Brighton secured a 1-1 draw at Burnley last weekend to edge further away from the Premier League’s bottom three, the stalemate remarkably the Seagulls 10th draw of the season so far.
Graham Potter’s side have won admirers for their football this season but have so far been unable to turn performances into wins, sharing the spoils on a huge 10 occasions with fellow strugglers Fulham facing a similar predicament with nine draws in 2020/21.
We’ve decided to look back at how the teams with the most draws in a league campaign have fared previously, here are the six sides with the most draws in a Premier League season:
17 – Newcastle United (2003/04 – 38 matches)
Newcastle had shown signs of progress under the guidance of Sir Bobby Robson in the early 2000s, bouncing back from a difficult period to return to the Champions League under the North East native.
Robson’s side possessed a wealth of talent with Alan Shearer and Craig Bellamy leading the line, securing back-to-back top-four finishes during the 2001/02 and 2002/03 seasons.
The following campaign saw the Magpies set a new record for draws in a 38-game season, however, a run of results which would see Newcastle finish fifth and miss out on Champions League qualification.
Newcastle recorded a huge 17 draws throughout the season, including five in their final seven fixtures of the campaign to finish four points adrift of fourth-placed Liverpool.
17 – Aston Villa (2006/07 & 2011/12 – 38 matches)
Aston Villa have twice recorded 17 draws in a Premier League season, achieving the feat during the 2006/07 season and again during a disappointing 2011/12 campaign.
The first of those seasons saw Martin O’Neill’s side begin the campaign with a nine-game unbeaten run, though six of those fixtures would end in draws including 1-1 scorelines from trips to both Arsenal and Chelsea.
Villa continued to be difficult to beat throughout the season as O’Neill laid the foundations for a side which would secure three consecutive top six finishes, though an inability to turn close games into victories saw them finish in the bottom half.
Villa again registered 17 draws in 2011/12 including drawing five times from winning positions over the second half of the season, a lack of wins seeing the Midlands side finish just two points above the Premier League’s relegation places.
17 – Sunderland (2014/15 – 38 matches)
Sunderland are the third side to draw 17 fixtures in a 38-game league season, drawing five of their opening six league fixtures of the campaign under the new management of Gus Poyet.
Despite earning creditable points against the likes of Manchester United, Spurs, Chelsea and Liverpool, Poyet’s side recorded just two league wins before the turn of the New Year and found themselves mired in the bottom half.
The Uruguayan was dismissed and replaced by Dick Advocaat in March, with the Dutchman overseeing a late season revival that moved the Black Cats away from the bottom three.
Sunderland finished the season on 38 points, the draw specialists finishing the season 16th and three points clear of the relegation places.
18 – Manchester City (1993/94 – 42 matches)
The early seasons of the Premier League saw Manchester City often struggle for survival, including in the division’s second season as Brian Horton’s outfit finished 16th in a tightly-contested battle to beat the drop.
Just five points separated the teams who finished between 15th and 21st, each firmly in the relegation mix until the final weeks of the season.
City had been an attacking side under the previous management of Peter Reid but struggled to score goals after Horton arrived as his replacement early in the season, scoring just 36 times across 42 fixtures with Mike Sheron leading the way on just six goals.
City finished three points clear of the drop zone after amassing 18 draws, including six in their final 10 fixtures to edge away from danger and finish three clear of relegated Sheffield United.
18 – Sheffield United (1993/94 – 42 matches)
Sheffield United joined Manchester City in securing 18 draws during the 1993/94 season, though the Blades’ inability to turn draws into wins saw them slip out of the Premier League.
Dave Bassett’s side struggled amid a lack of investment and won just eight times for the season, their record number of draws including five consecutive stalemates throughout March.
Struggling near the foot of the division, the Blades missed an opportunity to escape danger after being held by fellow strugglers Oldham in their penultimate fixture, a dramatic late defeat at Chelsea seeing Bassett’s side relegated by just a single point on the final day.
18 – Southampton (1994/95 – 42 matches)
The magic of Matt Le Tissier ensured Southampton remained a top-flight outfit during the early seasons of the Premier League era, with the forward once again brilliant as the Saints secured their best finish to date in 1994/95.
Le Tissier was named in the PFA Team of the Year following a 29-goal season that also saw Southampton equal the division’s draw record, sharing the spoils on a huge 18 occasions including a record seven consecutive draws between December and February.
Those draws had seen Southampton slip into the relegation places by March, only for a late-season revival to carry Alan Ball’s side into the top half to secure a top 10 finish.
Southampton finished the season with a record of 12 wins, 18 draws and 12 defeats, finishing on 54 points and above the likes of both Chelsea and Arsenal.
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