Ranked: Every Premier League club’s longest unbeaten run
Liverpool have been excellent this season and look well on their way to the Premier League title.
Jurgen Klopp’s men are 22 points clear at the top of the table having amassed 73 points from a potential 75 so far, only drawing to Manchester United at Old Trafford.
They recently avenged those dropped points with a 2-0 win over Man Utd at Anfield and have since taken their unbeaten run to 44 games in the Premier League. They last tasted defeat in the league in January 2019 when Manchester City ran out 2-1 winners at the Etihad thanks to goals from Sergio Aguero and Leroy Sane.
It was a result which tipped that particular title race in City’s favour, as they pipped Liverpool to glory by a sole point. A similar outcome this season, however, looks improbable, leaving only one question remaining: how long can Liverpool remain unbeaten? We can’t answer that, of course. But if you read on, we’ll tell you where the Reds currently rank in terms of the longest Premier League unbeaten streaks recorded by each club currently in the competition.
20. Brighton (5 games)
Dates spanned: 15/10/2017 – 25/11/2017, 31/01/2018 – 10/03/2018
Ended by: Manchester United (1-0), Everton (2-0)
Brighton haven’t been in the Premier League long, earning promotion for the first time ahead of the 2017/18 season, so it’s understandable that the Seagulls haven’t been able to build an extensive unbeaten run. But they did enjoy two brief five-game unbeaten spells in their debut campaign.
The first came between October and November 2017 with two wins and three draws including a 3-0 away victory against West Ham, before Manchester United spoiled the party. Another five-game spell came in the second half of the season with three wins, including a 2-1 victory over Arsenal, and two draws, eventually being ended by Everton.
19. Watford (6 games)
Dates spanned: 22/12/2019 – 21/01/2020
Ended by: Aston Villa (2-1)
Watford’s revival this season under Nigel Pearson has been impressive, with the Hornets having looked a certainty for relegation before he came in. But now, courtesy of a six-game unbeaten run – their best record in the Premier League – Watford are on the up and have significantly increased their chances of safety despite remaining 19th. Their run started with a 2-0 win at home to Manchester United and reached the record with a draw against Tottenham Hotspur. However, it was stopped at six by relegation rivals Aston Villa in a thrilling game at Villa Park .
18. Bournemouth (7 games)
Dates spanned: 26/12/2017 – 11/02/2018
Ended by: Huddersfield (4-1)
Prior to this season, the Cherries looked like they were becoming mainstays in the Premier League and have picked up some impressive results along the way.
Guided by Eddie Howe, Bournemouth’s best unbeaten run stands at seven, built from Boxing Day 2017 until early February 2018. That run, consisting of four wins and three draws, includes impressive victories over Arsenal and Chelsea, but Bournemouth were brought back down to earth with a thrashing by Huddersfield Town.
17. Sheffield United (8 games)
Dates spanned: 05/03/1994 – 16/04/1994
Ended by: Aston Villa (2-1)
The first of three teams with a maximum unbeaten streak of eight, Sheffield United are perhaps the least impressive of the trio.
Set in the early stages of the Premier League – its second season to be exact – the Blades’ desperate fight for safety saw them put up an unbeaten run towards the end of the campaign. However, the two wins and six draws, with games against Liverpool and Arsenal included, were not enough to help them stay up.
16. Crystal Palace (8 games)
Dates spanned: 18/11/2017 – 28/12/2017
Ended by: Arsenal (3-2)
Crystal Palace endured a torrid start to the 2017/18 Premier League campaign, losing their first seven games. But in came Roy Hodgson to steady the ship and post the Eagles’ best unbeaten run in the Premier League along the way.
They started the run bottom of the league, but Palace’s three wins and five draws were enough to see them jump up to 16th and put them in good stead for the rest of the season. The run was eventually ended by Arsenal just after Christmas and Palace continued to fight relegation until the end of the season, and it was a battle they ultimately won.
