Round 6: City pull clear as Chelsea and Coventry climb

Manchester City remain top after round 6, and the key shift at the very top is the gap: their 3-0 win at Liverpool takes them to 18 points and stretches the lead over Arsenal to three. With six played, City’s early pace is setting the tone for the title race.

Arsenal did their part with a 2-1 home win over Leeds to stay second on 15 points, but they could not match City’s statement result at Anfield. Brighton also hold firm in third after a 2-0 win at Sunderland, moving to 13 points with a formidable +13 goal difference.

Top-four picture: no new faces, but pressure builds

The top four itself did not change. Brentford stay fourth on 10 points after a 2-2 draw at Aston Villa, a result that kept them in the Champions League places but offered an opening to those behind.

That opening was taken most convincingly by Chelsea. Their 5-1 home win over Bournemouth is the round’s standout scoreline and lifts them four places to sixth, level on 10 points with Brentford and Everton.

Everton were less dramatic but just as effective in terms of table movement, climbing two places to fifth after a 2-2 draw at Hull. Hull remain eighth on nine points, their 2-2 at home enough to hold station in a tightly packed mid-table.

Biggest climbers and fallers: Chelsea fly, Liverpool slide

Chelsea’s leap is matched by Coventry, who also rise four places, up to 14th. Their 4-1 home win over Newcastle is a huge swing: Coventry climb out of the relegation zone, while Newcastle drop to 11th after conceding four.

Crystal Palace are the other notable risers, up three to 12th following a 3-1 win over Nottingham. Nottingham slip two places to 15th after that defeat.

At the other end of the movers list, Liverpool’s 0-3 loss to City sends them down three places to ninth, stuck on nine points with a goal difference of 0. Sunderland also fall three places to 17th after losing 0-2 to Brighton, increasing the pressure just above the drop.

Leeds are down two to seventh after their 2-1 defeat at Arsenal, and the margins are fine: Leeds, Hull, Liverpool and Ipswich all sit on nine points. Ipswich edged Fulham 2-1 to move up to 10th and deepen Fulham’s problems at the foot of the table.

Relegation zone: Coventry escape, Bournemouth drop in

The bottom three now reads: Bournemouth (18th), Tottenham (19th) and Fulham (20th). Bournemouth enter the relegation places after being thrashed 5-1 at Chelsea, while Coventry’s 4-1 win over Newcastle takes them out of danger.

Tottenham did at least pick up a point in a 1-1 draw at Manchester Utd, but they remain on three points. United stay 13th after that draw, on six points.

The fight to stay up is already tight: there is just one point between 17th and 18th, leaving Sunderland looking over their shoulder despite being outside the bottom three for now.

What to watch in round 7

City have earned breathing space, but Arsenal and Brighton have kept pace well enough to ensure the next slip will matter. The immediate storyline, though, is the chase for the top four: Brentford are holding fourth, yet Chelsea and Everton are level on points and closing fast.

At the bottom, Coventry’s surge has reshaped the picture, and the focus turns to whether Bournemouth can respond after a heavy defeat, and whether Sunderland can halt their slide with so little separating them from the relegation zone.