The Premier League Big Six no longer control the top of the table the way they once did, according to a BBC Sport analysis. Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United and Tottenham still rank among the ten highest-earning clubs in world football. On the pitch, though, the picture has changed.
Fewer top-six finishes
Between 2010-11 and 2018-19, the group took the leading places five times. Twice they filled the top seven, and once the top eight. Since then, they have all finished in the top six in only one of six seasons. Aston Villa, Newcastle and Brighton have each held a place in that group at some point.
Five of the top-six spots in the past three years have gone to clubs outside the traditional six. That equals the total from the eight years before it.
Leicester City’s title win in 2015-16 looked like a one-off. For the next three seasons, the big clubs pulled clear again. The smallest gap between sixth and seventh in those years was eight points.
Spurs and United struggle
Tottenham have had the hardest time. They finished one place above the relegation zone in each of the past two seasons. BBC Sport reports they are second bottom on three points, with no win in their first six games. Since 2021-22, Spurs have missed the top six three times, and twice they ended up 17th.
Chelsea and United have each missed out twice in that period. United are 13th and Liverpool ninth in the early part of the season described. City, the league’s leading side for the past decade, now face uncertainty after being found guilty of breaking financial rules over nine years.
How others caught up
Money explains part of it. Newcastle were taken over in 2021 in a £305m deal led by the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund. They rose from 11th in 2021-22 to fourth the next season, then finished fifth two years later.
Brighton have used data and smart recruitment instead. They signed Moises Caicedo for £4m and sold him to Chelsea two years later in a deal worth £115m, a British record at the time. Marc Cucurella cost £15m and went to Chelsea for £62m. Alexis Mac Allister arrived for £7m and moved to Liverpool in a deal worth £55m.
Sporting director Mike Cave said the club’s approach has been built over a long period. He described data as one part of a bigger process that helps Brighton find talent worldwide and move quickly in a busy transfer market.
Source: BBC Sport
