Frank Lampard: Chelsea boss celebrates the win over Newcastle with goalscorer Marcos Alonso
Frank Lampard: Chelsea boss celebrates the win over Newcastle with goalscorer Marcos Alonso

Premier League Return: All the highlights from the Premier League season and stats review of the campaign so far


With the Premier League set to return on Wednesday, we take a look back at how the season has unfolded with our highlights video and stats.

Liverpool are on the brink of their first league title since 1990, but it is always good to get a reminder of how the rest of the league stands going into the final stretch.

Reigning champions Man City look all set to finish as runners up, while Chelsea are hoping for a strong finish in their first full season under Frank Lampard, but they remain winless on the road in 2020.

The Blues, along with Leicester and Man United, are battling it out for the top four while Wolves, Sheff United, Tottenham and Arsenal are outsiders still with a glimmer of hope.

Meanwhile, Jose Mourinho and Mikel Arteta will be hoping to get more of their methods across at Tottenham and Arsenal respectively after more time on the training ground.

At the bottom, the battle to avoid relegation looks set to go down to the wire between Norwich, Aston Villa, Bournemouth, Watford, West Ham and Brighton.

Take a look at the state of play with the video below...


WATCH: Premier League season so far...


Premier League season review - Opta stats

August

  • Grant Hanley’s own goal for Norwich against Liverpool was the first goal scored in the Premier League campaign - only the second time the first goal of the season in the competition was an own goal after 2015-16, when Kyle Walker’s own-goal was the only goal in Man Utd’s 1-0 win over Spurs.
  • Man City’s Raheem Sterling became the eighth player to score a hat-trick on the opening weekend of a Premier League campaign, and the first since Didier Drogba in 2010-11.
  • Thanks to a goal against Liverpool and a hat-trick against Newcastle, Norwich’s Teemu Pukki became the first player to score as many as four goals in his first two Premier League appearances.
  • Against Crystal Palace, Phil Jagielka made his first Premier League appearance for Sheffield United in 4,480 days – only Wayne Rooney for Everton has had a bigger gap in appearances for a team in Premier League history (4,837 days between May 2004 and August 2017).
  • Crystal Palace’s Patrick van Aanholt became only the second ever player to score a 90th minute winner vs Man Utd in the Premier League (after Thierry Henry for Arsenal in January 2007), and the first to do so at Old Trafford.
  • Sébastien Haller’s first goal for West Ham at Watford saw the Hammers become the first side to have as many as 150 different goalscorers in the Premier League.
  • Against Bournemouth, Man City’s Kevin De Bruyne became the fastest player to reach 50 Premier League assists, doing so in 123 matches.
  • With his goal against Burnley, Roberto Firmino became the first Brazilian player to score 50 Premier League goals.

September

  • With his goal against Arsenal, Christian Eriksen became the first Danish player to score 50 Premier League goals.
  • Man City’s 8-0 win against Watford was their biggest ever win in the top-flight. The Citizens were 5-0 up after just 18 minutes, the earliest a side has ever scored five goals in a Premier League match.
  • Watford’s 0-8 loss to Man City was their heaviest ever defeat in their English league history.
  • With his goal against Watford, Man City’s Sergio Aguero became the first ever player to score in each of his side’s first six games in a single Premier League season.
  • Sergio Aguero’s goal against Watford was his 100th in the Premier League at the Etihad Stadium, making him the third player to score 100+ goals at a single venue in the competition (Thierry Henry, Highbury and Wayne Rooney, Old Trafford).
  • West Ham’s 2-0 victory over Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s Man Utd saw Manuel Pellegrini become the first manager to win a Premier League game against four different Manchester United managers.
  • With their 1-2 defeat against Liverpool, Frank Lampard became just the second Chelsea manager to fail to win any of his first four home games in charge in all competitions, after Bobby Campbell in 1988.
  • Raheem Sterling’s goal against Everton was his 100th scored in all club competitions, with 77 for Man City and 23 for Liverpool.

