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Premier League table: City lose at Villa, Arsenal level on 21

Manchester City's first league defeat of the season and Arsenal's 2-0 win over Everton leave the top two level after eight matches. Tottenham sit in the bottom three before the London derby at Chelsea.

By Rowan Ashby Published 24.10.26 16:19 UTC 5 min read

Stamford Bridge, Chelsea's stadium in London, where Chelsea host Tottenham in the Premier League — Ank kumar / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source

Key takeaways

Arsenal and Manchester City are level on 21 points at the top of the Premier League table after eight matches, as of 16:15 UTC on 24 October 2026, according to ESPN and Sky Sports.
City lost 2-1 at Aston Villa, their first league defeat of the season, while Arsenal beat Everton 2-0. City stay first on goal difference (+11 to +8).
Fulham won 1-0 at Coventry City, leaving Tottenham Hotspur, Coventry and Sunderland in the bottom three.
Fourth-placed Chelsea host 18th-placed Tottenham at Stamford Bridge at 16:30 UTC. The result will reshape both the top four and the relegation zone.

The Premier League table has Arsenal level with Manchester City on 21 points after Aston Villa beat City 2-1 on Saturday, 24 October 2026, and Arsenal beat Everton 2-0. City lead only on goal difference, +11 to +8. Fourth-placed Chelsea host 18th-placed Tottenham next.

Premier League table after Saturday's early matches

The standings below combine the ESPN and Sky Sports tables, which matched each other when checked at about 16:15 UTC. They include the three games completed on Saturday and do not yet include Chelsea vs Tottenham.

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	GD	Pts
1	Manchester City	8	7	0	1	+11	21
2	Arsenal	8	7	0	1	+8	21
3	Brighton & Hove Albion	7	5	1	1	+18	16
4	Chelsea	7	4	1	2	+4	13
5	Liverpool	7	3	3	1	+1	12
6	Aston Villa	8	3	2	3	-3	11
7	Brentford	7	2	4	1	+5	10
8	Leeds United	7	2	4	1	+3	10
9	Everton	8	2	4	2	-1	10
10	Ipswich Town	8	3	1	4	-4	10
11	Hull City	7	2	3	2	+1	9
12	Fulham	8	2	2	4	-2	8
13	Newcastle United	7	2	2	3	-4	8
14	Manchester United	7	1	4	2	0	7
15	Crystal Palace	7	2	1	4	-8	7
16	AFC Bournemouth	7	1	3	3	-4	6
17	Nottingham Forest	8	1	3	4	-4	6
18	Tottenham Hotspur	7	1	3	3	-4	6
19	Coventry City	8	2	0	6	-9	6
20	Sunderland	7	1	1	5	-8	4

Data as of 16:15 UTC, 24 October 2026. Sources: ESPN standings, Sky Sports table. Places 1-4 lead to the Champions League and 18-20 to relegation, according to both tables' keys.

What happened

Aston Villa 2-1 Manchester City

Villa ended City's perfect start in the lunchtime game at Villa Park, which kicked off at 11:30 UTC. According to ESPN and 101 Great Goals, Nicolas Jackson scored in the sixth and 60th minutes, either side of a 52nd-minute equaliser from Erling Haaland. The result leaves City, now managed by Enzo Maresca, on seven wins from eight.

Arsenal 2-0 Everton

The defending champions took advantage later in the afternoon. ESPN's scoreboard lists a 2-0 home win over Everton, and both the ESPN and Sky Sports tables now show Arsenal on 21 points from eight games, the same as City.

Coventry City 0-1 Fulham

Fulham's 80th-minute winner at Coventry, recorded on ESPN's scoreboard, lifted them to 8 points and 12th place. Coventry, one of three promoted clubs, have now lost six of their eight matches and sit 19th.

What we know and what we don't know yet

Known: Chelsea vs Tottenham kicks off at 16:30 UTC (17:30 BST) at Stamford Bridge, with Chris Kavanagh as referee, according to Sports Illustrated.
Known: Chelsea, under Xabi Alonso, arrive after league wins over Bournemouth (5-1) and Everton (2-0). Tottenham, under Roberto De Zerbi, earned their first league win of the season on Monday, 2-0 against Coventry, SI reported.
Not yet known: the result at Stamford Bridge, and the remaining matchday 8 fixtures. Brighton, Liverpool, Brentford, Leeds and other clubs on seven games still have a match in hand on the top two.

How Chelsea vs Tottenham could change the table

A Chelsea win would take them to 16 points, level with Brighton, and five points behind the leaders. A draw would leave Chelsea on 14. For Tottenham, a win would mean 9 points and a jump of several places. A draw would give them 7 points and take them out of the bottom three. A defeat would keep them in the relegation zone, with Coventry level on 6 points.

History favours the hosts. SI notes that Chelsea have won the last six meetings and that Tottenham have won only one Premier League match at Chelsea this century.

Background

The 2026-27 season began on 21 August 2026. Coventry City, Ipswich Town and Hull City were promoted from the Championship, and West Ham United, Burnley and Wolverhampton Wanderers went down, according to the season's Wikipedia summary. The summer also brought big managerial changes: Maresca replaced Pep Guardiola at City, Alonso took over at Chelsea and Andoni Iraola moved to Liverpool.

Earlier today we covered the opening phase of Aston Villa vs Man City. For Arsenal's European campaign, see our preview of the Bayern Munich vs Arsenal Champions League clash. We also reported on Vincent Kompany's hospital stay after collapsing at Bayern training.

What it means

After eight rounds, there is a genuine two-way title race. City's first defeat under Maresca removed their outright lead, and Arsenal can now go top in any week City drop points. Lower down, the 11 clubs from 9th to 19th are separated by four points (10 to 6), so one result can move a team from mid-table into danger. Tonight's derby is the clearest example: Tottenham could finish the day anywhere from mid-table to the bottom three.

Frequently asked questions

Who is top of the Premier League table?

As of about 16:15 UTC on 24 October 2026, Manchester City and Arsenal were level on 21 points after eight matches. City were listed first on goal difference (+11 against Arsenal's +8), according to ESPN and Sky Sports.

Who is in the Premier League relegation zone?

Before Chelsea vs Tottenham kicked off, the bottom three were Tottenham Hotspur (18th, 6 points), Coventry City (19th, 6 points) and Sunderland (20th, 4 points), according to ESPN and Sky Sports.

How would Chelsea vs Tottenham change the table?

A Chelsea win would take them to 16 points, level with third-placed Brighton. A Tottenham win would lift Spurs to 9 points and out of the bottom three, and a draw would also take them above the relegation places on 7 points.