Title winning sides with the lowest points tally to win the Premier League

In recent years, there have been debates about the growing gap in quality between the top and bottom of the Premier League, with titles often needing a lot more points to be won.

Take for example, Manchester City in 2017/18 who achieved a massive 100 points.

This list compiles the lowest points tallies that have proved to be enough to get over the line and, in some cases, these teams are a far cry from centurions.

5) Manchester United 2010/11 - 80 Points

Despite making this list, Sir Alex Ferguson’s side still finished nine points clear of second placed Chelsea, showing that competition wasn’t exactly rife that season.

It was Fergie’s penultimate title at the helm at Old Trafford and the Red Devils were inspired to the trophy by top scorer Dimitar Berbatov with 20 league goals.

However, they did only win 23 games that season, drawing considerably more than usual, 11 games.

+44 goal difference has sealed the fifth spot as they are tied for points with the next entry on our list.

4) Manchester United 2000/01 – 80 Points

When you’ve won 13 Premier Leagues, its not too much of a shock that a few of the title winning seasons make this list, at some point the law of averages kick in.

A season where you can end on 80 points while losing the last three games of the season feels like a thing of the past with the high scoring nature of the league these days.

But that’s exactly what Fergie’s Reds did and because of that losing streak at the tail end of the season it made it seem closer than it was.

They’d only lost three league games in 35 up until that point. Teddy Sheringham was the key man, netting 15 times in the Premier League and scooping the FWA Footballer of the Year award.

3) Manchester United 1998/99 – 79 Points

Despite winning a treble, not even one of the most famous seasons in football can save itself from this list.

Only three losses all year helped Manchester United’s points tally, but 13 draws hampered what could’ve been an even more impressive season.

The attention paid elsewhere inevitably paid off, with Dwight Yorke netting 18 times in the league but 29 in all competitions.

1 point ahead of a decent Arsenal side, who only conceded an impressive 17 goals all year, was closer than some fans would have liked to be, but a title is a title.

2) Arsenal 1997/98 – 78 Points

It was Arsenal’s turn to pip United to a title this time, despite their two losses to end the season making it closer than it needed to have been.

Adding talent such as Marc Overmars and Emmanuel Petit to an already iconic squad that included the likes of Ian Wright, Patrick Viera and David Platt ensured that the Gunners won their first title for seven years.

Arsene Wenger recruited well for his first full season, which was by no means the peak of his time at the club.

78 points was enough, but not enough to avoid this list.

1) Manchester United 1996/97 – 75 Points

To complete a run of three years in a row in our top three spots, Manchester United won the league with the lowest ever points tally.

Despite this, they beat 2nd place Newcastle by seven points having only won 21 games all season, drawing 12 and losing five.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was the Red Devils' top scorer, with 18 league goals, along with the help of Eric Cantona, helping them secure another title.

This was Cantona’s last season before a shock retirement and the year after the Red Devils lost out to Arsenal - the season where they were number two in our list.

Since this period teams have since scored 97 points and not won the title.

Could we see a team winning the Premier League with this low a points tally ever again?