This was one of the most astonishing Premier League weekends. When it was over, Man Utd, Liverpool, Tottenham, and Everton had crashed and burned to lesser rivals. When one uses “lesser” it is not in terms of team spirit or work rate or individual performances, it is in the market value and profile of that club. The graph above gives the transfer market value of the players (in GBP) for each club and also the cumulative value of the 5 big clubs vs their smaller opponents. For £1.277bn, the big five produced 4 losses for just the one win, i.e., Arsenal’s 3-0 shellacking of Aston Villa. In comparison, their rivals total value was a quarter of that, at £338mn. Everton lost to Crystal Palace, 2-3, West Ham comprehensively outplayed Liverpool, 3-1, Tottenham were shocked by a late West Brom goal, 0-1, and Leicester stunned Man Utd, 5-3, scoring 4 goals in 20 minutes.
Jamie Vardy in the Foxes stunner over Utd scored a goal and assisted in the other four. Leicester paid £1m for the winger to League One side, Fleetwood in May 2012. Leonardo Ulloa, the laser beamed striker was brought in for a more expensive £8m from Brighton. He’s been on fire, scoring five goals in 5 appearances, including two against Utd. Dave Nugent, partnering Ulloa, contributed with a penalty came on a free from Burnley. Ritchie De Laet who robbed the ball off Juan Mata and hustled down the pitch to slip in the outlet for Vardy’s goal cost approx £1.5m. And 34 year old, Esteban Cambiasso, finding himself at the right place and the right time to score Leicester’s equalizer sending their fans into delirium? Free. Total cost of these five: £10.5m.
Man Utd, for their five contributors to a losing effort. Radamel Falcao, cost £20m but provided pinpoint service to Robin Van Persie for his opening header. RVP’s Arsenal price tag, £24m. Wayne Rooney brilliantly found Angel Di Maria and now the league’s third highest scorer was snapped up for £20m from Everton. Di Maria might be a bargain at £60m if he continues like this, and Anders Herrera with that cheeky back heel anchors midfield for £29m. Total cost of these five: £153m.
Transfer market values provided by transfermarkt and transfer fees by soccerbase.