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Liverpool NINE points clear: What does it mean?
We assess the title chances of Arne Slot’s side, only the THIRD team to have a nine-point lead after 13 matches
Liverpool are NINE points clear at the top of the Premier League after beating the champions Manchester City 2-0 on Sunday.
It’s a strong position that makes the Reds early favourites to win the title. But what exactly does it mean to have such a huge lead at this stage of the season?
History is on their side
This is Liverpool’s biggest lead at the top since the final day of 2019/20, the season they became Premier League champions for the first time. Indeed, after 13 matches of that campaign, they were eight points ahead at the summit, one fewer than they are now.
History is on their side, too. Only TWO teams have had a lead of nine or more points after 13 matches, and both of them went on to win the title.
They were Manchester United in 1993/94 and Chelsea in 2005/06.
Man Utd were a huge 11 points ahead in 1993/94 and went on to become champions with eight more points than runners-up Blackburn Rovers.
Chelsea had a nine-point advantage at this stage of 2005/06 and would finish eight ahead of Man Utd, even with the luxury of losing their last two matches of the season.
The team with the biggest lead after 13 matches who FAILED to win the title were Newcastle United, in 1995/96. The Magpies were eight points clear but famously lost the title to Man Utd, by a four-point margin, after a collapse in the second half of the campaign.
So, if Liverpool were to lose the title from the current state of play, it would be historic.
Teams with 8+ point leads after 13 matches
| Club | Season | Pts | Pts above 2nd | Final pos. |
| Man Utd | 94/95 | 34 | 11 | 1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chelsea | 05/06 | 34 | 9 | 1 |
| Liverpool | 24/25 | 34 | 9 | ? |
| Newcastle | 95/96 | 34 | 8 | 2 |
| Man City | 18/19 | 37 | 8 | 1 |
| Liverpool | 19/20 | 37 | 8 | 1 |
Do leaders after 13 matches usually win the title?
Points and leads aside, is it common for the team at the top of the Premier League after 13 Matchweeks to go on and win the title?
Put simply, no.
In the 32 Premier League seasons so far, less than half (15) of the leaders after 13 matches went on to be champions.
Indeed, Liverpool have been top at this stage FOUR times before and only won the title in one of those campaigns.
And recent history is against the Reds, too, as in EACH of the past four seasons the team top after 13 matches have NOT been crowned champions. However, the opposite was true in the previous six title races.
Leaders after 13 matches and their final position
| Season | Leaders / Final pos. | Season | Leaders / Final pos. |
| 1992/93 | Blackburn / 4th | 2008/09 | Chelsea / 3rd |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993/94 | Man Utd / 1st | 2009/10 | Chelsea / 1st |
| 1994/95 | Newcastle / 6th | 2010/11 | Chelsea / 2nd |
| 1995/96 | Newcastle / 2nd | 2011/12 | Man City / 1st |
| 1996/97 | Newcastle / 2nd | 2012/13 | Man Utd / 1st |
| 1997/98 | Man Utd / 2nd | 2013/14 | Arsenal / 4th |
| 1998/99 | Aston Villa / 6th | 2014/15 | Chelsea / 1st |
| 1999/00 | Leeds / 3rd | 2015/16 | Leicester / 1st |
| 2000/01 | Man Utd / 1st | 2016/17 | Chelsea / 1st |
| 2001/02 | Liverpool / 2nd | 2017/18 | Man City / 1st |
| 2002/03 | Liverpool / 5th | 2018/19 | Man City / 1st |
| 2003/04 | Arsenal / 1st | 2019/20 | Liverpool / 1st |
| 2004/05 | Chelsea / 1st | 2020/21 | Liverpool / 3rd |
| 2005/06 | Chelsea / 1st | 2021/22 | Chelsea / 3rd |
| 2006/07 | Man Utd / 1st | 2022/23 | Arsenal / 2nd |
| 2007/08 | Arsenal / 3rd | 2023/24 | Arsenal / 2nd |
Which teams could challenge Liverpool?
Well, the current table is extremely condensed behind Liverpool, with just two points separating Arsenal in second place and Man City in fifth.
Pep Guardiola’s side are 11 points off the lead but that isn’t an impossible gap to overturn.
Indeed, three teams in Premier League history have been crowned champions after being more than 11 points behind at ANY stage of a season, not just after 13 matches.
Arsenal hold the record here. They were a mammoth 13 points behind leaders Man Utd in December of 1997/98 and went on to beat them to the title, Arsene Wenger’s first, by one point. Indeed, the Gunners were still 12 points behind in February.
Biggest points deficits overturned to win title
| Club | Season | Pts behind leaders | Pos. | Final pos. |
| Arsenal | 1997/98 | 13 | 6 | 1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Man Utd | 1992/93 | 12 | 7 | 1 |
| Man Utd | 1995/96 | 12 | 3 | 1 |
| Man Utd | 1996/97 | 10 | 6 | 1 |
| Man Utd | 2002/03 | 10 | 5 | 1 |
| Man Utd | 2008/09 | 10 | 3 | 1 |
| Man City | 2018/19 | 10 | 3 | 1 |
What’s the lowest position a team have come from to win the title?
Well, anyone writing off Man City in fifth position should think twice.
In 2020/21, Man City were as low as EIGHTH in the table after 13 matches and yet still won the title.
That’s the lowest position a team have been at this stage of a season before going on to become champions.
Brentford are the eighth-placed team as things stand in 2024/25 but trail the leaders by 14 points, which is one more than the record number overturned by Arsenal in 1997/98.
(epl)