As the final whistle blew at St James' Park on Monday night, it signalled the 13th time in November alone that a side had beaten one above them in the Premier League.
Incredibly, almost half of this month's 30 matches have ended with the lower-placed club taking all three points.
After their 2-0 victory at Newcastle United, West Ham United forward Jarrod Bowen said: "The Premier League is as open as it has ever been."
If we disregard impressive league leaders Liverpool, the statistics support Bowen's assessment, and so do the standings.
The gap from second place to fifth place, currently held by Manchester City and Brighton & Hove Albion respectively, is the smallest it has EVER been after 12 Matchweeks. There is only one point between those teams.
A previous low of two points has occurred only three times before, including last season, according to a BBC report.
If we look further down the table, we can see Man City are now closer to West Ham than they are behind Liverpool, if we include goal difference as well as the eight-point gaps in either direction.
Directly below City, three clubs are clustered together on 22 points, with wafer-thin goal difference keeping Chelsea third, above Arsenal and then Brighton.
In fact, Enzo Maresca's side are only ahead of the Gunners because they have scored two more goals.
Tight race for Europe
The bad news for those three teams chasing UEFA Champions League places is that they've got very little breathing room beneath them.
The gap between second and 10th is the joint-lowest it has ever been at this stage of the season. Only five points divide Man City and Newcastle, who would have moved even closer towards Pep Guardiola's team had they been able to win for a third time in a row on Monday night.
The volatile nature of the 2024/25 season also means clubs can go from a perilous position to one of apparent serenity with just one result.
In his press conference on Friday, West Ham manager Julen Lopetegui detailed the pressure he was finding himself under in 14th, four points off the bottom three, explaining how he didn't listen or read anything about what is being said about his future.
Fast-forward just one Matchweek and the Hammers are still 14th but the six-point gap to the relegation zone is smaller than the four-point difference to sixth, thanks to their excellent win on Tyneside.
A top four surprise?
There are other factors that lend hope to an outsider breaking into the top four this season.
Six of the clubs who have appeared in the Champions League in recent years - Man City, Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, Aston Villa, Newcastle and Manchester United - have all collected fewer points at this stage than they did last season.
Consistency is the key, but we've not seen many clubs putting their foot down.
Only Liverpool, Man City, Chelsea, Villa and Nottingham Forest have been able to win three consecutive matches.
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Liverpool
LIV
|
12 | +16 | 31 |
| 2 |
Man City
MCI
|
12 | +5 | 23 |
| 3 |
Chelsea
CHE
|
12 | +9 | 22 |
| 4 |
Arsenal
ARS
|
12 | +9 | 22 |
| 5 |
Brighton
BHA
|
12 | +5 | 22 |
| 6 |
Spurs
TOT
|
12 | +14 | 19 |
| 7 |
Nott'm Forest
NFO
|
12 | +2 | 19 |
| 8 |
Aston Villa
AVL
|
12 | 0 | 19 |
| 9 |
Fulham
FUL
|
12 | 0 | 18 |
| 10 |
Newcastle
NEW
|
12 | 0 | 18 |
| 11 |
Brentford
BRE
|
12 | 0 | 17 |
| 12 |
Man Utd
MUN
|
12 | 0 | 16 |
| 13 |
Bournemouth
BOU
|
12 | -1 | 15 |
| 14 |
West Ham
WHU
|
12 | -4 | 15 |
| 15 |
Everton
EVE
|
12 | -7 | 11 |
| 16 |
Leicester
LEI
|
12 | -8 | 10 |
| 17 |
Wolves
WOL
|
12 | -8 | 9 |
| 18 |
Ipswich
IPS
|
12 | -10 | 9 |
| 19 |
Crystal Palace
CRY
|
12 | -7 | 8 |
| 20 |
Southampton
SOU
|
12 | -15 | 4 |