2016–17 Premier League International Cup

The Stadium of Light in Monkwearmouth, Sunderland hosted the final

Tournament details
Dates| 18 August 2016 – 17 May 2017
Teams| 24 (from 8 associations)
Final positions
Champions|  Porto (1st title)
Runners-up|  Sunderland
Tournament statistics
Matches played| 43
Goals scored| 119 (2.77 per match)
Top scorer(s)|  Carlton Morris
(4 goals)

<- 2015–16

2017–18 ->

International football competition

The 2016–17 Premier League International Cup was the third season of the Premier League International Cup, a European club football competition organised by the Premier League for under-23 players.[1]

Villarreal were the defending champions, having defeated PSV 4–2 in the previous season's final, but were eliminated in the group stage.

## Qualification

[edit]

Twelve teams in Premier League 2 were invited to represent England in the tournament, while European teams that qualify for the knockout stages were guaranteed an invite for the following season's competition. The teams were split into six groups of four - with two English league clubs per group. The group winners, and two best runners-up, progressed into the knockout phase of the tournament. The knockout matches were single leg fixtures.[2]

All matches - including fixtures between non-English teams - were played in England and Wales.

### Teams

[edit]

Valencia, Feyenoord, Sparta Prague, Dinamo Zagreb, VfL Wolfsburg, and Hertha Berlin were the new international entrants in the 2016–17 season.

English league system:

* Middlesbrough
* Derby County
* Everton
* Leicester City
* Liverpool
* Manchester United
* Chelsea
* Reading
* Sunderland
* Norwich City
* Aston Villa
* Swansea City

Other countries:

* Valencia
* Athletic Bilbao
* Villarreal
* VfL Wolfsburg
* Hertha Berlin
* Porto
* Benfica
* PSV Eindhoven
* Feyenoord
* Celtic
* Dinamo Zagreb
* Sparta Prague

|

## Group stage

[edit]

The draw for the group stage was held on 28 July 2016.[3] The teams were drawn into four groups, each containing two English sides and two European sides.

Color key in group tables

Group winners and the two best runners-up advance to the quarterfinals

### Group A

[edit]

Team  | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts

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Sunderland | 3  | 2  | 1  | 0  | 6  | 3  | +3  | 7
Benfica | 3  | 1  | 1  | 1  | 3  | 2  | +1  | 4
Derby County | 3  | 1  | 1  | 1  | 4  | 5  | −1  | 4
PSV Eindhoven | 3  | 0  | 1  | 2  | 1  | 4  | −3  | 1

Source: [citation needed]

Derby County v  PSV Eindhoven 22 September 2016 |  Derby County | 2–1|  PSV Eindhoven | Burton upon Trent

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19:00 BST (UTC+1) | Blackman pen' (14)
Rawson  19' | Report | Gudmundsson  pen' (63) | Stadium: St George's Park

Derby County v  Benfica 14 October 2016 |  Derby County | 0–2|  Benfica | Burton upon Trent

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19:00 BST (UTC+1) |  | Report |

* Carvalho 16'
* Tavares 72'

| Stadium: St George's Park

Sunderland v  Benfica 18 November 2016 |  Sunderland | 2–1|  Benfica | Sunderland

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19:00 BST (UTC+1) | Asoro  19'
Molyneux  |  | Tavares | Stadium: Eppleton Colliery Welfare Ground
Attendance: 344[4]

Sunderland v  PSV Eindhoven 23 December 2016 |  Sunderland | 2–0|  PSV Eindhoven | Sunderland

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19:00 GMT (UTC) | Embleton  69'
Asoro  86' |  |  | Stadium: Stadium of Light

Derby County v  Sunderland 12 January 2017 |  Derby County | 2–2|  Sunderland | Derby

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19:00 GMT (UTC) | MacDonald  41'
J. Robson  45' (o.g.) | Report | Nelson  66'
Cresswell  90' (o.g.) | Stadium: iPro Stadium
Attendance: 207[5]

Benfica v  PSV Eindhoven 18 January 2017 |  Benfica | 0–0|  PSV Eindhoven | New Malden

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19:00 GMT (UTC) |  |  |  | Stadium: Motspur Park

### Group B

[edit]

Team  | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts

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Manchester United | 3  | 2  | 1  | 0  | 5  | 2  | +3  | 7
Middlesbrough | 3  | 2  | 1  | 0  | 4  | 2  | +2  | 7
Villarreal | 3  | 1  | 0  | 2  | 2  | 3  | −1  | 3
Sparta Prague | 3  | 0  | 0  | 3  | 1  | 5  | −4  | 0

Source: [citation needed]

Manchester United v  Villarreal 13 September 2016 |  Manchester United | 1–0|  Villarreal | Leigh

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19:00 GMT (UTC) | Harrop  34' | [1] |  | Stadium: Leigh Sports Village

