5 Premier League seasons which proved the importance of a stable defence

It's good to score goals, but more important to have a good defence, as Blackburn found out

#4 2008/09 - Fulham

In the 2008/09 season, Fulham managed to finish in the top seven despite their poor attacking displays. As a result, they finished 11 places ahead of relegated Newcastle United, who interestingly netted one more goal than the Cottagers.

The Cottagers failed to score in 15 of their 38 matches contested, but still managed to finish in an excellent position thanks to their solid defensive displays. They kept 16 clean sheets during the course of the campaign - with only the top three sides managing to concede less than Roy Hodgson's side.

Fulham finished the season as the best-disciplined side in the league as they collected 40 yellow cards and just one red card in total. Brede Hangeland was their star performer at the back as the Norwegian enjoyed an excellent season. The centre-back's aerial ability was particularly impressive as he won 126 out of 172 aerial battles showing his dominance in the air.

Hangeland also made 499 clearances - making him the second-best in the list just behind Titus Bramble who made eight more than the Norwegian. The centre-back read the opponents' play very well as he made 86 interceptions in total which is the highest among all the others defenders in his side.

Newcastle United scored 40 goals during the course of the season but still failed to stay in the competition as they finished miserably in the bottom three. In spite of scoring 40 goals, one more than the 7th placed team, they found themselves in the wrong end of the table due to their poor defensive display. Conceding 59 goals in the campaign, they finished 4th in terms of most goals conceded which led to their relegation.

Edited by Amit Mishra