October

  • Sadio Mane’s goal against Leicester was his 50th in the Premier League for Liverpool, making him the 10th player to reach the milestone for the Reds in the competition.
  • In their 5-1 win at Norwich, Aston Villa became the first promoted side to score 5+ goals away from home in a Premier League match since Bolton at Leicester in August 2001.
  • Wolves 2-0 win at Man City was their first away victory against the reigning champions of the top-flight since January 1984, when they defeated Liverpool 1-0 at Anfield.
  • In his 400th Premier League game as manager, Newcastle boss Steve Bruce registered his first ever win against Man Utd as a manager in all competitions, in what was his 23rd attempt (W1 D5 L17).
  • Leicester’s 9-0 win at Southampton equalled the biggest margin of victory in Premier League history, after Man Utd beat Ipswich 9-0 in March 1995.
  • Leicester’s 9-0 win at Southampton was the biggest ever away win recorded in the history of the English top-flight.
  • In Leicester’s 9-0 win against Southampton, Ayoze Perez and Jamie Vardy each scored a hat-trick – only the second time two players have netted 3+ goals for a team in a single Premier League match after Robert Pires and Jermaine Pennant did so for Arsenal against Southampton in May 2003.
  • Following a goalless draw with Bournemouth, Watford became the first team to fail to win any of their opening 10 games to a Premier League season on two occasions, with the Hornets also doing so in 2006-07.
  • Christian Pulisic became Chelsea’s youngest ever hat-trick scorer in the Premier League (21y 38d), following his treble against Burnley. He also became just the second American player to score a hat-trick in the competition, after Clint Dempsey.
  • Scott McTominay’s opener for Man Utd against Norwich was the Red Devils’ 2000th Premier League goal, the first club to reach that milestone in the competition.

November

  • Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s goal against Wolves was his 50th in just 78 games in all competitions for Arsenal – the quickest player to reach the milestone for the club since Ian Wright in 1993 (68 games).
  • Watford became the last Premier League side to win a league game in 2019-20, picking up a 2-0 victory at Norwich.
  • The average age of Chelsea’s starting XI in their 2-0 win against Crystal Palace was their youngest ever in a Premier League match (24y 88d).
  • Roy Hodgson became the 15th manager to take charge of as many as 300 Premier League games, doing so in Crystal Palace’s 0-2 loss at Chelsea.
  • Brandon Williams and Mason Greenwood both found the net in Man Utd’s 3-3 draw with Sheffield United, the first time two teenagers had scored in a league game for the Red Devils since October 2005 (Giuseppe Rossi and Wayne Rooney vs Sunderland).
  • Aaron Cresswell’s goal ended West Ham’s 13-game winless away run against Chelsea in the Premier League, with the Hammers picking up their first win at Stamford Bridge since September 2002.

December

  • With his goal against Burnley, Riyad Mahrez became the ninth different African and first Algerian player to reach 50 Premier League goals.
  • Liverpool’s 5-2 win against Everton was their 32nd Premier League game without defeat, their longest ever unbeaten run in top-flight history (eventually extended to 44 games).
  • Duncan Ferguson took charge of his first match as caretaker manager of Everton, beating Chelsea 3-1 at Goodison Park. It’s the first time in Premier League history Chelsea have lost a match against a manager taking charge of his first game in the competition, excluding their opening day match with Oldham in the inaugural season (W14 D3).
  • Son Heung-Min’s goal for Tottenham in their 5-0 victory against Burnley in December (71.41 metres) was the longest carry leading to a Premier League goal since March 2017, when Andros Townsend travelled 75.97 metres with the ball before scoring past Ben Foster.
  • Leicester’s 4-1 win at Aston Villa was their eighth consecutive Premier League victory – the Foxes longest ever winning run in the top-flight.
  • Following his goal against Newcastle, Danny Ings became just the third different Southampton player to score in 5+ consecutive Premier League appearances, after James Beattie and Matt Le Tissier.
  • Arsenal’s 3-1 win at West Ham was the first time they’d won a Premier League away game they were trailing at half-time for the first time since October 2011 (5-3 v Chelsea). In the match, Gabriel Martinelli became the youngest ever player to score on his first Premier League start for the Gunners (18y 174d).
  • Between September and December, Southampton scored 16 consecutive Premier League goals via English players, the longest such run since QPR netted 17 in a row between March 1996-September 2011 (excluding own goals).
  • Bournemouth’s 0-1 home defeat against Burnley saw a total of just five shots taken in the whole match – the lowest total in a Premier League game since the data is available (2003-04).
  • Sheffield United’s 1-0 win at Brighton saw them become just the second promoted team in English top-flight history to avoid defeat in their first nine away games of a season, after Burnley in 1947-48 (10).
  • Watford’s 2-0 win over Manchester United ended the Hornets’ club record 12 home league games without a win.
  • Tottenham’s 0-2 defeat against Chelsea was Jose Mourinho’s first ever home defeat against a side he has previously managed, ending a run of 13 unbeaten (W12 D1).
  • Scott McTominay picked up a yellow card after just 24 seconds in Manchester United’s Boxing Day match with Newcastle, the fastest given in the Premier League since exact time data has been collected in the competition (2006-07).
  • Manchester City won their final game of the decade, giving them a total of 251 Premier League wins in the 2010s. In English top-flight history, only Manchester United have won more league games in a single decade (255 in the 2000s).
  • Arsenal lost four consecutive home matches in all competitions for the first time since December 1959.
  • Norwich City’s Emiliano Buendia created 29 chances for his teammates in December, the most by a player in a single calendar month on record in Premier League history (since 2003-04).

