Facts About 'Big Six' Clubs - Premier League

Photo: India.com

The dominance of the Big 6 could hasten the arrival of a European Super League.

“Last year we highlighted the Big 6 clubs’ desire to reduce risk which they are now successfully doing with increasing amounts of European prize money and what will be a greater share of the Premier League’s international broadcast rights revenue,” Vysyble director Roger Bell said.

KnowInsider brings you up to speed with the so-called Premier League big six and why they are pushing for change in the top flight:

Arsenal

Arsenal was a huge force under Arsene Wenger before his retirement and remain the only side to go a whole season undefeated.

Photo: TEAMtalk

Arsenal capped a frenetic season by winning the FA Cup and showing signs of a plan developing under new manager Mikel Arteta, while their global brand continues to draw in thousands, probably millions, of fans around the world. What are the areas the club must address in order to use the conclusion of this past season as a building block and not have it become a fleeting memory in another lost campaign?

Arsenal are set to play hosts to Burnley at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday in their next English Premier League fixture, Sportskeeda said.

Arsenal come into this game on the back of a 4-2 win over Irish side Dundalk on Thursday in their final UEFA Europa League group stage game.

Goals from striker Eddie Nketiah, Egypt international Mohamed Elneny, midfielder Joe Willock and young striker Folarin Balogun sealed the win for Mikel Arteta's side.

Midfielder Jordan Flores and centre-back Sean Hoare scored the consolation goals for Dundalk.

Burnley, on the other hand, drew 1-1 against Everton last Saturday in the English Premier League. An early goal from Republic of Ireland international Robbie Brady for Burnley was canceled out by a strike from in-form striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin for Everton.

Liverpool

Pre-Premier League, Liverpool were the top dogs in English football with a mass of top division titles and domestic trophies to boot.

Photo: Vbet News

They’re back on top now after finally lifting the title during the Premier League era, and with a blossoming young squad, bold manager and money to burn, the Reds aren’t going anywhere, as cited by SI.com.

Climbing the ladder-like Liverpool has to win trophies on multiple fronts is certainly not easy. Maintaining that level of elite form could prove to be even more difficult. The core nucleus may not be in need of an immediate refresh, but there are clear needs to address to ensure that the club's success is sustained.

Liverpool’s high-intensity pressing game has taken a noticeable backseat so far this season, owing to the added demands of the busiest fixture list in living memory.

The Reds are in the midst of a uniquely busy campaign, with a delayed start due to the COVID-19 pandemic and no relenting in terms of the schedule ensuring a new approach from Jurgen Klopp.

Klopp is rotating for almost every game, as injuries continue to take their toll as a result of an increased workload, while Liverpool’s gameplan itself has been altered, too.

The Athletic‘s Tom Worville has studied the change in pressing actions in Europe’s top five leagues over the past four seasons, with a dropoff in the Premier League, Bundesliga, Serie A and Ligue 1, while La Liga has stayed the same.

This is evident across the majority of the English top flight, with the percentage of opposition touches put under pressure in the middle and final thirds of the pitch dropping for almost every side.

Liverpool remain the side with the most pressures, but their percentage has dropped from 35 percent – equal to Man City – in 2019/20 to 30 percent so far this term.

They are now level with Chelsea‘s output from last season, with Frank Lampard’s side seeing the biggest decrease, from 30 percent to 20 percent.

Manchester City

Photo: The Telegraph

MC had won two league titles prior to their Abu Dhabi-backed takeover, and have won four since. For a club as dynamic and sensational at Man City, it has a penchant for being picked off on the counter.

They were always relegation whipping boys in years gone by, but they have firmly established themselves at the top of the English football ladder. The City Football Group also owns an expanding portfolio of franchises around the world including New York City FC and Melbourne City. Ferran Torres has already joined, while Leroy Sane has left for Bayern Munich and David Silva is heading elsewhere.

