Man City still leading the way in one Premier League table but mentality monsters Liverpool are coming

One of our favourite of all the things. Points won from losing positions. A cast-iron guarantee of a team’s levels of fun. The very best teams generally don’t need to come from behind that often; the drabbest are unable to do so. In the middle you have your sweet spot teams – daft enough to regularly fall behind, capable enough to quite often overcome that setback. It’s no coincidence that Spurs are normally fairly prominent.

We have loads of Premier League tables for you here.

And come this way for the Premier League who have spaffed the most points from winning positions.

20) Southampton – 1pt
13 deficits, 1 draw, 12 defeats

They managed to get something from a game in which they’d fallen behind for the first time at the 11th attempt, salvaging a draw at Brighton.

19) West Ham – 2pts
9 deficits, 2 draws, 7 defeats

Equalised against both Aston Villa and Man City before their bubbles were eventually burst for good in a pair of London Stadium defeats. Made their equaliser against Fulham stick by shrewdly not scoring it until the 95th minute, but never looked like getting back in the game when mauled by Chelsea but did recover a point from a first-minute deficit against Brentford. Within eight minutes of falling behind at Spurs they were three goals down, and obviously there is absolutely no way to even conceive of West Ham ever getting anything from three goals down at Tottenham. And that is actually true of a three-goal deficit at Forest. Beat Newcastle impressively but were already down and out before attempting a forlorn comeback against Arsenal and then suffered a ridiculous defeat at Leicester. At least they won the El Sackico v Wolves.

18) Ipswich – 3pts
11 deficits, 3 draws, 8 defeats

Led and trailed in a 2-2 draw against Aston Villa in what was by then a four-match unbeaten run for Ipswich, if you were of a glass-half-full persuasion. Chastening defeats either side of the October international break at West Ham and at home to Everton, mind, while the defeat at Brentford was wild and failing to close out the first-win deal against Leicester was irritating. Victory over Spurs was very funny but not very come-from-behindy, however the fully deserved point in Ruben Amorim’s first game as Man United boss was indeed both of those things. Threw it away against Bournemouth but bounced back with a 2-1 win at Wolves, leaving Gary O’Neil in an untenable position.

17) Manchester United – 3pts
7 deficits, 1 win, 6 defeats

Came very close to rescuing one or even three points at Brighton before emerging with absolutely nothing, but never looked like recovering anything at all in deeply unpleasant 3-0 home defeats to first Liverpool and then Spurs before grimly holding on at all costs for an inevitable-delaying point at Aston Villa. First points from behind came in a desperately needed comeback against Brentford, while the defeat at West Ham that finally finished off Ten Hag was genuinely unlucky. This lot don’t mind throwing away points but do mind salvaging them.

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16) Crystal Palace – 4pts
10 deficits, 4 draws, 6 defeats

The point salvaged in the second half at Chelsea would have been creditable enough even had it not come on the back of an alarming pair of defeats to sap the life from a season that started so full of promise after the fast finish to 23/24. Came back from 2-0 down to draw with Leicester but would be slightly perturbed that it was necessary to come back from 2-0 down to draw against Leicester. Trailed in every one of their first four Premier League games but at least snapped that run in the goalless draw with Manchester United. Allowing the previously winless Everton to come from behind and take all three points against them isn’t ideal either, but Dr Tottenham delivered a medicinal first win for the Eagles. Led and trailed in a wild 2-2 draw at Wolves in which all four goals came in the space of 17 minutes, scored a 94th-minute equaliser against Newcastle but did not trail in either of their 2-2 draws against Man City and Villa.

15) Everton – 4pts
8 deficits, 1 win, 1 draw, 6 defeats

After four deficits and four defeats in their first four games, Everton managed not to go behind at all in claiming a point at Leicester and the upward trajectory continued with not only a win at last but a win from behind against Palace. Nabbed a late, late point against Fulham but couldn’t repeat the trick against Southampton. Since then, the Toffees have only been involved in 4-0 thrashings and goalless draws.

14) Nottingham Forest – 4pts
6 deficits, 1 win, 1 draw, 4 defeats

Lost their unbeaten start with defeat to Fulham but it’s been a fine opening to the season for Forest, with the lack of scrambling they’ve even had to attempt a clear pointer. Going behind at home to Aston Villa put Arsenal alone for least deficits this term and was Forest’s first victory from a losing position.

13) Fulham – 5pts
7 deficits, 1 win, 2 draws, 4 defeats

What a win it was against Brentford, via two injury-time Harry Wilson goals, the first of which was a truly magnificent nonsense. The draw they got from 1-0 down at Tottenham was the very least they – and Spurs – deserved from that game. Marco Silva’s men have navigated a tricky fixture list very effectively.