Middlesbrough v  Villarreal 11 October 2016 |  Middlesbrough | 1–0|  Villarreal | Darlington

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19:00 BST (UTC+1) | Cooke  90' | Report |  | Stadium: The Darlington Arena[6]
Attendance: 467

Middlesbrough v  Sparta Prague 15 November 2016 |  Middlesbrough | 1–0|  Sparta Prague | Hartlepool

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19:00 GMT (UTC) | Cooke  33' |  |  | Stadium: Victoria Park

Villarreal v  Sparta Prague 13 December 2016 |  Villarreal | 2–1|  Sparta Prague | Burton upon Trent

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19:00 GMT (UTC) |  |  |  | Stadium: St George's Park

Manchester United v  Sparta Prague 15 December 2016 |  Manchester United | 2–0|  Sparta Prague | Leigh

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19:00 GMT (UTC) | Harrop  21'
Redmond  55' | Report |  | Stadium: Leigh Sports Village
Attendance: 943[7]

Manchester United v  Middlesbrough 22 December 2016 |  Manchester United | 2–2|  Middlesbrough | Leigh

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19:00 GMT (UTC) | Mitchell  59'
Goss  72' pen | Report | de Pena 63', 83' | Stadium: Leigh Sports Village
Attendance: 856[8]

### Group C

[edit]

Team  | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts

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Porto | 3  | 2  | 1  | 0  | 6  | 1  | +5  | 7
VfL Wolfsburg | 3  | 2  | 0  | 1  | 5  | 4  | +1  | 6
Leicester City | 3  | 1  | 0  | 2  | 2  | 6  | −4  | 3
Liverpool | 3  | 0  | 1  | 2  | 3  | 5  | −2  | 1

Source: [citation needed]

Liverpool v  VfL Wolfsburg 28 September 2016 |  Liverpool | 1–2|  VfL Wolfsburg | Birkenhead

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19:00 BST (UTC+1) | Lennon  80' | [2] | Brekalo 51'
Hansen  90' | Stadium: Prenton Park

Leicester City v  VfL Wolfsburg 11 October 2016 |  Leicester City | 0–3|  VfL Wolfsburg | Leicester

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19:00 BST (UTC+1) |  | [3] | Zawada  42'
Donkor  58' 63' | Stadium: King Power Stadium
Referee: Thomas Bramall

Liverpool v  Porto 2 November 2016 |  Liverpool | 1–1|  Porto | Birkenhead

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19:00 GMT (UTC) | Lennon  65' | Report | Govea 49' | Stadium: Prenton Park

Leicester City v  Porto 12 November 2016 |  Leicester City | 0–2|  Porto | Leicester

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19:00 GMT (UTC) |  | Report | Inácio  55'
Palmer-Brown 81' | Stadium: King Power Stadium

Leicester City v  Liverpool 3 December 2016 |  Leicester City | 2–1|  Liverpool | Leicester

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19:00 GMT (UTC) | Ndukwu  50'
Ndukwu  77' |  | Wilson  45' | Stadium: Holmes Park

Porto v  VfL Wolfsburg 14 December 2016 |  Porto | 3–0|  VfL Wolfsburg | Brighton

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19:00 GMT (UTC) | Ramos 39'
Areias 44'
Kayembe 58' | Report |  | Stadium: American Express Elite Performance Centre

### Group D

[edit]

Team  | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts

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Dinamo Zagreb | 3  | 2  | 1  | 0  | 4  | 0  | +4  | 7
Swansea City | 3  | 2  | 1  | 0  | 4  | 1  | +3  | 7
Chelsea | 3  | 1  | 0  | 2  | 3  | 4  | −1  | 3
Feyenoord | 3  | 0  | 0  | 3  | 1  | 7  | −6  | 0

Source: [citation needed]

Swansea City v  Feyenoord 11 October 2016 |  Swansea City | 2–0|  Feyenoord | Swansea

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19:00 BST (UTC+1) | Plezier  10'
Biabi  90' pen |  |  | Stadium: Landore Training Centre

Swansea City v  Dinamo Zagreb 11 November 2016 |  Swansea City | 0–0|  Dinamo Zagreb | Swansea

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19:00 GMT (UTC) |  |  |  | Stadium: Landore Training Centre

Chelsea v  Feyenoord 29 November 2016 |  Chelsea | 2–1|  Feyenoord | Aldershot

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19:00 GMT (UTC) | Sterling 84'
Tomori 85' |  | Basacikoglu 12' | Stadium: Recreation Ground

Chelsea v  Dinamo Zagreb 16 December 2016 |  Chelsea | 0–1|  Dinamo Zagreb | Aldershot

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19:00 GMT (UTC) |  |  | Mihaljević  38' | Stadium: Recreation Ground

