Coventry pointless and goalless as Premier League relegation battle takes shape

A month into the new Premier League season, the bottom of the table has already taken on a definite shape. The three sides in the relegation places hold a combined two points, the division's three worst form streaks all belong to them, and the clubs just above the drop zone are separated by margins thin enough to be reshuffled by a single result.

Coventry cut adrift

Coventry City prop up the table with zero points from four matches, and the numbers make grim reading. According to the Premier League table, they have scored no goals and conceded ten, leaving them with the worst goal difference in the division at -10. The form guide shows four straight defeats — the longest losing run anywhere in the league.

Fulham and Villa a point from safety

Fulham sit 18th with a single point, from one draw and three defeats, and are on a run of three straight losses. According to the league's scoring charts, J. King has two of their four goals.

Aston Villa, in 19th, also have one point. They have scored once in four matches and conceded seven, and their last two results have both been defeats, per the form guide.

Goalless Spurs hold 17th

Tottenham Hotspur occupy the final position of safety, but the table makes uncomfortable reading: two points from two draws, five conceded and — remarkably — no goals scored in four outings. Spurs and Coventry are the only two sides yet to register, according to the table, and Tottenham themselves head into the next round of fixtures on two straight losses.

The pack above

Crystal Palace, 16th, have three points from one win and three defeats. No side in the division has conceded more than their 11 goals against, according to the table, and T. Mitchell — with two goals — is their only representative on the scoring charts.

Bournemouth, 15th, are also on three points, though three of their four matches have ended in draws, with a single defeat the only blemish.

The margins

According to the Premier League table:

• Fulham and Aston Villa trail 17th-placed Tottenham by a single point
• Coventry are two points from safety and three behind both Crystal Palace and Bournemouth
• Just three points separate Manchester United in 13th from Fulham in 18th, with Sunderland, Bournemouth, Palace and Spurs packed in between

What the form says

The form guide's three worst streaks in the division belong to the bottom three: Coventry's four straight losses, Fulham's three and Villa's two. Early-season tables are fragile things, and four matches is a small sample. But until the numbers move, the picture is stark — one club without a goal or a point, two more stuck on one, and a scramble above them that has barely begun.