Nottingham Forest in second. Newcastle United in fifth. Spurs in 11th. Manchester United in 14th. We may have only reached the halfway point of the campaign, but is a new era dawning in the Premier League?

In truth, that day has already come. Between 2006 and 2022, Leicester City were the only side to disrupt the so-called big six. Since then, Newcastle and Aston Villa have also qualified for the Champions League and upset the established order. Quite literally. In fact, it was just last week that Eddie Howe admitted there were 'people that don't want that to happen again'.

"It's up to all of us to try and break into whatever group of teams, try and upset people and achieve success," the Newcastle boss said.

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That is easier said than done. For context, last summer, Manchester United part-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe warned how the Premier League 'need to be careful that the top-six clubs are not disadvantaged' in top-flight meetings. Really?!

This is the same Manchester United who, in November, spoke up in favour of changes to the APT rules introduced in the immediate aftermath of Newcastle's takeover. This is the same Manchester United who spent £364.7m on wages last season, which was nearly double Newcastle's salary bill when the Magpies qualified for the Champions League in 2023. This is the same Manchester United who poached Newcastle's sporting director, Dan Ashworth, after months of publicly moaning about the Magpies' 'silly' demands. This is the same Manchester United who made millions more than Newcastle on account of their historic coefficient - despite also exiting the Champions League group stages. This is the same Manchester United who were able to commit to potentially splurging more than £205m on transfer fees in a window where Newcastle failed to strengthen their squad and ended the summer in profit despite the club's owners' staggering wealth.

In a PSR world, if anyone had a theoretical advantage going into this season, it was Manchester United, whose huge commercial revenues dwarf Newcastle's overall turnover. Yet it said it all that Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim admitted that Newcastle 'were the better team' three times in as many minutes following his side's 2-0 defeat at Old Trafford on Monday night.

It was just Newcastle's second league win at Old Trafford in more than half a century but, on this evidence, Howe's side won't have to wait so long for another triumph. This felt like two clubs moving in very different directions.

The table does not lie in that regard. Newcastle rang in the new year just three points off a Chelsea side touted as title challengers not so long ago. Manchester United, in contrast, sit seven points above the relegation zone ahead of a trip to league leaders Liverpool on Sunday. No wonder Amorim admitted he was 'embarrassed'.

It is a timely reminder how a takeover - majority, minority or otherwise - does not always guarantee an immediate upturn in fortunes within the first 12 months. Newcastle may have spent upwards of £450m since the club's buyout, but that money has largely been used wisely to strengthen a side who were fighting relegation just three seasons ago. Dig a little deeper and the aforementioned outlay pales in comparison to the majority of Newcastle's rivals.

Manchester United, for instance, splashed out more on Rasmus Hojlund than Newcastle did on another Scandinavian striker, Alexander Isak, while the £80m the Red Devils paid for Harry Maguire was significantly more than the combined transfer fees of the goalkeeper and back four who lined up for the Magpies at Old Trafford on Monday night. In fact, Martin Dubravka and Fabian Schar were players Howe inherited as were fellow starters Joelinton and Jacob Murphy for that matter, who have also hit new heights under the Newcastle boss.

That is testament to the innovative work of Howe and his coaching staff who, three years into their reign, have tweaked the team's set-up, ensured no two training sessions are the same and come up with a number of team-building exercises to try bring the group even closer together. Howe has even talked about 'the need to find the things' that can make Isak better and how he 'can't stop on his behalf'. This is the same Isak who scored eight goals and set up two more last month.

Whereas staleness could have taken hold - it was a word Howe, himself, used unprompted just a few weeks ago - the team have evolved to the point where the Newcastle boss has openly suggested there is the 'talent in the squad to be better' than the side who finished in the top four in 2023. Time will tell on that front, but this group look primed to 'upset' one or two people again.