The Premier League is one of the toughest soccer divisions to conquer. There have been some great Premier League teams that played sensational soccer without winning the coveted title. Unstoppable Manchester City, Chelsea, and Manchester Utd juggernaut teams have denied some great Premier League sides title glory. These are six of the best teams that fell just short of winning Premier League titles.
Although Liverpool won the Champions League in Benítez’s debut season, the 2008/2009 Reds campaign represented the true pinnacle of his reign. This was a Liverpool team powered by Steve Gerrard and Fernando Torres in their prime, with Xabi Alonso pulling the strings in midfield. When Gerrard and Torres started in 14 matches, the Reds were unstoppable.
It was a team that outscored the eventual champions Manchester Utd and thrashed the Red Devils 4-1 at Old Trafford. Liverpool lost just two games that season (a couple fewer than Man Utd), but still finished four points adrift of the Red Devils, with two draws costing them the title. So Fergie’s boys celebrated another Premier League title at the Scousers’ expense.
Mauricio Pochettino’s reign at Tottenham was ultimately an unfulfilled golden era for the club as Spurs finished second in the Premier League and Champions League. Tottenham peaked in 2016/2017 with the prolific Harry Kane banging in the goals and the visionary playmaker Christian Eriksen. It was also a team that played thrilling and attractive soccer comparable to the great 1960s Spurs sides that shaped the club’s identity.
Yet, Tottenham fell seven points short of a relentless Chelsea team that won the title with 93 points. Spurs scored and conceded fewer goals and lost one fewer match than Chelsea, but too many draws cost Tottenham the league. It was undoubtedly one of the great Spurs sides, which amassed a club-record 86 points in the top division. Thus, the 2016/17 campaign was a potless one for Spurs (the usual these days), but it was glory days compared with Tottenham’s current plight.
Arsenal have been runners-up in the Premier League nine times, and this 2023/2024 was the best of those Gunners teams that couldn’t quite win the title. This was a team with an impenetrable center-back pairing of Gabriel Magalhães and William Saliba, with Bukayo Saka and Martin Ødegaard spearheading the attack. It was similar to the 2026 side that won the title, but it was not the same team because players like Mikel Merino, Viktor Gyökeres, Noni Madueke, Riccardo Calafiori, and Eberechi Eze didn’t play for Arsenal this season.
It could be argued that this 2024 Arsenal team that finished second was actually better than the current one because it amassed 89 points. Only the invincible Arsenal team has eclipsed that Premier League points total. This side also outscored the current title-winning team with 91 goals, but Pep’s all-conquering Man City pipped the Gunners to the league by a couple of points.
Klopp’s 2022 Liverpool side was a real powerhouse with Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mané tearing defences apart. The addition of Luis Díaz injected even more explosive energy into Liverpool’s attack. With the imperious Virgil van Dijk marshalling Liverpool’s defence, the Reds were almost unstoppable.
Yet, Manchester City luckily pipped Liverpool to the title by one point. I say luckily because Everton should have had a late penalty against Man City when Rodri clearly handled the ball, but it wasn’t given. Consequently, Man City celebrated another of their Premier League titles, but the Reds still paraded the FA Cup and League Cup trophies.
Ok, it’s Liverpool again, but this time for the 2013/2014 campaign with Brendan Rodgers in the Anfield dugout. This was a fantastically entertaining Liverpool team full of goals, with Luis Suárez especially prolific. He was supported by the likes of Steven Gerrard, one of the all-time Liverpool greats, and Dean Sturridge.
Liverpool looked on course to win a first league title in the Premier League era with a spectacular 11-match winning streak during this campaign. The Reds scored goals galore (101 in total) during this league season. However, Liverpool blew a three-goal lead against Crystal Palace in the second-to-last game, enabling Man City to clinch the title by a two-point margin.
Those were all great teams that didn’t win Premier League titles, but they certainly made a mark on English soccer. The glory went elsewhere, but the teams above still played some delightful soccer. They would have won the league in most other seasons.
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