🔗 Share this article

A major talking point of England's top flight season so far concerns the decline of scoring in open play and how teams have been scoring increasingly from dead-ball situations instead.

Comparing scoring methods to matchday 11 the prior season, there have been 39 fewer goals in open play and 26 more from team set-pieces and penalties, leading to 13 fewer altogether.

Considering the broader view, efforts on goal teams are taking have seen an incredible drop of 370 in open play than this time last time out.

Even with the big increase in set-piece goals, records show only two additional shots created from these situations outside of penalties, demonstrating the efficiency teams have been at devising strategies to convert from dead-ball chances.

Scoring Rates Show the Tale

Over 300 goals notched in 110 games to date works out at 2.74 goals each match, which if it continued for all 38 games might be the least for half a decade, back in 2020-21 (2.69 average).

But just under 200 goals scored in open-play averages out 1.78 each match and is heading to be the smallest for 16 years, back in 2009-10 (1.76 average).

The 2009-10 season additionally represents the sole English top-flight season to see scoring more often from set-plays excluding penalties than the current rate of 0.77 per fixture (0.79 average).

Which Teams Are Most Responsible?

In terms of goals scored from open-play, Wolves have recorded by far the biggest drop, registering just four in 11 games, 10 fewer than this point the previous campaign.

Apart from Wolves, the Premier League's fall in goals from open play is largely a London phenomenon, with half of the capital's seven sides scoring five or more less scores from open play than the previous year.

To be fair, this is mainly because them scoring numerous goals at the beginning of last season as opposed to them having difficulty to convert in open play this season.

Meanwhile City have experienced the biggest increase, with almost every one of the 23 they've scored this season coming in open play.

Set-Piece Success

Comparing clubs that came up with the teams that went down they took the place of. Play-off winners the Black Cats have netted three extra goals in open-play than Southampton achieved in their first 11 games en route to the drop the previous campaign.

In terms of scoring from set-plays (excluding spot-kicks), Arsenal and the Blues have experienced the largest rise, with both sides making up for the five less scores that they've produced in open play with the same number from dead-ball chances.

Manchester United have netted double the number scores from set-pieces as they managed in matchday 11 last season before the manager took charge, while Sunderland once more have been more successful at converting than the similar-colored team they superseded.

City seem unaware of the message about netting additional goals from set-plays, because they've netted a reduction of three than the previous campaign, similar to the Reds, although that might be down to the change in style they've attempted to adopt.

League-Wide Trends

Six clubs – the Gunners, the Blues, Fulham, Newcastle, Spurs and the Hammers – have been this term's primary examples by recording fewer scores from open play and increased from set-pieces, while City stand as the unique club to go against the grain so far by doing the exact opposite.

It remains to be seen to watch if sides persist to depend greatly on set-pieces as the season goes on or if they find again their all-round creativity and begin netting increased totals in open-play too.