Brighton Hove sit third with Premier League's best goal difference

Brighton Hove are third in the Premier League on 13 points after 6 games, and the number that stands out is not the points. It is the goals. 18 scored, 5 conceded, a goal difference of +13. No side in the division can match it.

The leaders have less. Man City top the table on 15 points with a goal difference of +8. Arsenal are second on the same 15 points with +5. Both have played the same 6 matches as Brighton Hove, and both have a far smaller cushion. That is the asymmetry of this start: fewer points, better numbers.

The form line reads LDWWW. One defeat, one draw, then three wins in a row — a run of 3W that has carried them up to 3th. The most recent of those came at Brighton Hove, where Brighton Hove won 2-0 against Sunderland on Saturday 10 October, the sixth matchday.

Next up is Brighton Hove at home against Crystal Palace on Sunday 18 October, matchday 7. A win there keeps the pressure on the two clubs above them. A defeat and the gap opens.

Worth asking, though: is a +13 goal difference after 6 games a sign of a genuine top-three side, or just a good month? The scoring is spread — no Brighton Hove player appears among the division's leading scorers, where João Pedro of Chelsea and Erling Haaland of Man City share top spot on 5 goals each, with Morgan Rogers of Chelsea and Alexander Isak of Liverpool on 4.

Below Brighton Hove, the chasing pack is tight. Brentford are fourth on 10 points with +6, Chelsea fifth on 10 with +2, Leeds United sixth on 9 with +3. Three points separate Brighton Hove from sixth place. The goal difference is the only thing keeping them clear.

Beat Crystal Palace and the argument gets stronger.