Power Rankings: Alternative PL table after week 35

Mark Holmes
Leicester City: Different expectations next seaon

Leicester City: Different expectations next seaon

Chelsea, Leicester City and Manchester City were the three biggest Power Rankings winners of the weekend as Arsenal dropped more points.

In Power Rankings, we award points from 0.5 to 10, decided by an algorithm based on bookmaker odds and winning margins.

It rewards teams scoring lots of goals and also those defying expectations but sees odds-on favourites penalised for sneaking past inferior opponents by the odd goal.

West Ham continue to lead the way, helped in no small part by their early-season wins at Arsenal and Manchester City, which earned them 20 points alone. Chelsea on the other hand remain second from bottom as they continue to pay the price for their under-achievement, while the rest of last season’s top four battle it out in the top half having also failed to hit their targets.

Week 35

Chelsea – 5: Having lost their last two games going into Saturday’s trip to Bournemouth, it was certainly no foregone conclusion that Chelsea would leave the south coast with three points. They did so in style, however, with Eden Hazard scoring twice to help the Blues finally move out of the bottom three of the Power Rankings.

Leicester City – 5: They have now played a game more than West Ham, but Leicester are right back in the hunt for the Power Rankings title after sweeping aside Swansea City 4-0 at the King Power Stadium on Sunday. The double dream remains alive!

Manchester City – 5: Stoke are in a rut at the moment and were exactly the sort of opponents Manchester City needed ahead of a Champions League semi-final – but they still needed to be beat. Kelechi Iheanacho scored twice to help the Citizens warm up for the Real Madrid game in perfect style.

West Brom – 5: They were expected to be sacrificial lambs, but 14/1 shots West Brom fought back to hold Tottenham to a 1-1 draw at White Hart Lane on Monday night, smashing a massive dent in the north Londoners’ Premier League title ambitions.

Newcastle United – 3: If the Premier League adopted the Premier League points system, Newcastle would be sitting pretty (ish) in mid-table. The Magpies served yet another reminder of their ability as a team with a 2-2 draw at Liverpool on Saturday; if only they had shown it on a more consistent basis…

Southampton- 3: Europe may prove a step too far, but Southampton at least kept themselves in the running with a 4-2 win at already-relegated Aston Villa. Sixth spot in the Power Rankings is also firmly in their sights.

Sunderland – 2.5: Like their north-east rivals, Sunderland are well clear of the bottom three in the Power Rankings after holding Arsenal to a 0-0 draw at the Stadium of Light on Sunday. Crucially, it moved them out of the Premier League relegation zone too.

Arsenal – 0.5: Remarkably, Arsenal are the only team with less points in the Power Rankings than in the Premier League. It perfectly highlights just how often the Gunners have slipped up or sneaked home in games they were expected to win comfortably.

Liverpool – 0.5: Jurgen Klopp’s side have been flying up the Power Rankings table in recent weeks and looked set to climb again when 2-0 up at half-time against Newcastle, but a second-half comeback from the visitors forced the Reds to settle for only half a point.

Tottenham – 0.5: Never say never, but Spurs now look out of contention for both the Premier League and Power Rankings after only managing a 1-1 draw against West Brom. They are now relying on an even bigger collapse from Leicester City.

 

Power Rankings

Team Power Rankings Points Official Points
1. West Ham 98 56
2. Leicester City 95 76
3. Tottenham 81.5 69
4. Man City 77 64
5. Stoke City 75 47
6. West Brom 73 41
7. Liverpool 66.5 55
8. Southampton 65 54
9. Man Utd 63.5 59
10. Arsenal 63 64
11. Crystal Palace 60.5 39
12. Watford 58.5 41
= Newcastle 58.5 32
= Sunderland 58.5 31
15. Everton 57.5 41
16. Bournemouth 54 41
17. Chelsea 51.5 47
18. Swansea City 51 40
19. Norwich City 47.5 31
20. Aston Villa 27 16