1997–98 Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. season

The 1997–98 season was the 99th season of competitive league football in the history of English football club Wolverhampton Wanderers. They played the season in the second tier of the English football system, the Football League First Division.

Wolverhampton Wanderers

1997–98 season
Chairman	Jonathan Hayward, then Sir Jack Hayward (from 7 September)
Manager	Mark McGhee
Football League First Division	9th
FA Cup	Semi-finals
League Cup	3rd round
Top goalscorer	League: Robbie Keane (11) All: Dougie Freedman (13)
Highest home attendance	28,244 (vs West Brom, 31 January 1998)
Lowest home attendance	17,862 (vs Fulham, 24 September 1997)
Average home league attendance	23,277 (league only)

The team finished in ninth position in the league, failing to mount a serious promotion challenge after having finished third in the previous campaign. They did, however, reach the semi-finals of the FA Cup for the first time in nineteen years, where they lost to eventual double winners Arsenal.

Results

Football League First Division

See also: 1997–98 Football League

A total of 24 teams competed in the Football League First Division in the 1997–98 season. Each team played every other team twice: once at their stadium, and once at the opposition's. Three points were awarded to teams for each win, one point per draw, and none for defeats. Teams finishing level on points were firstly divided by the number of goals scored rather than goal difference.

The provisional fixture list was released on 16 June 1997, but was subject to change in the event of matches being selected for television coverage or police concerns.[1]

Norwich City v Wolverhampton Wanderers

9 August 1997 1	Norwich City	0–2	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Norwich
15:00 GMT		Report	Keane  34', 64'	Stadium: Carrow Road Attendance: 17,230 Referee: Mike Bailey

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Sheffield United

16 August 1997 2	Wolverhampton Wanderers	0–0	Sheffield United	Wolverhampton
15:00 BST		Report		Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 23,102 Referee: Paul Danson

West Bromwich Albion v Wolverhampton Wanderers

24 August 1997 3	West Bromwich Albion	1–0	Wolverhampton Wanderers	West Bromwich
13:00 BST	Curle  16' (o.g.)	Report		Stadium: The Hawthorns Attendance: 21,511 Referee: Terry Heilbron

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Bury

30 August 1997 4	Wolverhampton Wanderers	4–2	Bury	Wolverhampton
15:00 BST	Keane  5', 86' Bull  42', 51'	Report	Battersby  19' Johnson  61'	Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 21,141 Referee: George Cain

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Port Vale

3 September 1997 5	Wolverhampton Wanderers	1–1	Port Vale	Wolverhampton
19:45 BST	Bull  74'	Report	Foyle  82'	Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 21,524 Referee: Andy Butler

Oxford United v Wolverhampton Wanderers

7 September 1997 6	Oxford United	3–0	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Oxford
13:00 BST	Beauchamp  17', 71' Ford  23'	Report		Stadium: Manor Ground Attendance: 6,921 Referee: Clive Wilkes

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Charlton Athletic

13 September 1997 7	Wolverhampton Wanderers	3–1	Charlton Athletic	Wolverhampton
15:00 BST	Bull  9', 35' Froggatt  26'	Report	Chapple  72'	Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 22,683 Referee: Kevin Lynch

Sunderland v Wolverhampton Wanderers

20 September 1997 8	Sunderland	1–1	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Sunderland
15:00 BST	Smith  17'	Report	Melville  34' (o.g.)	Stadium: Stadium of Light Attendance: 30,682 Referee: William Burns

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Huddersfield Town

27 September 1997 9	Wolverhampton Wanderers	1–1	Huddersfield Town	Wolverhampton
15:00 BST	Bull  1'	Report	Stewart  32'	Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 21,723 Referee: Rob Harris

Bradford City v Wolverhampton Wanderers

4 October 1997 10	Bradford City	2–0	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Bradford
15:00 BST	Steiner  34' Kulcsar  40'	Report		Stadium: Valley Parade Attendance: 15,236 Referee: Graham Laws

Birmingham City v Wolverhampton Wanderers

12 October 1997 11	Birmingham City	1–0	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Birmingham
16:00 BST	Marsden  8'	Report		Stadium: St Andrew's Attendance: 17,822 Referee: Mike Brandwood

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Swindon Town

18 October 1997 12	Wolverhampton Wanderers	3–1	Swindon Town	Wolverhampton
15:00 BST	Freedman  12' Curle  78' Simpson  80'	Report	Hay  24' (pen.)	Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 21,794 Referee: Chris Foy

