The Premier League's overachievers, underachievers and those on par | Paul Wilson

Liverpool’s ruthless consistency and Sheffield United’s ability to adapt exceeded expectations, but Arsenal and Spurs slumped, while Manchester City and United have been satisfactory

League tables may never lie, though everyone knows they can be economical with the truth. By Sunday evening we will have our final Premier League table, after an extraordinarily difficult season is played out to a compromised but fair conclusion. Yet what the record books and finishing positions never quite reveal is what was expected of teams beforehand.

Some teams in the top half of the table will be disappointed with their place in the order of things, whereas some teams in the bottom half will be relieved. What follows is an attempt to break up the table into three groups: those who have done better than anticipated, those who have done worse and those who have simply completed the course with an acceptable but unspectacular score.

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