The games with the highest score in the history of the top category

Premier League fans received an early Christmas present on Sunday as Tottenham and Liverpool played out a nine-goal thriller.

The Reds triumphed 6-3 in north London as Ange Postecoglou’s side again threw caution to the wind against the league leaders.

Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah scored twice, with Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister in goal while James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski and Dominic Solanke scored for the hosts.

Only six times has a Premier League game had more goals since the competition was created in 1992. Here’s how those games played out.

Portsmouth 7-4 Reading (2007-08)

The highest scoring Premier League game of all time was an 11-goal thriller between Portsmouth and Reading in September 2007 which ended 7-4.

The classic of the ‘Barclays’ era, perhaps equally remembered for Chris Kamara’s account of events on Saturday Football, saw Benjani score a hat-trick.

Hermann Hreidarsson, Niko Kranjcar, Dave Kiston, Stephen Hunt, Shane Long and Sulley Muntari were also on the scoresheet to add to the nostalgia of this game.

Tottenham 6-4 Reading (2007-08)

A few months later, Reading missed another goalscorer during a visit to Tottenham, who also have a habit of appearing in goal-laden games.

Postecoglou has recaptured much of the 2007-08 Spurs spirit this season, that December 2007 game being one of several high-scoring games in which they were involved.

In this one at White Hart Lane, Dimitar Berbatov scored four goals, with Steed Malbranque and Jermain Defoe also on target.

Tottenham – Wigan 9-1 (2009-10)

Tottenham’s second 10-goal haul in the space of a year was far more one-sided as they put Wigan Athletic to the sword.

Peter Crouch scored the only goal in the first half before Defoe took center stage with five as Aaron Lennon, David Bentley and that man Kranjcar made another appearance.

Manchester United – Arsenal 8-2 (2011-12)

Manchester United’s 8-2 drubbing of Arsenal remains one of the most iconic and shocking results in Premier League history.

The pair are two of the most successful teams in the country and have had success in the past, but this meeting came when the Gunners were very much in decline under Arsene Wenger.

Arsenal looked powerless to stop United at Old Trafford as Wayne Rooney scored a hat-trick, including two free-kicks, and Ashley Young, Danny Welbeck, Nani and Park Ji-Sung also found the net. Arsenal also finished the game with 10 men after Carl Jenkinson’s red card.

Arsenal 7-3 Newcastle (2012-13)

Another 10-goal spell for Arsenal followed, but this time they were on the right thanks to a masterclass from Theo Walcott in December 2012.

The former England winger scored a hat-trick and set up two more during an entertaining festive game in north London.

Newcastle had equalized three times in a 3-3 thriller before the Gunners pulled away, with Alex Oxlade-Chamerlain, Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud the other scorers.

West Brom – Manchester United 5-5 (2012-13)

The last of Sir Alex’s 1,491 games in charge of Man Utd was perhaps the strangest as United were held to a 5-5 draw at West Brom.

Having wrapped up the title, the Red Devils, and indeed West Brom, decided to put on a show.

United raced into a 3-0 lead before the Baggies pulled it back to 3-2 through James Morrison and Romelu Lukaku, only for Robin van Persie to inspire the hosts into a 5-2 lead.

But just when it looked like Sir Alex would be celebrating another of his many victories, Lukaku and Youssouf Mulumbu’s brace denied the great Scotsman a victorious farewell.