The 2002-03 Barclaycard Premiership was the eleventh season of the Premier League following its inception in 1992.
The title race would see yet another close battle for top spot between Manchester United and winners from the previous season, Arsenal.
It was the reigning champions who set the pace early on in the season.
The Gunners were leading on all fronts at the halfway stage in the season, breaking new English domestic records along the way.
Having lead by eight points on 2 March, Arsenal managed to throw away a priceless lead against Bolton Wanderers and surrendered the title after a 3-2 home defeat to Leeds United, 3 games before the end of the season.
Man United benefited from the demise of Arsene Wenger's side, while Leeds salvaged survival with the 3-2 win.
United finished 5 points clear of Arsenal, meanwhile Newcastle United and Chelsea grabbed the final two Champions League spots.
Chelsea finished fourth at the expense of Liverpool.
Liverpool instead qualified for the UEFA Cup and were joined in Europe by Blackburn Rovers and newly promoted sides Manchester City and Birmingham City.
Records were also being broken at the bottom of the Premiership table.
Sunderland were relegated with the fewest points and goals scored in a season, while West Ham United were relegated with the highest total of points.
The 42 points West Ham picked up would have been enough to have saved them in any other season, but in this case they dropped out of the division, with West Brom also dropping down.
Domestic honours saw the FA Cup head to Highbury and the League Cup (Worthington Cup) going to Anfield.
Arsenal defeated Southampton with a 1-0 win at the Millennium Stadium, the winning goal coming from Robert Pires.
Gerard Houllier's Liverpool team beat Sir Alex Ferguson's United side 2-0 to win the League Cup.
Harry Redknapp guided Portsmouth to the Premiership and was joined by Leicester City and Wolves in the top flight for the 2003-04 season.
Final Premier League Table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manchester United (C) | 38 | 25 | 8 | 5 | 74 | 34 | +40 | 83 | 2003?04 UEFA Champions League Group stage |
| 2 | Arsenal | 38 | 23 | 9 | 6 | 85 | 42 | +43 | 78 | |
| 3 | Newcastle United | 38 | 21 | 6 | 11 | 63 | 48 | +15 | 69 | 2003?04 UEFA Champions League Third qualifying round |
| 4 | Chelsea | 38 | 19 | 10 | 9 | 68 | 38 | +30 | 67 | |
| 5 | Liverpool | 38 | 18 | 10 | 10 | 61 | 41 | +20 | 64 | 2003?04 UEFA Cup First round |
| 6 | Blackburn Rovers | 38 | 16 | 12 | 10 | 52 | 43 | +9 | 60 | |
| 7 | Everton | 38 | 17 | 8 | 13 | 48 | 49 | −1 | 59 | |
| 8 | Southampton | 38 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 43 | 46 | −3 | 52 | 2003?04 UEFA Cup First round |
| 9 | Manchester City | 38 | 15 | 6 | 17 | 47 | 54 | −7 | 51 | 2003?04 UEFA Cup Qualifying round |
| 10 | Tottenham Hotspur | 38 | 14 | 8 | 16 | 51 | 62 | −11 | 50 | |
| 11 | Middlesbrough | 38 | 13 | 10 | 15 | 48 | 44 | +4 | 49 | |
| 12 | Charlton Athletic | 38 | 14 | 7 | 17 | 45 | 56 | −11 | 49 | |
| 13 | Birmingham City | 38 | 13 | 9 | 16 | 41 | 49 | −8 | 48 | |
| 14 | Fulham | 37 | 13 | 9 | 15 | 41 | 50 | −9 | 48 | |
| 15 | Leeds United | 38 | 14 | 5 | 19 | 58 | 57 | +1 | 47 | |
| 16 | Aston Villa | 38 | 12 | 9 | 17 | 42 | 47 | −5 | 45 | |
| 17 | Bolton Wanderers | 38 | 10 | 14 | 14 | 41 | 51 | −10 | 44 | |
| 18 | West Ham United (R) | 38 | 10 | 12 | 16 | 42 | 59 | −17 | 42 | Relegated to the First Division |
| 19 | West Bromwich Albion (R) | 38 | 6 | 8 | 24 | 29 | 65 | −36 | 26 | |
| 20 | Sunderland (R) | 38 | 4 | 7 | 27 | 21 | 65 | −44 | 19 |
Ruud van Nisterlrooy (Manchester United) 25 goals
Thierry Henry (Arsenal) 24 goals
James Beattie (Southampton) 23 goals
Mark Viduka (Leeds United) 20 goals
Michael Owen (Liverpool) 19 goals
Alan Shearer (Newcastle Untied) 17 goals
Nicolas Anelka (Manchester City) 15 goals
Gianfranco Zola (Chelsea) 14 goals
Robert Pires (Arsenal) 14 goals
Harry Kewell (Leeds United) 14 goals
Paul Scholes (Manchester United) 14 goals
Goals of the Season
Source: DSG
Source: DSG