Manchester City's Perfect Start Sets the Early Title-Race Standard

The Premier League title race is only five rounds old, but the top of the table already has a settled look. According to the Premier League table, Manchester City lead the way with a perfect 15 points from five matches, Arsenal sit three points behind in second on 12, and Brighton & Hove Albion complete the early top three on 10.

City's perfect start

No side has taken a point off Manchester City yet. The table shows five wins from five, 13 goals scored and five conceded — a +8 goal difference to go with the division's only 100% record. Only Brighton have scored more. The form summary credits them with five straight wins, while the early scoring charts list Haaland on three goals and Cherki on two.

Arsenal keep the leaders in sight

Arsenal's 12 points come from four wins and a single defeat, and that one loss accounts exactly for the gap to the summit. Beaten in their opening match, they have since won four in a row — the form summary calls it four straight wins, the longest streak in the division after City's. It is the only blemish on their card, but against a side that has dropped nothing, it is the difference between leading and chasing. Their +4 goal difference, on eight scored and four conceded, keeps them two points clear of third, with Ødegaard on two goals in the scoring charts.

Brighton bring the goals

Brighton's case for a place in the conversation is built on the sharpest attack in the division. Their 16 goals — three more than City — is a tally no Premier League side has matched, and their +11 goal difference is the best in the division. Three wins, a draw and a defeat leave them third on 10 points, five behind the leaders, and the form summary shows them arriving on the back of a win.

The unbeaten pack on nine points

Below the top three, four unbeaten sides are locked together on nine points, six adrift of the leaders:

• Brentford, fourth, have two wins and three draws, with 10 goals scored and only four conceded.
• Leeds United, fifth, are unbeaten with seven goals for and three against.
• Liverpool, sixth, have drawn three of five; the form summary shows two straight draws, with Isak among the league's leading scorers on three goals.
• Everton, seventh, complete the group unbeaten, with six scored and three conceded.

The names already off the pace

Not every traditional heavyweight is part of the early conversation. Newcastle United sit ninth on eight points, Chelsea tenth on seven and Manchester United twelfth on five, according to the table, while Tottenham Hotspur prop up the division on two. None of the gaps is unbridgeable after five matches, but each of those sides already trails City by seven points or more.

The size of the task

City's cushion — three over Arsenal, five over Brighton, six over the unbeaten pack — is already tangible, yet five rounds is a small sample and the table beneath the leaders is tight enough that one result could compress it. With Haaland and Isak on three goals apiece at the head of the scoring charts, and Ødegaard and Cherki also among the early scorers, the race's leading forwards have begun in rhythm. Taking points off City, though, remains the one problem no side has solved.