Feyenoord v  Dinamo Zagreb 20 December 2016 |  Feyenoord | 0–3|  Dinamo Zagreb | Stoke d'Abernon

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19:00 GMT (UTC) |  |  | Mihaljević  25'
Mihaljević  36'
Muhar  90+2' | Stadium: Cobham Training Centre

Chelsea v  Swansea City 22 December 2016 |  Chelsea | 1–2|  Swansea City | Aldershot

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19:00 GMT (UTC) | Quintero  34' |  | Biabi 53'
James  86' | Stadium: Recreation Ground

### Group E

[edit]

Team  | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts

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Norwich City | 3  | 3  | 0  | 0  | 9  | 3  | +6  | 9
Celtic | 3  | 2  | 0  | 1  | 6  | 3  | +3  | 6
Aston Villa | 3  | 1  | 0  | 2  | 5  | 8  | −3  | 3
Valencia | 3  | 0  | 0  | 3  | 1  | 7  | −6  | 0

Source: [citation needed]

Norwich City v  Valencia 6 September 2016 |  Norwich City | 2–0|  Valencia | Norwich

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19:00 BST (UTC+1) | Morris 15'
Latorre (o.g.), 28' | [4] |  | Stadium: Carrow Road
Attendance: 829

Aston Villa v  Valencia 5 October 2016 |  Aston Villa | 2–1|  Valencia | Birmingham

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20:00 BST (UTC+1) | O'Hare  41' 82' | [5] | Soler Barragan  45' | Stadium: Villa Park

Aston Villa v  Celtic 9 November 2016 |  Aston Villa | 0–3|  Celtic | Birmingham

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19:00 GMT (UTC) |  | Report 1
Report 2 | Donnelly  15' 63'
Aitchison 34' | Stadium: Villa Park

Norwich City v  Celtic 16 November 2016 |  Norwich City | 3–0|  Celtic | Norwich

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19:00 GMT (UTC) | Morris 6' (pen.), 81'
Murphy 58' | Report 1
Report 2 |  | Stadium: Carrow Road
Attendance: 2,074

Valencia v  Celtic 30 November 2016 |  Valencia | 0–3|  Celtic | Southampton

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19:00 GMT (UTC) |  | Report 1
Report 2 | Nesbitt 1'
Donnelly  39'
Ajer 56' | Stadium: Staplewood

Norwich City v  Aston Villa 12 January 2017 |  Norwich City | 4–3|  Aston Villa | Norwich

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19:00 GMT (UTC) | Maddison 43'
Morris 47'
Middleton 56'
Jaiyesimi 76' | Report | Davis 29', 52'
Sellars 44' | Stadium: Carrow Road
Attendance: 200
Referee: Dean Treleaven

### Group F

[edit]

Team  | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts

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|
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Hertha BSC | 3  | 2  | 1  | 0  | 7  | 3  | +4  | 7
Athletic Bilbao | 3  | 2  | 1  | 0  | 7  | 5  | +2  | 7
Everton | 3  | 1  | 0  | 2  | 4  | 6  | −2  | 3
Reading | 3  | 0  | 0  | 3  | 3  | 7  | −4  | 0

Source: [citation needed]

Everton v  Reading 18 August 2016 |  Everton | 2–1|  Reading | Southport

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19:00 BST (UTC+1) | Dyson  7'
Evans  12' | Report | Fosu 36' | Stadium: Haig Avenue

Athletic Bilbao v  Hertha BSC 26 October 2016 |  Athletic Bilbao | 2–2|  Hertha BSC | Brighton

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19:00 BST (UTC+1) | Iriondo 6'
Morcillo  76' | Report | Kohls  32'
Pelivan  55' pen | Stadium: American Express Elite Football Performance Centre

Everton v  Hertha BSC 23 November 2016 |  Everton | 1–3|  Hertha BSC | Liverpool

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19:00 GMT (UTC) | Jones  50' | Report | Friede  11'
Friede  20'
Mirbach  32' | Stadium: Goodison Park

Reading v  Athletic Bilbao 23 November 2016 |  Reading | 2–3|  Athletic Bilbao | High Wycombe

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19:00 GMT (UTC) | Méïté 4', 9' | Report | Southwood 45+3' (o.g.)
Bilbao 71'
Villalibre 72' | Stadium: Adams Park

Reading v  Hertha BSC 14 December 2016 |  Reading | 0–2|  Hertha BSC | Reading

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19:00 GMT (UTC) |  | Report | Friede  64'
Beyer  74' | Stadium: Madejski Stadium

Everton v  Athletic Bilbao 21 December 2016 |  Everton | 1–2|  Athletic Bilbao | Liverpool

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19:00 GMT (UTC) | Connolly 9' | Report | Córdoba 43'
Núñez  81' | Stadium: Goodison Park

