 Ipswich surprised the doubters; they sustained a high league position and narrowly missed out on qualification for the UEFA Champions League, when the team failed to win on the last day of the season against Derby County.The fifth-place finish gained the club a UEFA Cup place and earned George Burley the title of FA Premier League Manager of the Year, an award that until 2010 had, in every other season, been given to the manager of the Premier League champions.Matteo Sereni and Finidi George arrived before the 2001–02 season to boost the squad for its foray into Europe.