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? Power Rankings: Chelsea arrive, Arsenal climb

We’re back with our Power Rankings table and there’s two London sides on the rise.

Here are the 10 sides in our updated Power Rankings table.

📈 Power Rankings: Chelsea arrive, Arsenal keep climbing

10. PSV Eindhoven (👎 Last week: 9)

PSV Eindhoven continue to make light work of what is put in front of them domestically. The modest strength of the Eredivisie counts against them in our overall rankings, but PSV remain locked in the table.

At the weekend, the Dutch champions waltzed to a 5-2 win at Utrecht with Ismael Sabari and Guus Till each on target twice. It’s already the fourth time they’ve scored 5+ goals in an Eredivisie fixture this season.

9. Sporting Lisbon (👎 Last week: 7)

The former Power Rankings high-flyers are on the slide.

Sporting have wobbled of late and followed their 5-1 thrashing by Arsenal in the Champions League by losing at home to Santa Clara. It was a first league defeat of the campaign for Sporting, who may be struggling with life after Ruben Amorim. The loss has allowed Porto and Benfica back into the title race with things tightening up in Portugal.

8. Chelsea (🆕)

“We’ve got our Chelsea back” sang the travelling contingent at Southampton on Wednesday night, as Enzo Maresca’s side swept to a 5-1 win on the South Coast. It followed an emphatic 3-0 win over top-four rivals Aston Villa at the weekend with the Blues on the up under their new head coach.

Those inside Chelsea circles have dismissed talk of the title but the West Londoners are up to second and the Premier League’s leading scorers (31).

🥶#CFC | #SOUCHE pic.twitter.com/PZTxbKW3ed

— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) December 5, 2024

7. Bayer Leverkusen (👍 Last week: 8)

A hugely positive week has injected life into Leverkusen’s defence of their German double.

A win over Union Berlin in the capital, alongside dropped points for Bayern Munich, saw the champions reduce the gap in the Bundesliga over the weekend. Leverkusen then travelled to face Bayern in the DFB-Pokal and triumphed to eliminate their rivals from the competition. Nathan Tella’s goal was enough to send Leverkusen into the next round.

The Cross. ☄️

The Header. 🔥

The silencing of the crowd 😏 pic.twitter.com/XjSFurASFr

— Bayer 04 Leverkusen (@bayer04_en) December 4, 2024

6. Bayern Munich (👎 Last week: 2)

There’s no mercy in our Power Rankings table and Bayern fall after an underwhelming week for the Bavarians.

Vincent Kompany’s side dropped points in the title race following a draw at Borussia Dortmund, a disappointing if not disastrous result. However, the club’s poor record in the DFB-Pokal continued after losing at home to Leverkusen.

Manuel Neuer was sent after just 17 minutes and the 10 men crashed out the cup. Bayern have not progressed past the quarter-finals since 2019/20 and have been eliminated in the second round four times in the last five seasons.

5. Atalanta (👍 Last week: 6)

Can Atalanta win Serie A this season? The evidence so far suggests they can.

Gian Piero Gasperini’s side won 2-0 at Roma on Monday night to secure an eighth consecutive league win. Just a point off leaders Napoli, Atalanta are daring to dream of a maiden Scudetto.

4. Inter Milan (No change)

No change for Inter, whose clash with fellow high-flyers Fiorentina was suspended after Edoardo Bove collapsed on the pitch.

Thankfully, Fiorentina midfielder Bove is now out of intensive care and is progressing in his recovery, La Viola have confirmed.

3. Barcelona (No change)

A mixed week for Barcelona, who remain nestled just behind the leaders in our Power Rankings table.

Las Palmas proved the party poopers on Barcelona’s 125th anniversary celebrations after stunning the La Liga leaders at the weekend. The Catalans have lost some of their early-season edge but responded emphatically in midweek to win 5-1 at Mallorca. Their lead is back at four points.

2. Arsenal (👍 Last week: 5)

Arsenal have clicked back into gear since the international break with Mikel Arteta’s team producing the sort of football that saw them backed for the title in pre-season.

The Gunners are the best set-piece team in Europe right now and lived up to that billing during crucial wins over West Ham and Manchester United this week. Arsenal hit five before half-time against the former, before dead-ball deliveries downed their old rivals at the Emirates on Wednesday night.

“Set-piece again ole, ole…”

Arsenal have scored 22 goals from corners in the Premier League since the start of last season – seven more than any other club. 📐👑 pic.twitter.com/72NbW4VmFU

— Premier League (@premierleague) December 4, 2024

1. Liverpool (No change)

Is the Premier League title Liverpool’s to lose?

Arne Slot’s side sent a statement by beating the champions at the weekend, with Liverpool more than meriting their 2-0 win over Manchester City at Anfield. Cody Gakpo and Mohamed Salah got the goals to extend their lead in the title race.

A thrilling 3-3 draw at Newcastle on Wednesday saw the chasing pack reduce the gap, but a seven-point advantage over their nearest challengers is a healthy one.