Planet Football

Comparing every Premier League club's wage bill to its final league position

Planet Football logo Planet Football 30.05.2023 11:32:32 Nestor Watach

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 finished ninth and mounted a genuine challenge for European qualification. Thomas Frank's Bees boast one of the biggest discrepancies - 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 secured Europa League qualification, 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 punched above their weight to finish fourth 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 finish above the likes of Chelsea and Liverpool in the table.

Arsenal have a relatively modest wage bill of £85.4million, which is the lowest of the traditional 'big six'. Expect the Gunners' wage bill to rise as they grow further in the coming years.

Title winners 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 sixth with a record-low points tally in 2021-22

They have shown improvement this year under Erik ten Hag, finishing third and returning to the Champions League, 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) spectacularly underperformed and finished down in the bottom half. Mauricio Pochettino has much work to do.

However, it's actually Leicester City, who are now contemplating trips to Bristol, Plymouth and Preston next season 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. 

Brighton

League Position: 6th

Wage bill: 18th

Total wage bill: £28.3million

Difference: +12

Brentford League Position: 9th

Brentford

Wage bill: 20th

Total wage bill: £15.2million

Difference: +11

Newcastle United

League Position: 4th

Wage bill: 10th

Total wage bill: £62.6million

Difference: +6

Arsenal

League Position: 2nd

Wage bill: 6th

Total wage bill: £85.4million

Difference: +4

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

Manchester City

League Position: 1st

Wage bill: 3rd

Total wage bill: £163million

Difference: +2

Nottingham Forest

League Position: 16th

Wage bill: 17th

Total wage bill: £28.5million

Difference: +1

Aston Villa League Position: 7th

Aston Villa

Wage bill: 8th

Total wage bill: £75.2million

Difference: +1

Leeds United

League Position: 19th

Wage bill: 19th

Total wage bill: £17.3million

Difference: =

Bournemouth

League Position: 16th

Wage bill: 16th

Total wage bill: £32million

Difference: =

Wolves

League Position: 13th

Wage bill: 13th

Total wage bill: £38.3million

Difference: =

Crystal Palace

League Position: 11th

Wage bill: 11th

Total wage bill: £59.1million

Difference: =

Liverpool

League Position: 5th

Wage bill: 4th

Total wage bill: £141.7million

Difference: -1

Manchester United

League Position: 3rd

Wage bill: 1st

Total wage bill: £222.9million

Difference: -2

Tottenham

League Position: 8th

Wage bill: 5th

Total wage bill: £101.3million

Difference: -3

Southampton

League Position: 20th

Wage bill: 15th

Total wage bill: £35.3million

Difference: -5

Everton

League Position: 17th

Wage bill: 12th

Total wage bill: £43.1million

Difference: -5

West Ham United League Position: 14th

West Ham United

Wage bill: 9th

Total wage bill: £70.1million

Difference: -5

Chelsea

League Position: 12th

Wage bill: 2nd

Total wage bill: £169.7million

Difference: -10

Leicester

League Position: 18th

Wage bill: 7th

Total wage bill: £78.7million

Difference: -11

READ NEXT: Ranking every Premier League club by how much their squad cost

TRY A QUIZ: Can you name every Premier League club's record signing?

mardi 30 mai 2023 14:32:32 Categories: Planet Football

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