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Tranmere Rovers

22 October 1997 13	Wolverhampton Wanderers	2–1	Tranmere Rovers	Wolverhampton
19:45 BST	Robinson  15' Freedman  16'	Report	Jones  65'	Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 20,841 Referee: Eddie Lomas

Stockport County v Wolverhampton Wanderers

25 October 1997 14	Stockport County	1–0	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Stockport
15:00 BST	Cook  20'	Report		Stadium: Edgeley Park Attendance: 9,804 Referee: Roy Pearson

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Middlesbrough

1 November 1997 15	Wolverhampton Wanderers	1–0	Middlesbrough	Wolverhampton
15:00 GMT	Keane  82'	Report		Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 26,896 Referee: Mike Pierce

Crewe Alexandra v Wolverhampton Wanderers

4 November 1997 16	Crewe Alexandra	0–2	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Crewe
19:45 GMT		Report	Freedman  14' Muscat  63'	Stadium: Gresty Road Attendance: 5,743 Referee: Andy D'Urso

Stoke City v Wolverhampton Wanderers

8 November 1997 17	Stoke City	3–0	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Stoke-on-Trent
15:00 GMT	Kavanagh  8', 23' (pen.) Forsyth  60'	Report		Stadium: Britannia Stadium Attendance: 18,490 Referee: Eddie Wolstenholme

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Ipswich Town

15 November 1997 18	Wolverhampton Wanderers	1–1	Ipswich Town	Wolverhampton
15:00 GMT	Keane  27'	Report	Johnson  44'	Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 21,937 Referee: John Kirkby

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Queens Park Rangers

29 November 1997 19	Wolverhampton Wanderers	3–2	Queens Park Rangers	Wolverhampton
15:00 GMT	Osborn  44' Goodman  67', 77'	Report	Sheron  61' Peacock  85'	Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 23,645 Referee: Brian Coddington

Manchester City v Wolverhampton Wanderers

6 December 1997 20	Manchester City	0–1	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Manchester
15:00 GMT		Report	Symons  42' (o.g.)	Stadium: Maine Road Attendance: 28,999 Referee: Clive Wilkes

Portsmouth v Wolverhampton Wanderers

9 December 1997 21	Portsmouth	3–2	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Portsmouth
19:45 GMT	Durnin  14', 47' Hillier  74'	Report	Westwood  76' Froggatt  87'	Stadium: Fratton Park Attendance: 8,042 Referee: Steve Dorr

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Nottingham Forest

14 December 1997 22	Wolverhampton Wanderers	2–1	Nottingham Forest	Wolverhampton
13:00 GMT	Freedman  20' Robinson  66'	Report	Johnson  84'	Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 24,635 Referee: Mike Bailey

Reading v Wolverhampton Wanderers

20 December 1997 23	Reading	0–0	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Reading
15:00 GMT		Report		Stadium: Elm Park Attendance: 11,715 Referee: Steve Bennett

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Oxford United

26 December 1997 24	Wolverhampton Wanderers	1–0	Oxford United	Wolverhampton
15:00 GMT	Goodman  19'	Report		Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 26,238 Referee: Phil Richards

Port Vale v Wolverhampton Wanderers

28 December 1997 25	Port Vale	0–2	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Burslem
15:00 GMT		Report	Muscat  45' Freedman  87'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 10,898 Referee: Paul Taylor

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Norwich City

10 January 1998 26	Wolverhampton Wanderers	5–0	Norwich City	Wolverhampton
15:00 GMT	Keane  22' Goodman  24' Freedman  43', 45', 77'	Report		Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 23,703 Referee: David Pugh

Sheffield United v Wolverhampton Wanderers

17 January 1998 27	Sheffield United	1–0	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Sheffield
15:00 GMT	Marcelo  39'	Report		Stadium: Bramall Lane Attendance: 22,144 Referee: William Burns

Bury v Wolverhampton Wanderers

27 January 1998 28	Bury	1–3	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Bury
19:45 GMT	Battersby  43'	Report	Keane  22' Simpson  55', 62'	Stadium: Gigg Lane Attendance: 6,134 Referee: Kevin Lynch

Wolverhampton Wanderers v West Bromwich Albion

31 January 1998 29	Wolverhampton Wanderers	0–1	West Bromwich Albion	Wolverhampton
15:00 GMT		Report	Hunt  72'	Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 28,244 Referee: Scott Mathieson

