How the PL table would look since Arteta became manager

Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal side went into the weekend as Premier League leaders – but how does his Gunners record compare to their rivals since his appointment in December 2019?

Arsenal has enjoyed success in cup competitions, beating Chelsea 2-1 in the 2020 FA Cup final before winning the Community Shield a few months later.

But his side struggled for consistency in the Premier League, falling out of the top six and finishing two consecutive seasons in eighth place.

After a difficult start to last season, Arteta has managed to turn things around and has earned plenty of plaudits for his work at the Emirates.

“They have a clear structure, clear idea, properly tuned, possession-based, young, full of talent and joy,” Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp said in March 2022.

“If you go through the line-up there’s an experienced striker and then three very exciting young boys and then a bit more experience in the double six and then a pretty inexperienced backline and a young goalkeeper, and that’s not with [Emile] Smith Rowe even in, and then on top of the other guys, it’s interesting.

“Other teams will not like it because it’s another big name back on track but that’s how it looks. There are similarities [to us], you can say it like this, they’re a massive club and qualification for European football in the last few years is not exactly how they wanted it.

“Arsenal fans, maybe since I was in England it was not always easy for them to enjoy. But they seem to be now and that’s exactly how it should be.”

And the excitement at the Emirates, much to the anger of Richard Keys, has reached fever pitch as Arsenal have won their first five league matches. Give them the title now, we say…

But, until then, we’ve taken a look at how the Premier League table would look if it began when Arteta first took charge of Arsenal, against Bournemouth on Boxing Day in 2019. 

Note: all teams have played 102 league games unless it’s stated otherwise. This table does not include the result between Aston Villa and Manchester City on September 3.

1. Man City – 235 points
2. Liverpool – 217 points
3. Chelsea – 185 points
4. Man Utd – 182 points (101 games played)
5. Tottenham – 180 points
6. Arsenal – 178 points (101 games played)
7. West Ham – 145 points
8. Leicester – 142 points (101 games played)

9. Wolves – 134 points
10. Everton – 132 points
11. Southampton – 124 points
12. Aston Villa – 123 points (GD: -15)
13. Brighton – 123…