manchester United. He is the joint most ...

began his managerial tenure in the Premier League with a win over

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Tottenham (, , , ) or Spurs, is a professional Association football, football club based in Tottenham, North London, England. The club itself has stated that it should always ...

through a last minute goal from Michael Chopra. In an attempt to bolster their goalscoring chances, Sunderland signed

Kenwyne Jones Kenwyne Joel Jones CM (born 5 October 1984) is a Trinidadian football manager and retired professional player who played as a forward. He managed the Trinidad and Tobago women's national team. He began his football career with Joe Public F. ...

from

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

for £6,000,000. The club came close to their first Tyne-Wear derby victory at home in 17 years when they drew with

Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Since th ...

. They had taken the lead before half time, but James Milner equalised an hour into the game. Michael Chopra missed the opportunity to win the game by heading the ball onto the crossbar. A tribute was paid to 1973 FA Cup Final goalscorer

Ian Porterfield John Ian Porterfield (11 February 1946 – 11 September 2007) was a Scottish professional footballer, and an experienced football coach who worked at both club and international level for almost 30 years. At the time of his death, he was the coa ...

in a game against

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...

. Sunderland marked the occasion by winning 2–1. A win over

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...

sparked a three-game winning streak, when Sunderland overcame

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Stratford, London, Stratford, East London, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English f ...

and

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...

to extend their lead over the relegation area. They sealed their Premier League safety in a 3–2 win over local rivals

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ), colloquially known as Boro, is a port town in the Borough of Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England. Lying to the south of the River Tees, Middlesbrough forms part of the Teesside Built up area, built-up area and the Tees Va ...

through a 90th-minute goal from Daryl Murphy. They finished the season in fifteenth place, on 39 points.

Match results

Legend

Pre-season

Premier League

League table

Results summary

Results per matchday

FA Cup

League Cup

Players

First-team squad

:''Squad at end of season.''

Left club during season

Statistics

Appearances and goals

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Goal scorers

Transfers

In

Out

Loans in

Loans out

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2008-09 Sunderland A.F.C. season Sunderland A.F.C. seasons

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...