Man United enjoyed a stunning 53 point swing on Liverpool to underline the clubs’ respective resurgence and decline during the 2025-26 Premier League season.
The Red Devils secured a return to Champions League football by finishing third in the top flight, with Michael Carrick inspiring an upturn during his interim spell in charge after replacing Ruben Amorim, who was sacked in January.
Man United’s improvement has led to Carrick securing the job on a permanent basis, with the club having a startling transformation after finishing 15th in the Premier League last season.
Unsurprisingly, Man United had the largest positive points swing of the 17 teams who featured in the top flight over the past two seasons.
Having finished with 42 points in the 2024-25 campaign – their lowest in the Premier League era – Man United’s tally increased by 29 to finish on a total of 71 this season.
While Man United had the biggest positive swing in points, Liverpool’s dismal title defence was reflected by Arne Slot’s side having the largest negative swing.
Man United enjoyed a 29 point swing from the 2024-25 to 2025-26 season as Michael Carrick’s side secure Champions League qualification
Arsenal earned 11 more points this season as the Gunners claimed the Premier League title
Liverpool had a 24 point decline as Arne Slot’s side endured a nightmare title defence
| Team | Points in 2024-25 | Points in 2025-26 | Swing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Man United | 42 | 71 | +29 |
| Arsenal | 74 | 85 | +11 |
| Man City | 71 | 78 | +7 |
| Tottenham | 38 | 41 | +3 |
| Bournemouth | 56 | 57 | +1 |
| Everton | 48 | 49 | +1 |
| Aston Villa | 66 | 65 | -1 |
| Fulham | 54 | 52 | -2 |
| Brentford | 56 | 53 | -3 |
| West Ham | 43 | 39 | -4 |
| Brighton | 61 | 53 | -8 |
| Crystal Palace | 53 | 45 | -8 |
| Chelsea | 69 | 52 | -17 |
| Newcastle | 66 | 49 | -17 |
| Nottingham Forest | 65 | 44 | -21 |
| Wolves | 42 | 20 | -22 |
| Liverpool | 84 | 60 | -24 |
The Dutchman had led Liverpool to the Premier League title in his first season in charge, finishing on 84 points.
Their tally dropped by 24 points this season, although the Reds still secured Champions League qualification by finishing fifth.
Champions Arsenal joined Man United in being the only sides to have a double digit increase in their points tally over the two seasons.
Mikel Arteta’s side improved their 2024-25 total by 11 points this campaign, as the Gunners ended a 22-year wait to secure the Premier League title.
Man City improved by seven points in Pep Guardiola’s final season in charge, but ultimately finished as runners-up.
Tottenham, remarkably, made the fourth largest improvement in points over the two campaigns despite avoiding relegation on the final day of the season.
A three point improvement from 38 to 41 this season reflects their dismal showings over the last two campaigns in the top flight, which have ended in back-to-back 17th-placed finishes.
Tottenham had benefited from the bottom three teams being cut adrift in the Premier League last season, with Ange Postecoglou able to switch attentions to winning Europa League without risk of relegation.
Chelsea had a negative 17 point swing in points over the last two Premier League seasons
Bournemouth, who secured Europa League football, and Everton were the only other sides to increase their points total from last season, adding one to their 2024-25 totals.
As well as Liverpool, there were stark drops offs for Wolves, Nottingham Forest, Newcastle and Chelsea.
Relegated Wolves, who remained bottom of the table for the entire season, saw their points tally drop from 42 to 20 points.
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After qualifying for Europe last season, Nottingham Forest’s points tally declined by 21 points with the club ultimately pulling clear of the relegation fight in the final weeks of the campaign.
Both Chelsea and Newcastle saw their points tallies drop by 17 points, with the sides going from qualifying for the Champions League last season to ending 10th and 12th respectively.
Aston Villa and Brighton both saw declines of one and eight points, despite clinching Champions League and Conference League qualification respectively.
The lower totals required were in part caused by the dramatic difference in points accumulated by the newly promoted sides, compared to those relegated in 2025-26.
Sunderland, who earned Europa League qualification by finishing seventh, Leeds and Burnley earned 123 points between them this season.
It is more than double the 59 points mustered by Ipswich, Leicester and Southampton last season.
