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Brentford, Brighton, Newcastle United and Arsenal are the Premier League’s biggest overachievers this season, while Liverpool, Chelsea, Everton and Leicester City are among the division’s biggest underachievers.
At least, that’s the case if you believe a club’s wage bill is a marker – more or less – or where they should be in the table.
The club with the lowest wage bill in the English top flight are Brentford, who are remarkably up in seventh and mounting a genuine challenge for European qualification. Thomas Frank’s Bees boast the biggest discrepancy – for better or worse – between their current league position and their expenditure on wages.
Brighton & Hove Albion’s story is a similar fairytale. The Seagulls have a shot at qualifying for the Champions League, which is something of a minor miracle when you consider how little their squad cost to assemble, and that their wage bill is just £28.3million – the third-lowest in the division.
Newcastle United may be entering a new era of investment, but they’re definitely punching above their weight to sit third in the table. You’d expect the wage bill of Eddie Howe’s squad (£62.6million – tenth in the division) to grow in the coming years, but for now they’re doing incredibly well to sit above the likes of Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool in the table.
League leaders Arsenal have a relatively modest wage bill of £85.4million, which is the lowest of the traditional ‘big six’. With a return to the Champions League all but mathematically secured and potentially a Premier League title on the way, expect the Gunners’ wage bill to rise as they grow further in the coming years.
Title chasers Manchester City have famously spent big over recent years, but they’re currently outspent by Manchester United and Chelsea when it comes to wages.
Manchester United currently spend more than any other club in England on wages, which underlines just quite how poor it was for them to finish seventh with a record-low points tally last term.
They have shown improvement in 2022-23 under Erik ten Hag, still looking a solid bet to finish in the top four despite their current wobble, but they’re arguably still not quite be where they ought to given their expenditure on transfers and wages.
Chelsea (who spend £169.7million on wages – the second-most in the Premier League) are spectacularly underperforming down in the bottom half, so it’s perhaps no surprise that they made the decision to get rid of Graham Potter.
It’s a similar story for Liverpool, who register fourth in the Premier League’s wage bill charts but currently sit 8th.
However, it’s actually Leicester City, who are currently down in the relegation zone despite boasting the biggest wage bill outside the ‘big six’, that are doing worst in comparison to their outlay on wages.
Elsewhere, clubs like Tottenham, Wolves, Leeds United, Nottingham Forest, Aston Villa, Bournemouth and Crystal Palace’s league positions aren’t far off where their wage bill ranks.
We’ve listed every Premier League single club by their league position in comparison to their wage bill, ranking them in order of the biggest differences between the two.
Note: All wage bill data is via FBref.com, who source their numbers from Capology.
Brentford
League Position: 7th
Wage bill: 20th
Total wage bill: £15.2million
Difference: +13
Brighton
League Position: 6th
Wage bill: 18th
Total wage bill: £28.3million
Difference: +12
Newcastle United
League Position: 3rd
Wage bill: 10th
Total wage bill: £62.6million
Difference: +7
Arsenal
League Position: 1st
Wage bill: 6th
Total wage bill: £85.4million
Difference: +5
READ: Bukayo Saka’s new Arsenal deal – & the 8 Premier League players that earn more
Fulham
League Position: 10th
Wage bill: 14th
Total wage bill: £37.6million
Difference: +4
Leeds United
League Position: 17th
Wage bill: 19th
Total wage bill: £17.3million
Difference: +2
Nottingham Forest
League Position: 15th
Wage bill: 17th
Total wage bill: £28.5million
Difference: +2
Manchester City
League Position: 2nd
Wage bill: 3rd
Total wage bill: £163million
Difference: +1
Wolves
League Position: 13th
Wage bill: 13th
Total wage bill: £38.3million
Difference: =
Tottenham
League Position: 5th
Wage bill: 5th
Total wage bill: £101.3million
Difference: =
Bournemouth
League Position: 16th
Wage bill: 16th
Total wage bill: £32million
Difference: =
Crystal Palace
League Position: 12th
Wage bill: 11th
Total wage bill: £59.1million
Difference: -1
Aston Villa
League Position: 9th
Wage bill: 8th
Total wage bill: £75.2million
Difference: -1
Manchester United
League Position: 4th
Wage bill: 1st
Total wage bill: £222.9million
Difference: -3
Liverpool
League Position: 8th
Wage bill: 4th
Total wage bill: £141.7million
Difference: -4
West Ham United
League Position: 14th
Wage bill: 9th
Total wage bill: £70.1million
Difference: -5
Southampton
League Position: 20th
Wage bill: 15th
Total wage bill: £35.3million
Difference: -5
Everton
League Position: 18th
Wage bill: 12th
Total wage bill: £43.1million
Difference: -6
Chelsea
League Position: 11th
Wage bill: 2nd
Total wage bill: £169.7million
Difference: -9
Leicester
League Position: 19th
Wage bill: 7th
Total wage bill: £78.7million
Difference: -12
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