Chelsea, Southampton top among EPL clubs in performance to wages ratio
Chelsea have the third highest wage bill in the Premier League but they have the performances to match it as they sit on top of the EPL standings, 10 points ahead of Arsenal. Southampton have the best record as they are 16th in the league in terms of wages but their league position in 7th justifies their investment by a long way.
Teams like Manchester United (£215.8m) and Manchester City (£205m) have underperformed, being higher than Chelsea in their wage spending but failing to perform to the same or similar levels.
However, the team that is underperforming the most is QPR. They have a £75 million wage bill but have spectacularly failed to live up to the billing as they languish at 19th in the EPL table.
The annual accounts for 2013-14 were posted by Companies House – the UK government registrar of companies – and most top-flight clubs show a league standing reflective of their wage spending. The top four in the current EPL table are the top four in wage spending as well, though, not in the same order.
| Club | Wage Bill | League Position | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manchester United | £215.8m | 3 | 64 |
| Manchester City | £205m | 4 | 65 |
| Chelsea | £192.7m | 1 | 76 |
| Arsenal | £166.4 | 2 | 66 |
| Liverpool | £144m | 5 | 57 |
| Tottenham | £100.4m | 6 | 57 |
| Newcastle | £78.3m | 14 | 35 |
| QPR | £75.3m | 19 | 26 |
| Sunderland | £69.5m | 16 | 29 |
| Everton | £69.3m | 12 | 41 |
| Aston Villa | £69.3m | 15 | 32 |
| West Brom | £65.4m | 13 | 36 |
| West Ham | £63.9m | 10 | 43 |
| Swansea | £62.3m | 8 | 47 |
| Stoke | £60.6m | 9 | 46 |
| Southampton | £55.2m | 7 | 56 |
| Crystal Palace | £45.7m | 11 | 42 |
| Hull City | £43.3m | 17 | 28 |
| Leicester City | £36.3m | 18 | 28 |
| Burnley | £21.5m | 20 | 26 |