Who are the Premier League’s comeback kings?
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Premier League comebacks: Teams that love to win from behind
With Scott McTominay’s injury-time brace giving Manchester United a crucial victory from 1-0 down against Brentford at the weekend, we have browsed through the history books to identify the kings of Premier League comebacks.
Are we seeing more comebacks than usual in the Premier League this season?
United’s late turnaround was the 12th win of the season by a team who had conceded the first goal. Liverpool have the most comeback victories so far this term with three, while Erik ten Hag’s side have two – the same number as Tottenham.
Arsenal, Aston Villa, Chelsea, Manchester City and Brighton have also each won a match in which they went 1-0 down.
Of the remaining 65 games in which at least one side scored, 14 ended in draws and 51 were won by the team who took the lead.
The average number of points won per game by teams who have fallen behind in 2023-24 (0.65) is currently the second highest on record, behind 2012/13 (0.66).
Although there is plenty of time for things to change, the early signs are that longer periods of added time are leading to more goals – three per game on average in the first eight rounds of matches – and more Premier League comebacks than usual.
McTominay’s injury-time double was the second post 90-minute turnaround of the campaign, after Richarlison and Dejan Kulusevski scored in the eighth and 10th minutes of stoppage time respectively in Tottenham’s 2-1 win over Sheffield United.
Which clubs are most and least likely to produce a fightback?
Both United and Spurs rank among the Premier League’s top five comeback kings.
Having established a never-say-die reputation during Sir Alex Ferguson’s glory years, the Red Devils are the only club to average more than a point per game in matches where they conceded the first goal (1.06).
Meanwhile, Tottenham have amassed 100 comeback wins in the Premier League era, second only to United’s 104, but their points-per-game ratio from 1-0 down (0.77) is bettered by Arsenal (0.91), Chelsea (0.89) and Liverpool (0.87).
Of the current Premier League teams to have played at least 100 matches in the top flight, Burnley have the worst record in games in which they concede the first goal, averaging just 0.35 points per match.
Vincent Kompany’s side have continued this tradition by losing on all four occasions when they went 1-0 down in the 2023-24 campaign.
Which managers react best to going a goal down?
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is a master of engineering Premier League comebacks after seeing his side concede the opener.
Since arriving on Merseyside in October 2015, the German has overseen a remarkable 36 victories from the 94 matches in which Liverpool have fallen 1-0 behind, averaging 1.36 points per game.
This is head and shoulders above Manchester United’s Ferguson (1.16) – his nearest challenger – who edges City’s Pep Guardiola (1.13) for the second-best record after conceding the opener.
Klopp’s men are continuing to live up to their reputation of starting slowly and fighting back, having conceded first in five of their opening eight Premier League fixtures this season.
Wins over Bournemouth, Newcastle and Wolves, plus a 2-2 draw against Brighton, have seen them collect 10 points from these matches, with only a last-gasp defeat at Spurs preventing them from going unbeaten.
Which team made the most Premier League comebacks in a single season?
However, Liverpool have a long way to go if they are to match the record for most points won from 1-0 down in a single season.
That currently belongs to Newcastle, who accumulated a whopping 34 points – 10 wins and four draws – in games in which they conceded first in the 2001-02 season on their way to the first of two consecutive top-four finishes under Sir Bobby Robson.
Manchester United rank second and third on this list, having amassed 31 points after falling behind in 2020/21 and 29 points in 2012/13.
The former campaign saw United end as Premier League runners-up under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer – their best finish since Ferguson’s retirement – while the latter marked the legendary Scot’s final year in charge.
Despite being somewhat admirable, making regular comebacks is rarely a recipe for league success, with 2012/13 being one of just two seasons in which the champions (Man Utd) went 1-0 down in more than 15 matches. The other was 1992/93, which was played over 42 games rather than 38.
What is the greatest comeback in Premier League history?
We have ranked the 10 most impressive comebacks in Premier League history, ordered by the biggest deficit at any point during the match, the size of the goal swing and the amount of time remaining before the comeback began.
Only one team in Premier League history has avoided defeat after trailing by four goals. Newcastle pulled off this incredible feat in the 2010-11 season after Arsenal had raced into a 4-0 lead inside 26 minutes. The Gunners saw Abou Diaby sent off shortly after half-time and conceded two penalties before the late Cheick Tiote scored a memorable volleyed equaliser.
Four sides have come back from three goals down to win. Wolves, Leeds and Wimbledon completed 4-3 turnarounds against Leicester, Derby and West Ham respectively, while Manchester United went one better by winning 5-3 against Tottenham in the ultimate ‘game of two halves’.
Spurs led 3-0 at the interval in 2001-02 before three headed goals and sublime finishes from Juan Sebastian Veron and David Beckham ensured that Ferguson’s men left north London with maximum points.
The remaining Premier League comebacks on our list all involved a team fighting back from three goals down to draw with fewer than 15 minutes to play. Crystal Palace’s late triple salvo against Liverpool in the 2013-14 title run-in was arguably the most decisive – it came just one game after Steven Gerrard’s infamous slip and prompted tears from Luis Suarez as Manchester City went on to lift the trophy.