### Ranking of second-placed teams

[edit]

Team  | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts

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Swansea City | 3  | 2  | 1  | 0  | 4  | 1  | +3  | 7
Athletic Bilbao | 3  | 2  | 1  | 0  | 7  | 5  | +2  | 7
Middlesbrough | 3  | 2  | 1  | 0  | 4  | 2  | +2  | 7
Celtic | 3  | 2  | 0  | 1  | 6  | 3  | +3  | 6
VfL Wolfsburg | 3  | 2  | 0  | 1  | 5  | 4  | +1  | 6
Benfica | 3  | 1  | 1  | 1  | 3  | 2  | +1  | 4

Source: [citation needed]

## Knockout stages

[edit]

| Quarter-finals | | | Semi-finals | | | Finals |

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|  |  |  | | |  |  |  | | |  |  |  |
|  Swansea City | 5 | | |
|  Hertha BSC | 1 |
| |  Swansea City | 0 |
|  |
| | |  Porto | 1 |
|  Manchester United | 0 |

|  Porto | 2 |
| |  Porto | 5 |
|  |
| | |  Sunderland | 0 |
|  Norwich City | 6 | |

|  Dinamo Zagreb | 0 |
| |  Norwich City | 0 |
|  |
| | |  Sunderland | 1 |
|  Sunderland | 2 |

|  Athletic Bilbao | 0 |

### Quarter-finals

[edit]

Sunderland v  Athletic Bilbao 15 February 2017 |  Sunderland | 2–0|  Athletic Bilbao | Sunderland

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19:00 GMT (UTC) | E. Robson  25'
Embleton  47' | Report | Córdoba 52' | Stadium: Stadium of Light
Attendance: 634
Referee: Tom Bramall (Derbyshire)

Swansea City v  Hertha BSC 28 February 2017 |  Swansea City | 5–1|  Hertha BSC | Swansea

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19:00 GMT (UTC) |  | Report |  | Stadium: Liberty Stadium
Attendance: 800

Manchester United v  Porto 22 February 2017 |  Manchester United | 0–2|  Porto | Leigh

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19:00 GMT (UTC) |  | Report 1
Report 2 | Díaz 65', 69' | Stadium: Leigh Sports Village
Attendance: 1,212[9]

Norwich City v  Dinamo Zagreb 27 February 2017 |  Norwich City | 6–0|  Dinamo Zagreb | Norwich

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|  |  |  | Stadium: Carrow Road
Attendance: 2,526

### Semi-finals

[edit]

Swansea City v  Porto 25 March 2017 |  Swansea City | 0–1|  Porto | Swansea

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12:30 GMT (UTC) |  | Report | Galeno 64' | Stadium: Liberty Stadium
Attendance: 2,118

Norwich City v  Sunderland 31 March 2017 |  Norwich City | 0–1|  Sunderland | Norwich

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19:00 BST (UTC+1) |  | Report | Asoro 13' | Stadium: Carrow Road
Attendance: 3,000 estimated[10]

### Final

[edit]

Sunderland v  Porto 17 May 2017 |  Sunderland | 0–5|  Porto | Sunderland

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19:00 BST (UTC+1) |  | Report | Galeno 5', 37'
Pereira 45+2'
Kayembe 51'
Awaziem 55' | Stadium: Stadium of Light
Attendance: 18,317

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Premier League International Cup: Format explained". Premier League. 31 July 2015. Retrieved 29 July 2016.
2. ^ "Premier League International Cup explained". Premier League. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
3. ^ "Man Utd to face International Cup holders". Premier League. 28 July 2016. Retrieved 29 July 2016.
4. ^ "Sunderland U23 2-1 Benfica U23 report: Black Cats make winning start in International Cup". ChronicleLive. 18 November 2016.
5. ^ "U23 REPORT: DERBY COUNTY 2-2 SUNDERLAND". Derby County FC.
6. ^ "Middlesbrough U23s vs Villarreal: History beckons for Boro in the Premier League International Cup". Gazette Live. 11 October 2016.
7. ^ @lsvstadium (15 December 2016). "Finishes @ManUtd 2 @ACSparta_EN 0 in #PLInternationalCup" (Tweet) - via Twitter.
8. ^ @lsvstadium (22 December 2016). "FULL TIME #mufc 2 #boro 2" (Tweet) - via Twitter.
9. ^ @lsvstadium (22 February 2017). "FULL TIME: #mufc 0 #fcporto 2" (Tweet) - via Twitter.
10. ^ "Norwich City U23s 0 Sunderland U23s 1 – Canaries miss out on place in Premier League International Cup final". Eastern Daily Press.

*[Pld]: Played
*[W]: Won
*[D]: Drawn
*[L]: Lost
*[GF]: Goals for
*[GA]: Goals against
*[GD]: Goal difference
*[Pts]: Points