15. Burnley (8 games)
Dates spanned: 30/12/2018 – 26/02/2019
Ended by: Newcastle United (2-0)
The 2018/19 campaign wasn’t great for Burnley as they struggled to reach the heights of the previous season and fell out of the Europa League early on.
But it did still bring the Clarets’ longest Premier League unbeaten run. That came just before the turn of the New Year with five wins and three draws lifting them out of the relegation zone. A stalemate with Manchester United and a victory over Spurs are the standout results but the run eventually came to an end when Burnley took a trip to St James’ Park.
14. Southampton (9 games)
Dates spanned: 23/11/2002 – 18/01/2003
Ended by: Liverpool (1-0)
Southampton have been in and out of the Premier League over the years but are finally starting to embed themselves as top flight regulars once more. However, they are yet to improve on their nine-game unbeaten run which came during the 2002/03 campaign.
Then, five wins and four draws saw Southampton get past the likes of Arsenal – who were league leaders at the time – and second-place Chelsea before Liverpool brought things to an end, perhaps a precursor for them eventually raiding St Mary’s for their players in later years.
13. West Ham United (10 games)
Dates spanned: 13/02/2016 – 07/05/2016
Ended by: Swansea City (4-1)
Moving on to the teams with double figures, West Ham United’s 10-game unbeaten run came in the latter half of the 2015/16 season as they pushed for a spot in the Europa League in their final year at Upton Park.
It started with a stalemate against Norwich but also brought a win over Spurs and draws with Arsenal and Chelsea, making it five wins and five draws. Swansea City were the team to eventually end it, quite comfortably, but West Ham secured Europa League football for the 2016/17 season – though that didn’t last long.
12. Norwich City (10 games)
Dates spanned: 20/10/2012 – 22/12/2012
Ended by: West Bromwich Albion (2-1)
Norwich aren’t enjoying the best campaign in 2019/20, fighting relegation, and will be dreaming of the halcyon days of 2012 when they went 10 games unbeaten.
The Canaries started their run in the bottom three but had home wins over Arsenal and Manchester United to move them up the table – two of six victories in total. By the end of the run Norwich were eighth, meaning their defeat to West Brom and subsequent winless streak was not enough to trouble their Premier League status.
11. Wolverhampton Wanderers (11 games)
Dates spanned: 22/09/2019 – 15/12/2019
Ended by: Tottenham Hotspur (2-1)
The second of three teams whose best unbeaten run came in the 2019/20 campaign, Wolves’ 11-match streak has been key to their high standing in the table.
Five wins and six draws, including a victory over Manchester City at the Etihad, helped Wolves overcome a poor start to the season which brought three points from the opening five games. It was eventually ended by Spurs but Wolves have not let that hamper them.
Subscribe to Squawka’s Youtube channel here.
10. Everton (11 games)
Dates spanned: 07/03/2010 – 14/08/2010, 24/03/2012 – 01/09/2012
Ended by: Blackburn Rovers (1-0), West Brom (2-0)
Everton are one of just six teams to have been in every Premier League season but the Toffees haven’t managed to get more than an 11-game unbeaten run – which they managed twice.
The first came at the end of the 2009/10 campaign, consisting of six wins and five draws including a victory over Manchester City but was ended on the opening day of the following season by Blackburn. Another 11-game run came in 2012 across two seasons with seven wins and four draws, eventually ended by West Brom.
9. Leicester City (12 games)
Dates spanned: 27/02/2016 – 13/08/2016
Ended by: Hull City (2-1)
Everyone will remember Leicester City’s title-winning campaign in 2015/16 and it will be no surprise to see that the Foxes’ posted their longest unbeaten run en route to glory.
The Foxes won eight and drew four to close the season including a 1-1 stalemate with Manchester United that would be enough to seal them the title – alongside Spurs dropping points to Chelsea. Leicester started the following season with defeat, however, losing 2-1 to newly promoted Hull City.