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Sunderland

7 February 1998 30	Wolverhampton Wanderers	0–1	Sunderland	Wolverhampton
15:00 GMT		Report	Ball  88'	Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 27,502 Referee: Rob Harris

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Bradford City

18 February 1998 31	Wolverhampton Wanderers	2–1	Bradford City	Wolverhampton
19:45 GMT	Robinson  43' Bull  89'	Report	Blake  58'	Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 21,510 Referee: Andy D'Urso

Huddersfield Town v Wolverhampton Wanderers

21 February 1998 32	Huddersfield Town	1–0	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Huddersfield
15:00 GMT	Dyson  90'	Report		Stadium: McAlpine Stadium Attendance: 12,663 Referee: Roy Pearson

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Birmingham City

28 February 1998 33	Wolverhampton Wanderers	1–3	Birmingham City	Wolverhampton
13:00 GMT	Freedman  13'	Report	Ndlovu  35' (pen.), 77' Adebola  71'	Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 25,591 Referee: George Cain

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Stoke City

4 March 1998 34	Wolverhampton Wanderers	1–1	Stoke City	Wolverhampton
19:45 GMT	Freedman  22'	Report	Crowe  89'	Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 21,058 Referee: Eddie Wolstenholme

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Crewe Alexandra

14 March 1998 35	Wolverhampton Wanderers	1–0	Crewe Alexandra	Wolverhampton
15:00 GMT	Keane  35'	Report		Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 24,272 Referee: Graham Frankland

Swindon Town v Wolverhampton Wanderers

18 March 1998 36	Swindon Town	0–0	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Swindon
19:45 GMT		Report		Stadium: County Ground Attendance: 7,770 Referee: Anthony Leake

Ipswich Town v Wolverhampton Wanderers

21 March 1998 37	Ipswich Town	3–0	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Ipswich
15:00 GMT	Johnson  3' Holland  57' Scowcroft  74'	Report		Stadium: Portman Road Attendance: 21,510 Referee: Barry Knight

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Portsmouth

29 March 1998 38	Wolverhampton Wanderers	2–0	Portsmouth	Wolverhampton
12:05 BST	Goodman  44' Osborn  90'	Report		Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 20,718 Referee: Trevor Jones

Queens Park Rangers v Wolverhampton Wanderers

1 April 1998 39	Queens Park Rangers	0–0	Wolverhampton Wanderers	London
19:45 BST		Report		Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 12,337 Referee: John Kirkby

Charlton Athletic v Wolverhampton Wanderers

7 April 1998 40	Charlton Athletic	1–0	Wolverhampton Wanderers	London
19:45 BST	Mendonca  8'	Report		Stadium: The Valley Attendance: 13,743 Referee: Frazier Stretton

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Manchester City

11 April 1998 41	Wolverhampton Wanderers	2–2	Manchester City	Wolverhampton
15:00 BST	Margetson  34' (o.g.) Simpson  85'	Report	Pollock  13' Horlock  63'	Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 24,458 Referee: Mark Halsey

Nottingham Forest v Wolverhampton Wanderers

13 April 1998 42	Nottingham Forest	3–0	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Nottingham
12:05 BST	Johnson  32' van Hooijdonk  39' Campbell  90'	Report		Stadium: City Ground Attendance: 22,863 Referee: Phil Richards

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Reading

18 April 1998 43	Wolverhampton Wanderers	3–1	Reading	Wolverhampton
15:00 BST	Muscat  9' Goodman  69', 90'	Report	Brayson  44'	Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 19,785 Referee: Terry Heilbron

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Stockport County

25 April 1998 44	Wolverhampton Wanderers	3–4	Stockport County	Wolverhampton
15:00 BST	Keane  5', 59' Atkins  45'	Report	Cooper  40' (pen.), 83' (pen.) Byrne  57', 86'	Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 22,452 Referee: Roger Furnandiz

Middlesbrough v Wolverhampton Wanderers

29 April 1998 45	Middlesbrough	1–1	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Middlesbrough
19:45 BST	Ricard  12'	Report	Atkins  10'	Stadium: Riverside Stadium Attendance: 29,878 Referee: Mike Bailey

Tranmere Rovers v Wolverhampton Wanderers

3 May 1998 46	Tranmere Rovers	2–1	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Birkenhead
13:30 BST	Aldridge  34' (pen.), 75'	Report	Goodman  51'	Stadium: Prenton Park Attendance: 11,144 Referee: Kevin Lynch

