The extraordinary study which reveals the scale of Sheffield United's achievements since reaching the Premier League

Chris Wilder’s side were seventh in the table - five points behind fourth-placed Chelsea with a game in hand on Frank Lampard’s men - before the fixture calendar was suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic last month.

In a paper designed to calculate the worth of England’s top-flight teams, researchers from the University of Liverpool identify Tottenham Hotspur as the most valuable club in the country (£2,567m) thanks to their “control over wages and player transactions”.

Jose Mourinho’s side, who drew 1-1 with United earlier this term, trail Wilder’s squad by a place and two points in the rankings while Arsenal, who are valued at £1,374m are a further one behind.

United, who returned to the highest level following a 12 year absence last season, are not included in the list compiled by academics at the university’s Centre for Sports Business Group because it uses figures covering the 2018/19 campaign to calculate value.

Measures include revenue, net assets, average attendances and salary levels.

But the report notes Wolverhampton Wanderers, in sixth, are now worth more than 10 times the £45m Fosun paid to acquire them in 2016/17.

It also acknowledges values are likely to have fallen by between 25 and 35 per cent across the division due to the Covid-19 crisis.

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