They were relegated alongside West Ham and West Bromwich Albion. Nearly 20 years later that is still true, which is a whole other discussion, but either way, it was soon clear that winning the top-flight in 1991-92 was no preparation for keeping Sunderland in the top-flight in 2002-03. At the time, Wilkinson was the most recent English manager to win the English league title. The club’s initial solution was to appoint former Leeds manager Howard Wilkinson, latterly employed by the FA as Technical Director. It meant that once 2002-03 started similarly inconsistently, Reid was on borrowed time and was sacked in October, during that most dangerous of times for managerial employment: the international break. With a gleaming new stadium and Kevin Phillips in his pomp, the club’s future at the top table looked secure, but 2001-02 saw the team spiral from a place in the top 10 at Christmas to 17th by the end of the campaign. Sunderland started this campaign managed by Peter Reid, who had not only brought the club up to the top flight of English football in 1999 but had guided them to seventh place finishes in both. The first plate is the 2002-03 season, aka The One With Howard Wilkinson. Unlike other legendarily bad sides, Sunderland are about to feature twice in this list, like two distinct courses at a spectacularly bad restaurant. Sunderland’s Premier League existence in the 2000s is hard to grasp sometimes, slippery like a cold fish. ![]() We’re interested in wild mismanagement, yes, but mismanagement on the pitch. Portsmouth’s actual results on the field in 2009-10 should have seen them collect 27 points, which would still have seen them finish bottom but doesn’t really mean they should be compared with the other teams in this article. It was the initial culmination of a few seasons of economic madness that gave the club the sugary highs of an FA Cup win in 2008 and a 2-2 draw with the famous AC Milan under the tactical tutelage of Tony Adams, but would end with the club falling all the way down to the fourth tier within three years. No one likes to see football seasons decided in back offices and on fax machines but Portsmouth’s departure from the Premier League in 2010 became inevitable once they were handed a nine-point penalty in March after going into administration. What have been the lowest points totals in Premier League history? Many fear newly promoted sides Luton Town, Burnley and Sheffield United may break records in 2023-24, but can they really do as badly as the teams in this list?
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