Final table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
6	Sheffield United	46	19	17	10	69	54	+15	74
7	Birmingham City	46	19	17	10	60	35	+25	74
8	Stockport County	46	19	8	19	71	69	0+2	65
9	Wolverhampton Wanderers	46	18	11	17	57	53	0+4	65
10	West Bromwich Albion	46	16	13	17	50	56	0−6	61

Source: Statto.com

Results summary

Overall								Home						Away
Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
46	18	11	17	57	53	+4	65	13	6	4	42	25	+17	5	5	13	15	28	−13

Source: Statto.com

Results by round

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38	39	40	41	42	43	44	45	46
Result	W	D	L	W	D	L	W	D	D	L	L	W	W	L	W	W	L	D	W	W	L	W	D	W	W	W	L	W	L	L	W	L	L	D	W	D	L	W	D	L	D	L	W	L	D	L
Position	1	5	11	8	7	9	6	9	11	13	15	12	8	11	9	6	8	9	9	9	9	9	8	7	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	9	9	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	9

Source: Statto.com
W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

FA Cup

See also: 1997–98 FA Cup

Darlington v Wolverhampton Wanderers

14 January 1998 R3	Darlington	0–4	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Darlington
19:45 GMT		Report	Freedman  18' Paatelainen  66', 90' Ferguson  90'	Stadium: Feethams Attendance: 5,018 Referee: George Cain

Charlton Athletic v Wolverhampton Wanderers

24 January 1998 R4	Charlton Athletic	1–1	Wolverhampton Wanderers	London
15:00 GMT	Jones  64'	Report	Richards  47'	Stadium: The Valley Attendance: 15,540 Referee: Graham Poll

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Charlton Athletic

3 February 1998 R4 rep.	Wolverhampton Wanderers	3–0	Charlton Athletic	Wolverhampton
19:45 GMT	Curle  29' (pen.) Naylor  48' Paatelainen  65'	Report		Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 20,429 Referee: Graham Poll

Wimbledon v Wolverhampton Wanderers

14 February 1998 R5	Wimbledon	1–1	Wolverhampton Wanderers	London
15:00 GMT	Euell  14'	Report	Paatelainen  67'	Stadium: Selhurst Park Attendance: 15,322 Referee: Uriah Rennie

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Wimbledon

25 February 1998 R5 rep.	Wolverhampton Wanderers	2–1	Wimbledon	Wolverhampton
19:45 GMT	Robinson  63' Freedman  85'	Report	Jones  48'	Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 25,112 Referee: Uriah Rennie

Leeds United v Wolverhampton Wanderers

7 March 1998 QF	Leeds United	0–1	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Leeds
15:00 GMT		Report	Goodman  82'	Stadium: Elland Road Attendance: 39,902 Referee: Paul Durkin

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Arsenal

5 April 1998 SF	Wolverhampton Wanderers	0–1	Arsenal	Birmingham
12:00 BST		Report	Wreh  12'	Stadium: Villa Park Attendance: 39,372 Referee: Stephen Lodge

League Cup

See also: 1997–98 Football League Cup

Queens Park Rangers v Wolverhampton Wanderers

12 August 1997 R1.1	Queens Park Rangers	0–2	Wolverhampton Wanderers	London
19:45 BST		Report	Froggatt  13' Paatelainen  86'	Stadium: Loftus Road Attendance: 8,355 Referee: Andy D'Urso

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Queens Park Rangers

27 August 1997 R1.2	Wolverhampton Wanderers	1–2 (3–2 agg.)	Queens Park Rangers	Wolverhampton
19:45 BST	Ferguson  62' (pen.)	Report	Peacock  36' Murray  66'	Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 18,398 Referee: John Kirkby

Fulham v Wolverhampton Wanderers

16 September 1997 R2.1	Fulham	0–1	Wolverhampton Wanderers	London
19:45 BST			Sanjuán  34'	Stadium: Craven Cottage Attendance: 5,933

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Fulham

24 September 1997 R2.2	Wolverhampton Wanderers	1–0 (2–0 agg.)	Fulham	Wolverhampton
19:45 BST	Goodman  89'	Report		Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 17,862 Referee: Scott Mathieson

Reading v Wolverhampton Wanderers

14 October 1997 R3	Reading	4–2	Wolverhampton Wanderers	Reading
19:45 BST	Williams  33' (o.g.) Parkinson  34' Meaker  46' McPherson  54'	Report	Bull  44', 57'	Stadium: Elm Park Attendance: 11,080 Referee: Clive Wilkes

Players

Key:
  ‡ On loan from another club   * First appearance(s) for the club

• # = Squad number
• Pos = Playing position
• P = Number of games played
• G = Number of goals scored
• GK = Goalkeeper
• DF = Defender
• MF = Midfielder
• FW = Forward
• = Yellow cards
• = Red cards
• † Permanent player left club during the season
• ¤ Loaned to another club for part or all of season

Correct as of end of season. Starting appearances are listed first, followed by substitute appearances in parentheses where applicable.

