Sheffield United have endured a difficult start to life back in the Premier League, but that was always to be expected according to the data experts from Opta.
Ahead of the season kicking off, Opta crunched the numbers to see which side had the toughest run of fixtures from the opening 10 games. Using their Opta Power Rankings, they worked out how easy or hard each team’s first 10 games would be. The Power Rankings rate a staggering 19,008 teams from 391 domestic leagues. The strongest side is ranked at 100, with the worst ranked at zero.
The rankings determine how hard a team’s start is based on who they have faced with the Blades already on taking two of last season’s top four in Manchester City and Newcastle United with fixtures against Manchester United and Arsenal to come after the international break.
And here’s where they rank in terms of which teams have been handed the hardest starts, starting with the sides given the ‘easiest’ opening 10 games.
2. Arsenal
The Gunners are level on points with North London rivals Spurs, and sit second on goal difference.
