Ranking the Premier League clubs by the difficulty of their first five games
Premier League champions Liverpool will kick off the 2020-21 season with an opening day clash against Championship winners Leeds United – and we cannot wait for it all to get started again.
Now that the fixture list has been confirmed, we’ve ranked every team in the Premier League by the difficulty of their first five matches, based on every club’s 2019-20 finishing position.
Note: newly-promoted sides Leeds United, West Brom and Fulham have been deemed to have finished 21st, 22nd and 23rd last season.
20. Sheffield United
First five fixtures: Wolves (H), Aston Villa (A), Leeds (H), Arsenal (A), Fulham (H)
Average difficulty: 15.2
19. Wolves
First five fixtures: Sheffield United (A), Manchester City (H), West Ham (A), Fulham (H), Leeds (A)
Average difficulty: 14.2
18. Leicester City
First five fixtures: West Brom (A), Burnley (H), Manchester City (A), West Ham (H), Aston Villa (H)
Average difficulty: 13.4
17. Chelsea
First five fixtures: Brighton (A), Liverpool (H), West Brom (A), Crystal Palace (H), Southampton (H)
Average difficulty: 12.6
16= Liverpool
First five fixtures: Leeds (H), Chelsea (A), Arsenal (H), Aston Villa (A), Everton (A)
Average difficulty: 12.4
READ: Alternative highlights of 19-20: James Milner’s goal-line clearance ‘winner’
16= Fulham
Final five fixtures: Arsenal (H), Leeds (A), Aston Villa (H), Wolves (A), Sheffield United (A)
Average difficulty: 12.4
14. Aston Villa
First five fixtures: Sheffield United (H), Fulham (A), Liverpool (H), Leicester (A), Leeds (H)
Average difficulty: 11.8
13. Everton
First five fixtures: Tottenham (A), West Brom (H), Crystal Palace (A), Brighton (H), Liverpool (H)
Average difficulty: 11.6
12= Manchester City
First five fixtures: Wolves (A), Leicester (H), Leeds (A), Arsenal (H), West Ham (A)
Average difficulty: 11.4
12= Burnley
First five fixtures: Leicester (A), Southampton (H), Newcastle (A), West Brom (H), Tottenham (H)
Average difficulty: 11.4
READ: The 2019-20 PL ‘bang for your buck’ table: Pounds per point per player
10. Southampton
First five fixtures: Crystal Palace (A), Tottenham (H), Burnley (A), West Brom (H), Chelsea (A)
Average difficulty: 11.2
9. Tottenham
First five fixtures: Everton (H), Southampton (A), Newcastle (H), Manchester United (A), West Ham (H)
Average difficulty: 11.0
8. Manchester United
First five fixtures: Crystal Palace (H), Brighton (A), Tottenham (H), Newcastle (A), Chelsea (H)
Average difficulty: 10.4
7. Arsenal
First five fixtures: Fulham (A), West Ham (H), Liverpool (A), Sheffield United (H), Manchester City (A)
Average difficulty: 10.2
6. Newcastle United
First five fixtures: West Ham (A), Brighton (H), Tottenham (A), Burnley (H), Manchester United (H)
Average difficulty: 10.0
QUIZ: Can you name the top Premier League goalscorer for every nationality?
5. Brighton
First five fixtures: Chelsea (H), Newcastle (A), Manchester United (H), Everton (A), Crystal Palace (A)
Average difficulty: 9.2
4. Crystal Palace
First five fixtures: Southampton (H), Manchester United (A), Everton (H), Chelsea (A), Brighton (H)
Average difficulty: 9.0
3= Leeds United
First five fixtures: Liverpool (A), Fulham (H), Sheffield United (A), Manchester City (H), Wolves (H)
Average difficulty: 8.4
READ: Alternative highlights of 19-20: Luke Ayling sprinting, head down, to glory
3= West Brom
First five fixtures: Leicester (H), Everton (A), Chelsea (H), Southampton (A), Burnley (H)
Average difficulty: 8.4
1. West Ham
First five fixtures: Newcastle (H), Arsenal (A), Wolves (H), Leicester (H), Tottenham (H)
Average difficulty: 7.8
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