12) Arsenal – 5pts
5 deficits, 1 win, 2 draws, 2 defeats

A draw from a goal down doesn’t really tell the full story of the Etihad madness, but it was ultimately another example of our favourite result: a 2-2 draw in which both teams trail and lead. That it completed a Super Sunday double after Brighton and Forest offered up exactly the same outcome in slightly less potentially-season-defining fashion made it the best day of the season bar none. Decided to start playing after going 1-0 down at home to Southampton and ended up winning 3-1, but paid a heavy price for yet another red card at Bournemouth and then went down at Newcastle too. Have sorted themselves out now in conspicuous contrast to Man City, and still boast a total of deficits nobody can better; not even the imperious Nottingham Forest.

11) Wolves – 6pts
14 deficits, 1 win, 3 draws, 10 defeats

Lost without shame at Arsenal, lost with plenty at home to Chelsea but did at least hit back to claim a point at Forest. Led for a long time against Newcastle before ending up with nothing, then did exactly the same against Villa. Scored three at Brentford, which is nice. It’s just a shame they conceded five. They were the last team to manage to go a whole match without falling behind, achieving that only at the 11th attempt in a 2-0 win over Southampton. Have been getting better at retrieving things from those deficits, though, and got all three points in that fashion in their very next game at Fulham. Fourteen deficits is the worst in the division.

10) Leicester – 7pts
13 deficits, 1 win, 4 draws, 8 defeats

The time-defying combination of Red Bull and housery allowed Jamie Vardy to banter off his favourite opponents Spurs on the opening Monday night of the season, while Everton were also pegged back because frankly that’s what happens to Everton. Came within minutes of snatching another and vastly more impressive point from behind after somehow clawing back a 2-0 deficit at Arsenal before being undone at the last but did a number on Southampton from 2-0 down at half-time, with the finishing touch coming in the eighth minute of added time. Those three points could mean so much in the final reckoning, as could a point snaffled deep into injury time at Ipswich. Got nothing from Steve Cooper-scuppering defeats against Man United and Chelsea and a thrashing at Brentford but did a madness late on against Brighton to claim a point from 2-0 down.

9) Bournemouth – 8pts
9 deficits, 2 wins, 2 draws, 5 defeats

The early leaders after that astonishing mugging at Everton in which a 2-0 85th-minute deficit was transformed into an absurd 3-2 win 10 minutes later via means that can only be explained by the word ‘Everton’. Having also come from a goal down to take a point at Nottingham Forest on the opening day, the Cherries made a strong start here. Completed the full set of possible outcomes after falling behind in swift fashion when going down narrowly to Chelsea in game four, but were swept aside by Liverpool, and gave Leicester their first win of the season. And then, obviously, handed both Arsenal and City their first league defeats of the season while also grabbing a point from behind against Villa.

Bournemouth’s commitment to being truly impossible to predict has been further cemented by following that run of seven points from three of last season’s top four with a pair of defeats and then a wild penalty-laden 4-2 win at Wolves. In another late finish, Bournemouth scored in the 87th and 95th minutes to win 2-1 at Ipswich – who were so close to claiming their first home win since returning to Our League.

8) Brighton – 8pts
7 deficits, 2 wins, 2 draws, 3 defeats

Hit back to take a point at 10-man Arsenal, and a point at the Emirates is rarely a bad effort, but the goalless home draw against Ipswich to follow feels like something of a comedown. The point salvaged from 1-0 down at home to Forest also feels a bit meh given they got themselves 2-1 up and spent the closing minutes playing aginst 10 men. while the defeat at Chelsea was a bruising one. Bantered Spurs entirely and completely off with a stirring Mitoma-inspired – and admittedly Spursy-assisted – comeback from a 2-0 half-time deficit to record a 3-2 victory that could in the end have been even more convincing, albeit not much funnier. Led against Liverpool before coming undone in the second half themselves, then inflicted the opposite on poor old Man City.

Two wins, two draws and three defeats is an undeniably neat return from seven deficits.

7) Tottenham – 9pts
10 deficits, 3 wins, 7 defeats

Found one equaliser but couldn’t locate a second in what really does look like a careless and potentially in the long term quite costly defeat to a Newcastle side who appeared to be there for the taking for long periods, then fell into an obvious trap from which they never really looked like escaping against Arsenal.

Had the good sense to fall behind in the first minute against Brentford, thus maximising the scope for a rescue act which was duly committed with really quite surprising elan. Did at lot of things at Old Trafford, but falling behind was absolutely not one of them. Did a lot of things at Brighton, and falling behind was somehow one of them.

