Manchester City have again been named as the Premier League’s most valuable club after pipping rivals Manchester United.
The Blues were first proclaimed to be top of the cash table two years ago, surging past the Reds for the first time in a model which takes into account debt and transfer losses.
The study, carried out by Liverpool University’s Centre for Sports Business, shows that City lost top spot to United in 2016-17 due to the initial heavy investment under Pep Guardiola, but they are now back on top of the pile – and are valued at £2.364billion.
That is £275million more than United, and the two Manchester clubs are clear of Spurs in third place, with Liverpool and Chelsea tied in fourth.
The valuation uses a model which considers income, profits, wage control, net assets and unsold seats at games.
City moved ahead of United for the first time in 2015-16 because of the business model employed by their owners, which means the Blues are debt-free, while United are saddled with interest payments stacked up by the Glazer family’s purchase of the club in 2005.
Without that debt, United would be out of sight of the rest of the league, worth around £3.4billion.
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City’s freedom from debt has allowed them to invest heavily both in the playing side and infrastructure – and their successful recent transfer strategy means that despite making a world record spend in 2017-18, incoming players like Ederson, Bernardo Silva, Kyle Walker and Aymeric Laporte have increased significantly in value while United signings have not.
That has contributed to a 20 per cent increase in the value of the club, and placed the Blues back on top of the pile.
City also recouped a large part of their staggering £272.5million transfer outlay by picking up £95million in player sales.
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