Sorry starts
Unusually, three winless teams prop up the Premier League table during the first international break – Cardiff, Newcastle and Huddersfield are still on the lookout for that elusive first victory, although the Terriers can at least boast one more point than their beleaguered rivals.
Yet while the outlook might appear bleak, they can at least take solace from the fact that several teams have started the season in even worse fashion over the years. For example…
10. Huddersfield (2018/19)
W0 D2 L5 F3 A16 GD-13 Pts 2
Sorry Terriers fans. David Wagner’s side crept into the top 10 after a dreary start to the current campaign, with Cardiff just missing out due to a marginally better goal difference after seven rounds.
The fixture calendar was unkind to Huddersfield, who suffered understandable defeats to Chelsea and Manchester City in the opening two weeks of the season. Back-to-back draws against Cardiff and Everton followed to suggest a revival may be on the way, but Wagner’s team have since slumped to three consecutive losses against Crystal Palace, Leicester and Spurs and currently prop up the Premier League table.
9. Swindon Town (1993/94)
W0 D2 L5 F3 A17 GD-14 Pts 2
An inauspicious start to Swindon’s top-flight adventure, as the departure of player-manager Glenn Hoddle hit them hard. They lost their opening four games, including 5-0 and 5-1 beatings at the hands of Southampton and Liverpool respectively, with goalless draws away to Norwich and West Ham proving to be their only respite in the opening seven weeks.
Where did they finish? Things didn’t get much better for Robins fans, who had to wait until November 24 for their first win, a 1-0 victory at home to QPR. By the end of the campaign they were bottom with just five wins, after becoming the first top-flight team in 30 years to concede 100 league goals in a single season.
8. Wolves (2003/04)
W0 D2 L5 F2 A18 GD-16 Pts 2
In an appalling start, Dave Jones’s side shipped goals with alarming regularity as they suffered heavy defeats to Blackburn, Charlton and Chelsea. However, draws against Portsmouth in week four and Bolton in week seven at least gave the Molineux club a platform to build on.
Where did they finish up? Wolves rallied briefly after securing the point at Bolton, embarking on a four-match unbeaten run that included wins over Manchester City and Leicester – the latter from 3-0 down at half-time. But it proved to be a false dawn: the Midlands club struggled for consistency and finished with just seven wins in last place, level on points with Leeds and Leicester but with the worst goal difference.
7. Manchester City (1995/96)
W0 D1 L6 F3 A11 GD-8 Pts 1
New Manchester City manager Alan Ball got off to a nightmare start after drawing against Tottenham on the opening day. His side immediately slumped to an awful run of eight consecutive defeats, scoring just two goals.
Where did they finish up? After picking up just two points in their opening 10 games, City began to improve gradually. However, they were made to pay for their early-season struggles and were condemned to the drop on the final day of the season on goal difference, despite earning a draw at home to Liverpool which boss Ball (incorrectly) thought would be enough to secure survival.
6. Newcastle (1999/00)
W0 D1 L6 F8 A19 GD-11 Pts 1
Ruud Gullit walked out of St James’ Park after five games, having watched his side slip to four defeats and a draw. A 2-1 reverse against arch-rivals Sunderland proved to be the final straw. In came Steve Clarke as caretaker, but the Scot oversaw another two defeats as Newcastle’s nightmare started continued.
Where did they finish up? One of the most remarkable turnarounds in this list came about thanks to the great Bobby Robson. He arrived with Newcastle propping up the table, but oversaw an 8-0 thrashing of Sheffield Wednesday in his first home game. The renaissance continued as the 66-year-old led them to an 11th-place finish, with the Magpies ending as the league's third-highest scorers.
5. Sunderland (2013/14)
W0 D1 L6 F5 A16 GD-11 Pts 1
Paolo Di Canio’s new-look side, featuring 14 new signings, failed to gel and the Italian was sacked after picking up one point in five games. Caretaker Kevin Ball and new manager Gus Poyet failed to spark an instant improvement, though, as Sunderland fell to a further three defeats to make it seven from their opening eight games.
Where did they finish up? By mid-April, survival seemed an almost impossible task after a run of seven losses in eight games. The turning point came when the Black Cats inflicted Jose Mourinho’s first ever home league defeat in the Premier League with a 2-1 win against Chelsea, sparking a run of four wins in a row that was enough to achieve a miraculous 14th-place finish.
4. Sheffield Wednesday (1999/00)
W0 D1 L6 F3 A15 GD-12 Pts 1
In a shocking start, a draw with Bradford gave Wednesday their only point in seven games that also featured a 4-0 hammering by Manchester United. The poor run continued with two more defeats, including a humiliating 8-0 reverse away to Newcastle.
Where did they finish up? The Owls finally recorded their first win on 2 October with a 5-1 triumph over Wimbledon. It failed to rouse the team, though, who immediately slumped back into a seven-match winless run. Manager Danny Wilson was sacked in March, but caretaker boss Peter Shreeves couldn’t arrest their slide and defeat to Arsenal on the penultimate day of the season confirmed relegation as they went down in 19th place.
3. Southampton (1998/99)
W0 D1 L6 F3 A18 GD-15 Pts 1
Southampton fans knew something wasn’t right when they were thrashed 5-0 by newly promoted Charlton in the second week of the season. Matt Le Tissier’s goal helped Saints eventually collect their first point of the campaign at home to Spurs in week six, but it was one of just three they scored in a dreadful opening to the season.
Where did they finish up? After taking just two points from their opening nine games, form gradually picked up and defeat to Chelsea on Boxing Day proved to be the Saints' final home loss of the season. However, away performances remained an issue and Southampton left it late: three wins and two draws at the end of the campaign helped them leapfrog Charlton and dodge relegation.
2. Portsmouth (2009/10)
W0 D0 L7 F3 A13 GD-10 Pts 0
A disastrous campaign off the field for Portsmouth began just as badly on the pitch, as they lost seven straight games. Financial problems also led to the Premier League imposing a transfer embargo on Pompey, and boss Paul Hart was ditched at the end of November with his side languishing at the foot of the table.
Where did they finish up? Avram Grant replaced Hart in the dugout and the change prompted a minor improvement in form, but things had declined financially – the club formally entered administration and were docked nine points in February. Pompey were already bottom before the deduction and it only compounded their misery, although Grant did surprisingly lead his side to the FA Cup final.
1. Crystal Palace (2017/18)
W0 D0 L7 F0 A17 GD-17 Pts 0
Frank de Boer was given his marching orders after four defeats came and went without Palace scoring a goal. Roy Hodgson’s arrival started the recovery process but not with immediate success, as the ex-England boss led his side to another three losses without a goal.
Where did they finish up? The Eagles eventually got off the mark with a shock 2-1 victory against champions Chelsea at Selhurst Park in October. The result began a good run of home form before their first away point arrived at Brighton on November 28. Palace moved off the bottom in December during an eight-match unbeaten league run. Hodgson’s side eventually launched themselves to 11th by the end of the season after finishing in style with four wins from six.
