You can prove anything with statistics apparently, well, apart from the reason behind the enduring employment of Robbie Savage, and as football fans, we often use these nuggets or information to back up our countless disputes.
Although we imagine statisticians as mathematical nerds with a number fetish, there’s a Statto hidden in all of us. From goals per game to number of red cards and from managers’ win ratios to the good old trophies won favourite, we use statistics to discuss the relative merits of players and teams all the time.
Luckily, we don’t seem to have quite the obsession with numbers that afflicts American sports. I remember tuning in to a sports channel once and being amazed to find that it was broadcasting competitive rodeo, of which the highlight was surely the inclusion, for every animal, of a ‘Bull Rating’ in the bottom right hand corner.
The particular bull I saw had a rating of something like 44.76, what on Earth this means is beyond me, but American stats fans were no doubt whoopin’ and a-hollerin’ about it somewhere in Texas. Anyway, I digress, we football fans love a bit of flagrant stattage, and who better to provide it than the masters of sports stats, OPTA. So, for the nerd inside you politely coughing to get out, here are 20 juicy Premier League stats.
Richard Dunne has made more last-man saving tackles than any other player in the Premier League this season, ten in fact.
Despite the stick Dunne often gets for being lumbering, slow, agricultural etc. – the big lad can certainly do the defender’s bread and butter duties with relish (bread and butter with relish? no thanks). Whether it’s putting his head in where it hurts or flinging his body in the way of a goal-bound shot, Dunne plays a very important role for Villa, as the stat above proves.
Sunderland have dropped 20 points from winning positions this season (more than any other team).
Steve Bruce would no doubt shake his head in the world-weary way he often does were he to see this statistic. How frustrating it must be as a fan and particularly as a manger to see your team take the lead, only to bungle the opportunity of victory again and again. Just for the record, had Sunderland avoided dropping those 20 points, they would now be just behind Man Utd in 2nd place in the league.
Manchester United have won all 13 games they have played against Wigan in all competitions scoring 41 goals & conceding just 4.
Underneath the furore over Wayne Rooney’s rogue elbow to James McCarthy’s skull, lay a dominating 4-0 victory for United that carried on their remarkable record of victory over Wigan Athletic and showed the distance between the haves and have-nots.
Roy Hodgson has won only one of his last 28 Premier League away games. Oops.
Hodgson had a hard time of it at Liverpool, never truly accepted by the fans and ushered out of the door after just 6 months in the job, but as we can see from the stat above, his team was not playing well and the worrying lack of away victories, which stretches back to his Fulham days, cannot fill West Brom fans with much hope for the future.
– Only Didier Drogba has hit more shots on target in the PL this season than Fulham’s Clint Dempsey.
While it is unsurprising to see Drogba top of the shots on target list (although perhaps odd that a few more didn’t go in for him), the real point of this stat is to emphasise the usefulness of Clint Dempsey. The American does a sterling job at Fulham, where he often scores very well-taken and spectacular goals, and his accuracy and under-stated profile make him perhaps one of the most under-rated Premier League players.
Robin van Persie is the first player to have scored 10 goals in the first two calendar months of a year in the Premier League era.
Impressive stuff from Arsenal’s Dutch forward, Van Persie has talent in abundance but an unfortunate habit of picking up injuries. 10 goals and 6 assists from 15 games is a fantastic return, it’s just a shame for Arsenal that he has been restricted to making this impact half-way through the season.
Spurs have 38 goals after 27 PL games this season, vs 48 at this time last season.
A worrying statistic for Spurs fans, this record is statistical evidence of the profligacy of their strikers – who have scored 8 league goals between them, an unacceptable return for players being fed by the likes of Modric, Lennon, Van der Vaart and Bale. Tottenham’s goal difference is only +7, compared to +19 & +24 for the clubs around them; should Spurs end the season level on points with Chelsea or Manchester City, it is their lack of goals that could cost them a Champions League place.
Lucas has made 35 interceptions in the PL this term, 48 fewer than Benoit Assou-Ekotto; who has the most (83)
Lucas is supposed to be a defensive midfielder, whose job it is to break down opponents attacking play and send the ball forward to start an attack for his own team – he isn’t doing that good a job of it. Admittedly, Assou-Ekotto is a defender who must block a few crosses, but the discrepancy between the two doesn’t reflect well on the much-maligned Brazilian.
Stoke have scored the most goals in the last 10 mins of PL matches this season.
Tony Pulis’s agricultural side are famed/derided for their route one, unattractive football, but every team does what it can to survive in the ruthless plains of the Premier League and with a record like this one, Stoke are showing their admirable commitment and drive to keep on plugging away even at the death.
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Aston Villa and West Ham have hit the woodwork the most in the PL this season 16 times!