Manchester United

Photo: Sum Store

According to Radio Times, the most successful club in Premier League era history has lost its sheen in recent years, but its influence is unparalleled. United won the title in 13 of the first 21 Premier League seasons under Sir Alex Ferguson but have failed to top the table since his retirement in 2013.

The arrival of Bruno Fernandes tied Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side together. Now, with a Fernandes-Paul Pogba midfield axis to build around and an exciting front line, there's a reason for optimism at Old Trafford. Borussia Dortmund star Jadon Sancho appears to be the chief target, but he isn't even really what United needs. Who could ensure the Red Devils become contenders again?

Chelsea

The Blues had only won one top division title before Roman Abramovich’s takeover in 2004. That’s fewer than 19 other teams can boast.

However, Russian money has revolutionised the club in west London to become the next most successful team after United during the Premier League era.

Chelsea earned over £150million in prize money after winning the Premier League 2016-2017. Photo: Daily Mail.

Chelsea has already landed Hakim Ziyech and Timo Werner and has another attacking standout in its sights. The Blues have manoeuvred for a big splash after riding out the wave of its transfer ban and witnessing the growth of some young, in-house talents, appearing to go all-in on the quest to return to the top. They now boast six titles in their history, the same number as Manchester City and Sunderland.

Chelsea has only won four times at Goodison Park over the past decade, one of which was in the League Cup, and only twice in the last seven visits. But both of those wins came in title-winning seasons, and we might even remember them fondly. The last one was in 2016-17 when Pedro’s SCREAMAH put Conte’s Chelsea within touching distance of the trophy. The one before then was the 6-3 (not a typo) at the start of 2014-15, which featured, amongst other things, a backheel assists from Mikel John Obi, SBNation reported.

Unfortunately, besides those two memorable trips, our visits to Goodison have ended mostly in frustration, disappointment, and even anger. Our combined scoreline at Goodison since 2015 reads 6:12, and that’s including the 3-0 win from 2017. Mateo Kovacic’s goal last season was our first at Goodison in three tries.

Those are the sorts of omens we need to overcome against Carlo Ancelotti’s Everton this weekend.

Tottenham

Tottenham's £850million Hotspur Stadium. Photo: Stadia magazine

Infrastructure-wise, Tottenham are almost unmatched. Their brand new stadium is fit for the finest in world football, their state-of-the-art training facilities are second to none, their trophy cabinet… well, it’s not quite brimming.

Spurs have been the nearly-men for a long while now, having finished runners up in the Premier League and Champions League in recent years. Their only trophy of the last 21 years is a solitary League Cup win in 2008.

Mauricio Pochettino warned Tottenham of stagnating and urged for investment in the squad. Long after his departure, the same points hold, except Jose Mourinho's style differs greatly from his and requires a significant overhaul–all for a club that needs to be mindful of its finances due to its new stadium costs and the massive loss of revenue due to the pandemic. Who might Spurs be able to target to move forward?

Tottenham will finish a day top of the Premier League table for the first time since August 2014 and could finally go all the way in a unique season.

In such a topsy turvy campaign where we had have freak results like Liverpool shipping seven against Aston Villa, teams dogged by injuries and positive tests for coronavirus, a shorter pre-season and home advantage counting for little with no crowds, this is the perfect season for a side like Spurs to do like Leicester did and win the title.

Their squad is packed with quality and depth to deal with the long slog ahead after some shrewd summer signings including Gareth Bale, Carlos Vinicius, Joe Rodon and Sergio Reguilon, who was outstanding against City. With the experience on their substitute bench they look better prepared to deal with injuries to their star names which hampered Mauricio Pochettino's time in charge.

And in the big games so far they have more than turned up. Trouncing Manchester United 6-1 at Old Trafford and today outclassing Manchester City with their counter attacks and work rate. Yes there were more accusations of being 'Spursy' after blowing a 3-0 lead to draw with West Ham but they have racked up four wins since then.

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