Comparing every Premier League club’s squad cost to its 2025-26 league position
Newcastle, Tottenham and West Ham are some of the Premier League’s worst underperformers when you compare every club’s total squad cost in transfer fees to their position in the league table.
That’s no great surprise, considering all three clubs are languishing in the bottom half of the table, despite having some expensively assembled squads.
But what about the rest? Who are the sides punching above their weight and which chairmen ought to feel they should be getting more bang for their buck?
Sunderland are by far the biggest overachievers, with the Black Cats assembling their squad for just over than €200million.
The likes of Crystal Palace and Fulham are also doing well for themselves, despite having two of the cheapest assembled squads in the Premier League.
Compared to their fellow top-six rivals, Arsenal have also done well for themselves this season. Mikel Arteta’s team are the current leaders in the Premier League, despite only having the fifth most expensively assembled squad.
However, the same cannot be said of Chelsea. The Blues have assembled the most expensive squad in the Premier League and sit fifth, 13 points off the pace.
We’ve listed every Premier League club by their league position in comparison to their squad’s cost in transfer fees, ranking them in order of the biggest overperformers down to the biggest underperformers.
1. Sunderland
League Position: 7th
Squad cost Position: 20th
Total squad cost: €205.63million
Difference: +13
2. Fulham
League Position: 10th
Squad cost Position: 17th
Total squad cost: €273.83million
Difference: +10
3. Crystal Palace
League Position: 9th
Squad cost Position: 16th
Total squad cost: €285.24million
Difference: +10
4. Aston Villa
League Position: 3rd
Squad cost Position: 10th
Total squad cost: €388.9million
Difference: +7
5. Brentford
League Position: 8th
Squad cost: 13th
Total squad cost: €336.5million
Difference: +5
6. Arsenal
League Position: 1st
Squad cost Position: 5th
Total squad cost: €924.3million
Difference: +4
7. Leeds
League Position: 16th
Squad cost Position: 18th
Total squad cost: €250.19million
Difference: +2
8. Everton
League Position: 14th
Squad cost Position: 12th
Total squad cost: €330.2million
Difference: +2
9. Burnley
League Position: 19th
Squad cost Position: 19th
Total squad cost: €237.74million
Difference: 0
10. Manchester City
League Position: 2nd
Squad cost Position: 2nd
Total squad cost: €1.03billion
Difference: 0
11. Liverpool
League Position: 4th
Squad cost Position: 3rd
Total squad cost: €991.91million
Difference: -1
QUIZ: Can you name every Premier League club’s record signing?
12. Brighton
League Position: 13th
Squad cost Position: 11th
Total squad cost: €371.92million
Difference: -2
13. Manchester United
League Position: 6th
Squad cost Position: 4th
Total squad cost: €945.52million
Difference: -2
14. Bournemouth
League Position: 15th
Squad cost Position: 12th
Total squad cost: €344.45million
Difference: -3
15. Chelsea
League Position: 1st
Squad cost Position: 5th
Total squad cost: €1.18billion
Difference: -4
16. Wolves
League Position: 20th
Squad cost Position: 15th
Total squad cost: €329.65million
Difference: -5
17. Tottenham
League Position: 6th
Squad cost Position: 11th
Total squad cost: €871.2million
Difference: -5
18. Newcastle
League Position: 14th
Squad cost Position: 7th
Total squad cost: €729.25million
Difference: -7
19. West Ham
League Position: 18th
Squad cost: 9th
Total squad cost: €441.01million
Difference: -9
20. Nottingham Forest
League Position: 17th
Squad cost: 8th
Total squad cost: €435.15million
Difference: -9
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TRY A QUIZ: Can you name every Premier League club’s record signing?