January

  • Sergio Aguero’s hat-trick against Aston Villa saw him overtake Thierry Henry to become the highest ever non-English goalscorer in Premier League history.
  • Sergio Aguero’s hat-trick against Aston Villa was his 12th in the Premier League, more than any other player in the history of the competition.
  • Tottenham’s 0-0 draw at Watford ended a run of 93 Premier League games without a goalless draw, the second longest such run in the history of the competition.
  • David Silva became the first Manchester City player to make 300 Premier League appearances, doing so in their 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace.
  • Kevin De Bruyne became the first player to assist 15+ goals in three separate Premier League campaigns.
  • Gabriel Martinelli’s goal against Chelsea saw him become the first teenager to net 10 goals in all competitions in a single campaign for Arsenal since Nicolas Anelka in 1998-99.
  • Mark Noble’s goal against Leicester took him to 79 goal involvements in the Premier League (46 goals, 33 assists), the most of any West Ham player in the history of the competition.
  • Burnley won 2-0 away at Manchester United, their first league victory at Old Trafford since September 1962.

February

Aston Villa’s Mbwana Samatta became the first Tanzanian player to score a Premier League goal courtesy of his strike against Bournemouth.

  • Liverpool’s 4-0 win over Southampton saw them finish the day with a 22 point lead at the top of the table – the biggest lead any league-leader has had at the end of a day in top-flight history.
  • Steven Bergwijn became the 250th player – and the 13th Dutchman – to score on his Premier League debut, with his strike for Spurs against Manchester City.
  • Sadio Mané’s winner for Liverpool at Norwich was his 100th in all competitions in his English club career (25 for Southampton, 75 for Liverpool).
  • Against Aston Villa, Tottenham’s Son Heung-min became the first Asian player in Premier League history to score 50 goals in the competition, also becoming the sixth Spurs player to reach the milestone.
  • With their 2-0 win at Stamford Bridge, Manchester United completed the league double over Chelsea for the first time since the 1987-88 campaign. In the match, Odion Ighalo became the 200th player to play for the Red Devils in the Premier League, and the first Nigerian to do so.
  • With their 2-1 win over Spurs, Chelsea became the first side to complete a league double against a side managed by Jose Mourinho.
  • Liverpool’s 3-2 win against West Ham was their 18th consecutive Premier League victory, equalling the record set by Manchester City in December 2017.
  • With their 1-0 win at Brighton, Crystal Palace became the first side in Premier League history to win a game on February 29th.
  • Watford beat Liverpool 3-0 at Vicarage Road, ending the Reds’ 18-game winning run, 44-game unbeaten run and 36-game run in which they had scored.
  • Watford’s 3-0 win against Liverpool was the biggest top-flight victory for a side in the relegation zone against the side top of the table since Leicester beat Man Utd 3-0 in November 1985.

March

  • Liverpool’s 2-1 win against Bournemouth was their 22nd consecutive home win in the Premier League, the longest such winning run in English top-flight history.
  • Against Bournemouth, Mohamed Salah scored his 70th goal in his 100th Premier League game for Liverpool – only Alan Shearer (79 with Blackburn) has scored more in his first 100 games for a club in the competition.
  • Dele Alli’s goal against Burnley saw him become the seventh different player to score 50 Premier League goals for Spurs, with only Harry Kane doing so at a younger age than Alli.
  • Manchester United achieved their first league double over Manchester City since the 2009-10 campaign.
  • Man City’s 0-2 loss at Man Utd was their seventh Premier League defeat of the campaign, making it the most defeats Pep Guardiola has suffered in a season in his managerial career.

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