A frustrating stat for fans of these two clubs; Villa could be fighting for Europe were it not for those few cruel inches the wrong way, and for West Ham, a club who are desperately scrapping against relegation, a stat like this must make bitter reading – especially if they end up waving goodbye to the Premier League.
Arsenal have conceded the highest proportion of goals 60% from set pieces in the Premier League this season.
Fodder for those who berate Arsenal with the old ‘too soft’ mantra – Arsenal’s shockingly poor record of conceding from set pieces is a known weakness, exploited mercilessly by the likes of Tony Pulis, whose Stoke team represents the antithesis of Arsenal’s flowing passing game. But it takes all sorts to make a league, and Wenger and his men should perhaps sort out their own defending before having a pop at the style of Stoke.
Alex of Chelsea has the best pass completion rate of any centre-back in the Premier League.
An under-rated performer, Alex, who is perhaps best known for his ‘you don’t want to get in the way of this’ rocket-powered free kicks, has performed very well for Chelsea this year. Despite their relatively lowly league position, the Blues have conceded the fewest goals in the Premier League this season and with Alex’s outstanding distribution, the Brazilian deserves to be recognised as one of the Premier League’s top defenders.
Danny Murphy (Fulham) Top Passer – 1730 complete passes.
Scouser Danny Murphy has been re-born at Craven Cottage, where he has found his role as captain and all-rounder in central midfield. It is a testament to the technique of the veteran 33-year-old that even in a team in mid-table, he has completed the highest number of passes in the Premier League this season.
Fernando Torres has scored three goals in his last 5 Premier league games against Manchester United
‘El Nino’ has been far from firing on all cylinders since his big-money move to Stamford Bridge, but he must have fancied his chances against Manchester United last night, with an excellent recent record against them. Unfortunately for Torres, he didn’t score, but luckily for him and Chelsea, Luiz and Lampard did to send Chelsea 4th with a 2-1 win.
– Kevin Davies has won more aerial challenges than any other player in the Premier League this season, 162 of ’em.
He may not be the most prolific or technically brilliant striker, but Kevin Davies is an absolute handful for opposition defenders. The big man is famed for his knock-downs, pump the ball long to Davies and most of the time he’ll win the header. He may put in his fair share of fouls, but physical forwards like Davies are a tradition of the English game, and his record in the air suggests that, even in the fast-paced, technical style of the Premier League in 2011, it’s a tradition that’s far from obsolete.
Joe Cole’s goal for Chelsea on 03/04/10 was the last goal that Man Utd conceded in the first half of a domestic game at home.
Old Trafford may be the Theatre of Prawns, I mean Dreams, but it’s more a Chamber of Nightmares for opposition teams. United have gone 11 months avoiding conceding in the first half of domestic competitions at home and, as they very often score themselves in that first half, the away dressing room at Old Trafford must be a drained and demoralised place at 3.45 of a Saturday.
Kevin Nolan has converted 30% of his shots into goals.
Nolan has had a stand-out season so far for newly-promoted Newcastle; the midfielder has banged in a superb 10 goals in the Premier League – outstanding from the middle of the park. That record is made all the more impressive when you consider that his shots to goals percentage is 30, so just under a third of all his shots go in – that kind of accuracy is only beaten by Dimitar Berbatov, with 31%. Great stuff.
Charlie Adam has the highest number of yellow cards this season in the Premier League.
Charlie Adam has been a revelation in the Premier League, with his all-action performances catching the eye of both Liverpool and Tottenham and his form has been a principal catalyst for Blackpool’s great start and current position 4 points clear of the relegation zone. But the Scotsman is certainly combative in his role for the Tangerines, and he doesn’t mind getting involved in the odd tackle. He has committed 45 fouls this season and received a hefty 10 yellow cards. That record isn’t great for Blackpool, who have lost the midfielder for a 1 game ban for 5 yellow cards, and a 2 game ban for 10 yellow cards. Chill out, Charlie!
Shots to saves % of Manchester City’s Joe Hart is 78.
The England number 1 is very highly-rated and here’s a stat to help prove why. The Manchester City keeper has made 83 saves this season and has the best saves to shots percentage of any keeper at 78%. Such excellent form between the sticks could very well make the difference in Manchester City’s bid to earn a Champions League spot for the first time.
Fulham have gone 58 PL games without a red card, the next longest current run is Blackpool on 25.
Mark Hughes may have had a temper tantrum about Roberto Mancini’s look-away hand-shake the other day, but his team takes a much more placid approach than its manger. The gentle souls of Craven Cottage have avoided getting sent off for 58 games, too busy putting daisies in the laces of opponents and practicing tai chi to get involved with the rough stuff, Fulham are the top flight’s nice guys.
Phew, and I’m spent. Well, there you are, your 20 Amazing Premier League Stats are complete, if you’d like to hear more stattage, conjecture, thoughts and theories then follow me on Twitter: @stuartcfootball
