During the 1996–97 English football season, Everton F.C. competed in the FA Premier League.
Season summary After finishing sixth the previous season, Everton started the new season with much hope and ambitions of qualifying for Europe or winning a major trophy. But the mid-season sale of top scoring winger Andrei Kanchelskis to Fiorentina sabotaged Everton's chances of more success, and manager Joe Royle resigned in March, less than two years after guiding the club to FA Cup glory. Captain Dave Watson took over as acting manager and confirmed Everton's survival with a 15th-place finish, before Howard Kendall returned to Goodison Park for his third spell as manager.
Final league table
Results summary
Results by round
Results Everton's score comes first
Legend WinDrawLoss
FA Premier League DateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorers 17 August 1996 Newcastle UnitedH2–040,117Unsworth (pen), Speed 21 August 1996 Manchester UnitedA2–254,943Ferguson (2) 24 August 1996 Tottenham HotspurA0–029,696 4 September 1996 Aston VillaH0–139,115 7 September 1996 WimbledonA0–413,684 14 September 1996 MiddlesbroughH1–239,250Short 21 September 1996 Blackburn RoversA1–127,091Unsworth 28 September 1996 Sheffield WednesdayH2–034,160Kanchelskis, Stuart 12 October 1996 West Ham UnitedH2–136,571Stuart, Speed 28 October 1996 Nottingham ForestA1–019,892Short 4 November 1996 Coventry CityH1–131,477Stuart 16 November 1996 SouthamptonH7–135,669Stuart, Kanchelskis (2), Speed (3), Barmby 20 November 1996 LiverpoolA1–140,751Speed 23 November 1996 Leicester CityA2–120,975Hinchcliffe, Unsworth 30 November 1996 SunderlandH1–340,087Ferguson 7 December 1996 ChelseaA2–228,418Branch, Kanchelskis 16 December 1996 Derby CountyA1–017,252Barmby 21 December 1996 Leeds UnitedH0–036,954 26 December 1996 MiddlesbroughA2–429,673Unsworth, Ferguson 28 December 1996 WimbledonH1–336,733Stuart 1 January 1997 Blackburn RoversH0–230,427 11 January 1997 Sheffield WednesdayA1–224,175Ferguson 19 January 1997 ArsenalA1–338,095Ferguson 29 January 1997 Newcastle UnitedA1–436,143Speed 1 February 1997 Nottingham ForestH2–032,567Ferguson, Barmby 22 February 1997 Coventry CityA0–019,497 1 March 1997 ArsenalH0–236,980 5 March 1997 SouthamptonA2–215,134Ferguson, Speed 8 March 1997 Leeds UnitedA0–132,055 15 March 1997 Derby CountyH1–032,140D Watson 22 March 1997 Manchester UnitedH0–240,079 5 April 1997 Aston VillaA1–339,339Unsworth 9 April 1997 Leicester CityH1–130,368Branch 12 April 1997 Tottenham HotspurH1–036,380Speed 16 April 1997 LiverpoolH1–140,177Ferguson 19 April 1997 West Ham UnitedA2–224,545Branch, Ferguson 3 May 1997 SunderlandA0–322,108 11 May 1997 ChelseaH1–238,321Barmby
FA Cup
+RoundDateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceGoalscorersR35 January 1997 Swindon TownH3–020,411Kanchelskis, Barmby, FergusonR425 January 1997 Bradford CityH2–330,007O'Brien (own goal), Speed
League Cup
+RoundDateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceGoalscorersR2 1st Leg 18 September 1996 York CityH1–111,527KanchelskisR2 2nd Leg 24 September 1996 York CityA2–37,354Rideout, Speed
Squad
Left club during season
Reserve squad
Statistics
Appearances and goals
! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center|Goalkeepers
! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center|Defenders
! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center|Midfielders
! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center|Forwards
! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Players who left the club during the season
References