Which football teams have played the most consecutive 0-0 draws?
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After Lahti's fourth consecutive 0-0 draw last night, does anyone know of a similar run? #Veikkausliiga @TheKnowledge_GU
— Escape To Suomi (@EscapeToSuomi) June 17, 2017
This question was made for George Graham, and he hasn’t let us down. His Arsenal team played four league games in October 1993 and drew the lot 0-0. In Arsenal’s defence, or rather their attack, they did score some goals in cup matches during the month but four consecutive 0-0s in the league is pretty impressive.
Surprisingly enough, Arsène Wenger’s Arsenal also managed a quartet of 0-0s in the league during the 2008-09 season – though they also scored and conceded in cup games during that period.
Goalless George did it again at Spurs, with four consecutive 0-0 draws in January and February 2001. They were all in the league but as no cup games were played in that period it counts as four consecutive 0-0s in all competitions. Sergei Rebrov was guilty of appalling statisticide when, in the next league match at Manchester City, he scored the only goal in the 90th minute.
Wolves tested the will of season-ticket holders with four consecutive 0-0s at Molineux at the back end of the 2015-16 season. Udinese managed four in a row in the 1982-83 Serie A season, a campaign in which – and you’ll like this – they drew 20 of their 30 games. Como matched that feat in Serie A in 1986-87. That season they played 30 games, scored 16 goals and conceded 20.
Best of all, earlier this year FC Rostov followed a 6-0 win at Tom Tomsk with five consecutive 0-0 draws in the Russian Premier League, though they were punctuated by a Europa League goalfest at Old Trafford: Rostov lost 1-0.
The last player to buy a pub
“Do retired players still buy pubs? Who was the last top-flight player to do so?” asks Matt Braithwaite.
Modern wages are such that some players could afford to buy the entire JD Wetherspoon empire if they wanted. That hasn’t happened yet but it seems some players still believe in the old tradition of buying a pub. “Daniel Agger, formerly of Liverpool, bought and still owns the Center Pub in Hvidovre, Copenhagen,” notes Jonas von Freiesleben. Agger has retired now, but bought the pub during his playing days.
Eoin Byrne points out that the Northern Ireland international Niall McGinn has done something similar. “He owns not one but two bar/restaurants in Belfast, one called Failte (the Irish for welcome) and one called 26 West,” points out Eoin. “Obviously he hasn’t retired but he is certainly preparing for it.”
Hat-tricks and no more (2)
In last week’s Knowledge we looked at players whose hat-tricks were their only goals for a certain club. There are a few more to add to this surprisingly long list.
“Haim Revivo, who played two and a half seasons for Fenerbahçe with quite an impressive record (82 games, 34 goals) decided to cross the Bosphorus and move to arch-rivals Galatasaray during the 2002-03 season,” says Mustafa Bozkurt. “He scored a hat-trick on his debut against Bursaspor. Naturally all Galatasaray fans got excited about this match being a sign for bigger things to come. It wasn’t. He failed to score for the rest of the season (13 games in total) and moved to his home country Israel on a free transfer.”
@GTPLiquid points out on Twitter that Luther Blissett’s only goals for England in 14 appearances came when he scored a hat-trick in the 9-0 win over Luxembourg in 1982. And @Richk64 has gone one better: he points out that the American winger Mike Grella scored four goals for Brentford, all in the same Johnstone’s Paint Trophy match against Bournemouth.
Knowledge archive
“How many times has a league’s top scorer been in a relegated team?” wondered Ben Schneider back in 2010. “And even better, has his team ever finished in last place?”
Indeed they have. In Ireland: “Dave Mooney finished top scorer in the League of Ireland in 2007 with 19 goals for Longford Town who managed to finish bottom of the league,” wrote Dean Murray. “Albeit with a six-point deduction.”
In Portugal: “In 2005-06 Cameroon striker Albert Meyong topped the Portuguese I Divisao charts with 17 goals,” noted Dave Clark, “which was still not enough to save Belenenses.” But Belenenses, despite finishing in the bottom four, were given a reprieve after Gil Vicente were relegated as punishment for fielding an ileligible player.
In England: “In 1973-74, Southampton’s Mick Channon scored 21, but his club finished 20th out of 22, and were relegated to the Second Division,” writes Vincent Lacey. “As a kicker, it was the first time the third team from bottom was relegated from the top flight, so had the old rules remained in place, Southampton would have been spared the drop, denying Carlisle their first, and only, season in the top tier.”
In Germany: “Angelo Vier was the top scorer in the 2. Bundesliga in 1997 when his team Rot-Weiss Essen was relegated,” added Matthias Gläfke.
And in Italy: “In Serie A co-Capocannoniere Igor Protti’s Bari were relegated in 1996,” wrote Rob Moline. “It was his one golden season, having been a journeyman beforehand, but it earned him as a transfer to Lazio (home of the other co-Capocannoniere Giuseppe Signori). Protti struggled there and was eventually released after only one season.”
Can you help?
“Pacífico defender Federico Allende tried to gain an advantage in an Argentinian cup match against Estudiantes by poking opposition players with a needle,” emails Chai. “Never before have I heard of a player intimidating the opponent by bringing something on the field. Of course I’ve come across more natural ways of intimidation like biting or testicle-grabbing. Have there been any similar incidents where a player has used external sources to gain an upper hand?”
“My team, Werder Bremen, broke a run of 28 goals scored against them without reply at the hands of Bayern Munich in January 2017: the run stretched back to April 2014,” writes Alex Cooke. “Is there a longer run than this, preferably of continuous games without one of the teams getting relegated?”
“When Southampton were in League One, they loaned Jason Puncheon to QPR in the Premier League, two divisions above them,” begins Ricardio Sentulio. “Is this unique? I am guessing maybe some clubs have taken goalkeepers on loan from the lower leagues in desperate times, but an outfield player like this? Are there any other examples? Or is there a player who has jumped more than two leagues higher on loan?”
“In October 2016, on-loan Fulham prospect Elijah Adebayo scored a hat-trick for Slough Town as they beat Bognor Regis Town 4-1 in the FA Trophy,” notes Matthew Harris. “After a brief return to his parent club, Adebayo was loaned out again – this time to Bognor! He went on to score a number of goals, including a hat-trick in a 5-0 league win at Canvey Island. Is this the first time a player has scored a hat-trick for and against the same club in a single season?”
“I know it’s fairly commonplace these days, as players wind down their international commitments to extend their club careers, but who was the first English player to officially announce their international retirement?” wonders James Hamilton. “How about other countries?”
Send questions and answers to knowledge@theguardian.com or tweet @TheKnowledge_GU