Fell behind again early on against West Ham but sorted that out in fine style after half-time to provide yet more evidence of exactly what kind of team they are, and have been consistently compiling even more compelling evidence ever since. Again game from a goal down to thrash Aston Villa while also donating Crystal Palace and Ipswich their first wins of the season before humbling Manchester City at the Etihad and barely turning up at all for a home game against Fulham from which they somehow emerged with a point.

6) Newcastle – 9pts
9 deficits, 2 wins, 3 draws, 5 defeats

Perhaps slightly fortunate to leave Bournemouth with that rescued point in the bag after the controversy around the Cherries’ disallowed late ‘winner’ before scoring twice in the last 15 minutes to take all three points at Wolves. Lost at Fulham but responded well to going a goal down against Man City and duly rescued a point in that one. Will wonder how they didn’t do at least that against Brighton. Found one equaliser at Liverpool but couldn’t locate a second, came back from 1-0 down impressively to win at high-flying Forest but were poor in a subsequent defeat to West Ham and draw at Palace before earning grabbing back a deserved point in a thrilling 3-3 draw against Liverpool.

5) Brentford – 9pts
9 deficits, 3 win, 6 defeats

Some wild games here, mainly at the Gtech where Brentford are consummate entertainers, who turn to mush when they have to play literally anywhere else. At home they have three times turned deficits into victories. The fisrt came in that very silly game against Ipswich in which they were 2-0 down after 31 minutes, level by half-time, ahead just after the break and yet still found themselves needing a 96th-minute winner to actually get the job done. Trailed twice before beating Bournemouth 3-2 and fell behind again to Leicester before Kevin Schade inspired them to a 4-1 win.

Their home form really is now pure nonsense. They’ve got 22 points out of a possible 24 there, while also scoring a ludicrous 26 goals in those seven games. Only City, Spurs, Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea have scored more than that all in.

4) Chelsea – 9pts
7 deficits, 2 win, 3 draws, 2 defeats

Defeats came against Man City and Liverpool, which isn’t so bad, while an early deficit against Brighton was swiftly Cole Palmered into oblivion. Couldn’t completely repeat that trick after falling behind to Nottingham Forest, even after the visitors were reduced to 10 men in a spicy game, and hit back from a second-half deficit to take a point home with them from Old Trafford before denying Arsenal a return to winning ways at Stamford Bridge and winning 4-3 having been 2-0 down early doors at Spurs. That fixture never disappoints.

3) Liverpool – 9pts
6 deficits, 2 wins, 3 draws, 1 defeat

Only going behind in six games out of 15 is obviously quite good anyway, and we admire the neatness of already ticking off all possible outcomes from such a position. The defeat came against Nottingham Forest, which seems slightly less weird now than it did at the time but still quite weird, the draw after trailing twice at Arsenal and the victories against Brighton on a red-letter weekend for Arne Slot’s side that also featured defeats for City, Arsenal and Villa, and then somewhat streakily at Southampton after leading 1-0 and trailing 2-1. They have since battled from behind to salvage draws against Newcastle and Fulham, also dropping points from a winning position at the former having gone behind twice.

2) Aston Villa – 11pts
10 deficits, 3 wins, 2 draws, 5 defeats

Fell behind against Arsenal in a game they probably should have taken the lead in. Ollie Watkins and David Raya had other ideas. Then went 2-0 down to Everton purely it seems to ensure they inflicted maximum misery on the poor bastards when they duly completed the inevitable 3-2 comeback against a club that currently seems to exist purely as the butt of all the jokes.

Were second best for long periods against Wolves in a game they trailed 1-0 until another late turnaround saw them run out 3-1 winners. The point gained from behind at Ipswich probably feels more like a couple squandered given the 2-1 lead they also held there, but the 3-1 win at Fulham was very nicely done after Raul Jimenez’s fifth-minute opener. Swept away in the second half by Spurs in a game they led at half-time and have been on a really quite miserable run for really quite a long time now. And it’s starting to get noticed.

1) Manchester City – 14pts
10 deficits, 4 wins, 2 draws, 4 defeats

Wins from behind are generally quite thrilling and unexpected. Manchester City’s successes against Ipswich especially but also Brentford and Fulham are notable only for the surprise at them falling behind and, in the case of the Brentford and Fulham games, Erling Haaland inexplicably failing to score a hat-trick in the comeback.

Then came John Stones’ 98th-minute intervention against Arsenal in a game City led 1-0 before trailing 2-1 and then spending the entirety of the second half smacking their heads against a 10-man brick wall until the very last moments of an absurd game. And then he did it all again to turn a frustrating draw at Wolves into one of the season’s most important wins given it came the day after Arsenal shat the bed at Bournemouth.

City’s own luck with having to keep coming back from deficits would itself run out the same way, though, s**tting their own bed at the Vitality and then losing to Brighton, Spurs and Liverpool, beating Forest, and drawing at Palace having trailed twice.