8. Newcastle United (14 games)
Dates spanned: 07/05/2011 – 19/11/2011
Ended by: Manchester City (3-1)
One of three teams with an unbeaten run of 14, Newcastle’s came in 2011 across two campaigns. Back when things were bright at St James’ Park, the Magpies won eight and drew six including positive results against Arsenal, Chelsea and Spurs. But Manchester City proved to be a step too far and Newcastle’s run ended at the Etihad.
7. Aston Villa (14 games)
Dates spanned: 02/05/1998 – 21/11/1998
Ended by: Liverpool (4-2)
Another cross-campaign unbeaten run, Aston Villa had an excellent spell between May and November 1998. Their 14-game run consisted of 10 wins and four draws and actually saw the Villans top of the league by the time it was ended by Liverpool. Things didn’t get better than that for Villa, unfortunately, as they ended the campaign sixth.
6. Tottenham Hotspur (14 games)
Dates spanned: 15/08/2015 – 13/12/2015, 23/12/2017 – 14/04/2018
Ended by: Newcastle United (2-1), Manchester City (3-1)
Spurs just can’t reach 15 games without losing, seeing unbeaten runs end at 14 twice. The first wasn’t too remarkable with six wins and eight draws coming at the start of the 2015/16 campaign, following on from an opening day defeat to Manchester United.
But their second 14-game unbeaten run is impressive, with 11 wins and three draws including victories over fellow ‘Big Six’ sides Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea – the latter giving them a first win at Stamford Bridge in 28 years.
5. Manchester United (29 games)
Dates spanned: 26/12/1998 – 03/10/1999, 11/04/2010 – 05/02/2011
Ended by: Chelsea (5-0), Wolves (2-1)
There’s a big jump to Manchester United in fifth place with the Red Devils managing 29-game unbeaten runs twice in their Premier League history – both having some role in title-winning campaigns.
The first was part of the 1999 treble-winning season and brought 20 wins and nine draws but United were humbled in their 30th game with Chelsea winning 5-0 at Stamford Bridge the following campaign. Nineteen wins and 10 draws followed between 2010 and 2011 before Wolves cut it just short of 30, but United would still go on to win the title.
4. Manchester City (30 games)
Dates spanned: 08/04/2017 – 14/01/2018
Ended by: Liverpool (4-3)
Going one more than rivals United, Manchester City’s 30-game unbeaten run started towards the end of the 2016/17 campaign and ran until January 2018 with Pep Guardiola’s side looking almost unbeatable en route to a record-breaking Premier League title win. But Liverpool proved that City were beatable, winning an exciting game 4-3, cutting Man City’s run at 26 wins and four draws.
3. Chelsea (40 games)
Dates spanned: 23/10/2004 – 06/11/2005
Ended by: Manchester United (1-0)
Falling to third place having spent so long in second is Chelsea, who went over a year unbeaten between 2004 and 2005 as part of their back-to-back Premier League-winning campaigns.
Losing controversially to Man City in October 2004, Chelsea reacted by going 40 games unbeaten including 33 wins and just seven draws. But, it was ended by another Manchester club, this time United who won 1-0 at Old Trafford.
2. Liverpool (44 games)
Dates spanned: 12/01/2019 –
Ended by: TBC
From one team that looked unbeatable to another which may just be, Liverpool’s current unbeaten run stands at 44 and it is so impressive. Starting in January 2019, they are now without a league defeat in over a year and have dropped points on just five occasions.
Four of those draws came last season and proved costly in their title hopes, but Liverpool’s capacity for winning could see them climb all the way to the top of this list by the end of the season. To do so, however, they will have to avoid losing at the home of the Premier League’s reigning champions, Manchester City.
1. Arsenal (49 games)
Dates spanned: 07/05/2003 – 24/10/2004
Ended by: Manchester United (2-0)
The standard still remains with Arsenal, the only side to go an entire Premier League season without defeat. They would couple that with unbeaten runs in both the season before and after reaching 49 before it ended (36 wins and 13 draws).
Arsenal were cut short of 50 by, you guessed it, Manchester United in a game that will be remembered for a controversial penalty and ‘Pizzagate’ – with Cesc Fabregas allegedly throwing food at Sir Alex Ferguson.
