An aura of respect and wonder always surrounds the Premier League era, and everything is measured relative to it. However, it can be argued that the best change to the nature of modern football has happened since 1992. The gap between the best and the others in the premier league has risen considerably, primarily due to the superclub phenomenon where due to corporate blessings and champions league involvement, the more superior teams dominate.
Therefore, it is essential to have a steady starting to the Premier League for any team hoping to win where Manchester City is crowd favorite consideration of winning.
Pinnacle of the Premier league
In 2012 Alex Ferguson explained the moment when things changed at the Premier League.
“If you go back 12 years, our norm was to start the season slowly and build up to the second half,” Ferguson said. “That changed when Chelsea won the title two years in a row. We had to change our pre-season approach.”
Alex was right, of course, as he is one of the primary reasons for the continual success of Manchester United.
In the first 11 Premier League campaigns, the eventual champions were top of the league after ten games just three times – Manchester United in 1993/94 and 2000/01, and Arsenal in 1997/98.
United won the title eight times during that period, coming from behind to overtake 75 percent of the leaders.
The Gunners also led from the front in 2003/04, with their 10-game points tally of 24 and final points tally of 90 both the second-highest in Premier League history at the time.
But it was Mourinho who realized that a fast start to the season could do more damage than had previously been recognized.
His Chelsea team racked up 23 points in the first ten matches of 2004/05, winning the league with plenty in the tank. A second title followed a year later after his side won all of their first nine matches.
Starting fast allowed for a drop-off in the second half of the season. In 2005/06, Chelsea dropped points in seven of their last 16 league games like the Champions League and FA Cup intensified, but the title was already won.
This template is a Mourinho specialty. Chelsea produced a similar season in 2014/15, putting 26 points on the board after ten matches before dropping points in eight of their last 20.
The average points tally of eventual champions after ten games between 1992 and 2003 was a tick over 20 – the equivalent of six wins, two draws, and two defeats.
The big four and top six always try to assert their league’s dominance with the games mostly revolving around them. Who dominates when is, however, a hot matter of debate, as, for example, both City and Liverpool have gained pace in recent times.
Contending For The Top Four
It must be fascinating to note that the pattern of the champions league is very much predictable. With more passing years, it has come to notice that it is getting very difficult to score the top four positions. Even the most popular ones, teams strive to do their best year after year only to bask in the glory of being in the top four.
Some occasional surprises most definitely crop up, but it has become a trend to see the earlier start and teams having a good capital backup and constant inflow of resources tend to fare much better. There are also several anomalies, but all of them fade in terms of general predictability.
Therefore, as the statistics pointed out by experts and facts gathered all the years had shown time, and again, it is very beneficial to have a much earlier start for the league to reach the spot for the top four.
The Persistent Struggle To Maintain Dominance
What is most interesting to note is that going with the nature of sports, which team ultimately wins, is, after all, very difficult to determine and is random in nature. Thus, even if there is a fast-paced beginning or a struggling start, things may take a turn anytime, thereby making the game’s nature interesting.
Since the Premier League became a 20-team division in 1995, two of the three teams with just three points on the board after ten matches have stayed up – Crystal Palace in 2013/14 and Newcastle in 2018/19.
The average finishing position for teams in 20th place after ten games is 17th, with 11 of the 25 teams to have been there managing to avoid relegation.
Meanwhile, teams occupying the last relegation place in 18th after ten matches have a 60 percent chance of survival. Fifteen of the 25 teams to have been in that position since 1995 have stayed up, five of which changed their manager midway through the season.