Pos	Name	P	G	P	G	P	G	P	G			Notes
		League		FA Cup		League Cup		Total		Discipline
GK	Justin Bray	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
GK	Matt Murray	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
GK	Hans Segers	11	0	2	0	0	0	13	0	0	0
GK	Mike Stowell	35	0	5	0	5	0	45	0	0	0
DF	Simon Coleman ‡	3(1)	0	0	0	0	0	3(1)	0	0	0
DF	Keith Curle (c)	40	1	7	1	0	0	47	2	0	0
DF	Ryan Green	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
DF	Dariusz Kubicki ¤	12	0	0	0	4	0	16	0	2	0
DF	Kevin Muscat	22(2)	3	5	0	0	0	27(2)	3	9	0
DF	Lee Naylor	14(2)	0	4	1	1	0	19(2)	1	1	0
DF	Dean Richards	13	0	7	1	0	0	20	1	1	0
DF	Jamie Smith †	11	0	0	0	5	0	16	0	0	0
DF	Chris Westwood	3(1)	1	0	0	1(1)	0	4(2)	1	1	0
DF	Adrian Williams	20	0	2(2)	0	2	0	24(2)	0	3	0
DF	Stephen Wright ‡	3	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	0	0
MF	Mark Atkins	30(4)	2	4(1)	0	5	0	39(5)	2	3	0
MF	Steve Corica	0(1)	0	0	0	0	0	0(1)	0	0	0
MF	Tony Daley	0(2)	0	0(1)	0	0	0	0(3)	0	0	0
MF	Isidro Díaz †	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
MF	Neil Emblen †	6(1)	0	0	0	0	0	6(1)	0	1	0
MF	Darren Ferguson	22(4)	0	2	1	5	1	29(4)	2	8	0
MF	Steve Froggatt	31(2)	2	3	0	3	1	37(2)	3	4	0
MF	Michael Gilkes	3	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	1	0
MF	Simon Osborn	23(1)	2	3	0	0	0	26(1)	2	3	1
MF	Carl Robinson	27(5)	3	7	1	4	0	38(5)	4	7	0
MF	Steve Sedgley	18(1)	0	6	0	2	0	26(1)	0	4	2
MF	Jesús García Sanjuán ‡	4	0	0	0	2(1)	1	6(1)	1	1	0
MF	Paul Simpson	23(5)	4	2(2)	0	0	0	25(7)	4	0	1
MF	Robbie Slater	4(2)	0	0(1)	0	0	0	4(3)	0	0	0
MF	Jermaine Wright †	0(4)	0	0	0	0	0	0(4)	0	0	0
FW	Steve Bull	24(7)	7	1(2)	0	5	2	30(9)	9	2	1
FW	Steve Claridge	4(1)	0	1	0	0	0	5(1)	0	0	0
FW	Glen Crowe ¤	0(2)	0	0	0	0	0	0(2)	0	0	0
FW	Dominic Foley ¤	1(4)	0	0	0	0(2)	0	1(6)	0	0	0
FW	Dougie Freedman	25(4)	10	5(1)	2	0	0	30(5)	12	8	0
FW	Don Goodman	29(1)	8	6	1	2(1)	1	37(2)	10	4	0
FW	Mark Jones	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
FW	Robbie Keane	34(4)	11	1(2)	0	3(1)	0	38(7)	11	2	0
FW	Richard Leadbeater	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
FW	Mixu Paatelainen	10(13)	0	4(1)	4	4(1)	1	18(15)	5	6	0
FW	Jason Roberts ¤	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Transfers

