Burnley are ahead of Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham in the table but spend a fraction of their rivals... these are the staggering financial differences between the top-six giants and the gatecrashers from Turf Moor

  • Burnley beat Stoke at Turf Moor to climb into fourth place in the Premier League
  • That means they are above Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham in the table
  • The Lancashire club have achieved this despite their modest resources
  • Sean Dyche has spent little yet is still outperforming much of the elite 

So much for the big six. The established elite have been split in two by little old Burnley, with Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham all sitting lower in the Premier League table than the Lancashire underdogs.

Sean Dyche's side are competing for a place in Europe and, whether they stay the course or not, it is a staggering achievement when considering the relative paucity of their resources compared with the financial might of the big clubs.

As the tables below show, Burnley's turnover, wage bill and transfer spending pales next to the big six, and their Turf Moor ground is tiny in comparison with the grand stages of Anfield, Wembley and the Emirates Stadium.

Ashley Barnes (right) fired Burnley up to fourth place in the Premier League table on Tuesday

Ashley Barnes (right) fired Burnley up to fourth place in the Premier League table on Tuesday

Season at a glance

  • Premier League
  • Premier League
  • Championship
  • League One
  • League Two
  • Scottish Premiership
  • Scottish Div 1
  • Scottish Div 2
  • Scottish Div 3
  • Ligue 1
  • Serie A
  • La Liga
  • Bundesliga

The statistic that arguably most emphasises Burnley's achievement is their total spending per point won this season. Adding their annual wage bill to last summer's total transfer spend, then dividing by the points won so far this season, Burnley's points have cost them £2.2million each.


League leaders Manchester City, meanwhile, have had to fork out £10.3m to earn each point, while Manchester United's have come at a cost of £11.7m; Chelsea's points have proved even more expensive at £12.9m each.

And this does not take into account the huge difference in cumulative spending over the past decade or more just to reach this point, which would see Burnley even further dwarfed by the big-spending giants of English football. 

It is a small victory for the merits of astute spending, sound management, team spirit and placing faith in footballers deemed not capable of playing at the highest level by other, richer clubs with less patience.

That all means that neutrals around the world will be hoping the party continues at Turf Moor for a long while yet. 

 

AVERAGE ATTENDANCE 

Manchester United - 75,005

Tottenham - 69,315 

Arsenal - 59,377 

Manchester City - 53,369

Liverpool - 53,165 

Chelsea - 41,499

Burnley - 20,136 

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ANNUAL TURNOVER* 

Manchester United £515m

Manchester City £392m 

Arsenal £354m 

Chelsea £335m 

Liverpool £302m 

Tottenham £210m 

Burnley £40m

*According to most recent full accounts available 

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Liverpool are one of the clubs to have spent far more than Burnley yet lag behind them

Liverpool are one of the clubs to have spent far more than Burnley yet lag behind them

PLAYER'S AVERAGE WEEKLY WAGE 

Manchester United £100,792

Manchester City £100,691 

Chelsea £85,600

Arsenal £77,639 

Liverpool £70,190 

Tottenham £60,667

Burnley £18,000 

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ANNUAL WAGE BILL* 

Manchester United £265m

Chelsea £256m

Manchester City £248m 

Arsenal £234m

Liverpool £200m

Tottenham £120m 

Burnley £33m   

*According to most recent full accounts available

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Mesut Ozil and Arsenal are two points behind the Lancashire club having played a game less 

Mesut Ozil and Arsenal are two points behind the Lancashire club having played a game less 

SUMMER SPEND 

Manchester City £225.2m

Chelsea £196.6m 

Manchester United £145.7m 

Liverpool £137m

Tottenham £88m 

Arsenal £53m 

Burnley £34.5m 

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RECORD SIGNING 

Manchester United - Paul Pogba: £89m

Chelsea - Alvaro Morata: £70.6m

Liverpool - Naby Keita: £55m

Man City - Kevin De Bruyne: £54m

Arsenal - Alexandre Lacazette: £53m

Tottenham - Davison Sanchez: £42m

Burnley - Chris Wood: £15m 

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Tottenham are lagging behind Burnley despite Harry Kane's goalscoring firepower

Tottenham are lagging behind Burnley despite Harry Kane's goalscoring firepower

 

COST PER POINT THIS SEASON

Chelsea - £12.9m 

Manchester United - £11.7m

Liverpool - £11.2m 

Manchester City - £10.3m  

Arsenal - £9.9m

Tottenham - £7.4m

Burnley - £2.2m 

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Sean Dyche is working wonders at Burnley

Sean Dyche is working wonders at Burnley