In

Date	Player	From	Fee
11 July 1997	Steve Sedgley	Ipswich Town	£350,000[2]
6 August 1997	Dariusz Kubicki	Sunderland	Free[3]
6 August 1997	Mixu Paatelainen	Bolton Wanderers	£250,000[3]
1 September 1997	Isidro Díaz	Unattached	Free
5 September 1997	Hans Segers	Unattached	Free[4]
12 September 1997	Jason Roberts	Hayes	£250,000[5]
21 October 1997	Dougie Freedman	Crystal Palace	£800,000[6]
21 October 1997	Kevin Muscat	Crystal Palace	£200,000[6]
11 November 1997	Paul Simpson	Derby County	£75,000[7]
25 March 1998	Neil Emblen	Crystal Palace	Undisclosed[8]
25 March 1998	Robbie Slater	Southampton	£50,000[8]
26 March 1998	Steve Claridge	Leicester City	£350,000[9]

Out

Date	Player	To	Fee
June 1997	Robbie Dennison	Released	Free[10]
June 1997	Brian Law	Released	Free[10]
June 1997	Dennis Pearce	Released	Free[10]
June 1997	Serge Romano	Released	Free[10]
June 1997	Geoff Thomas	Released	Free[10]
June 1997	Andy Thompson	Released	Free[10]
June 1997	Eric Young	Released	Free[10]
7 July 1997	Iwan Roberts	Norwich City	£850,000[11]
11 July 1997	Mark Venus	Ipswich Town	£150,000[2]
13 August 1997	Neil Emblen	Crystal Palace	£1.8 million[12]
30 September 1997	Isidro Díaz	Released	Free
21 October 1997	Jamie Smith	Crystal Palace	£1 million[6]
19 February 1998	Jermaine Wright	Crewe Alexandra	£25,000[13]

Loans in

Start date	Player	From	End date
2 September 1997	Simon Coleman	Bolton Wanderers	2 October 1997[14]
15 September 1997	Jesús García Sanjuán	Real Zaragoza	15 December 1997[15]
10 October 1997	Paul Simpson	Derby County	10 November 1997[16]
17 October 1997	Dougie Freedman	Crystal Palace	20 October 1997[17]
19 March 1998	Stephen Wright	Rangers	End of season[18]

Loans out

Start date	Player	To	End date
24 October 1997	Glen Crowe	Cardiff City	9 December 1997
December 1997	Jason Roberts	Torquay United	5 March 1998
24 February 1998	Dominic Foley	Watford	End of season[19]
4 March 1998	Dariusz Kubicki	Tranmere Rovers	End of season[20]
25 March 1998	Jason Roberts	Bristol City	End of season[8]

Kit

The season retained the home kit of the previous year: a "wolf head" design created using their traditional gold and black colours. A new away kit comprising a white away shirt with a dark green collar and dark green shorts was introduced. Both were manufactured by Puma and sponsored by Goodyear.

References

1. "Complete FA Carling Premiership and Nationwide League fixtures 1997–98". The Independent. 17 June 1997.
2. "Sedge swoop". The Mirror. 12 July 1997.
3. "Bargain hunter McGhee". The Mirror. 7 August 1997.
4. "Magilton makes the switch to Wednesday". The Independent. 6 September 1997.
5. "Celtic capture £1.5m Rieper". The Independent. 13 September 1997.
6. "Sporting Digest". The Independent. 22 October 1997. Archived from the original on 25 January 2013.
7. "Kirk out for month". The News Letter. 6 November 1997. Archived from the original on 11 June 2014.
8. "McGhee is halfway to clinching four-timer". Birmingham Post. 26 March 1998.
9. "Claridge signs for Wolves". Birmingham Evening Mail. 26 March 1998. Archived from the original on 11 June 2014.
10. "Cooper's blunder". The Independent. 18 May 1997. Archived from the original on 25 January 2013.
11. "Football". The Independent. 8 July 1997. Archived from the original on 25 January 2013.
12. "Coppell chases Pearce". The Mirror. 14 August 1997.
13. "Ablett gets thumbs up for clash with Blades". Birmingham Post. 20 February 1998.
14. "McGhee still fears for job". Daily Mail. 3 September 1997.
15. "Barnet secure sponsorship deal with Loaded magazine". The Independent. 16 September 1997.
16. "No punishment for O'Neill". The Independent. 11 October 1997.
17. "McGhee surviving on borrowed time and players". The Independent. 18 October 1997.
18. "McGhee to cast net in last throw of the dice". Birmingham Post. 20 March 1998.
19. "Candid Curle leaves Wolves no room for manoeuvre". Birmingham Post. 25 February 1998.
20. "Equation is simple one as Wolves lick wounds". Birmingham Post. 4 March 1998.