sport news REVEALED: The Premier League's sharpest - and not-so-sharp - shooters with Man ... trends now

sport news REVEALED: The Premier League's sharpest - and not-so-sharp - shooters with Man ... trends now
sport news REVEALED: The Premier League's sharpest - and not-so-sharp - shooters with Man ... trends now

sport news REVEALED: The Premier League's sharpest - and not-so-sharp - shooters with Man ... trends now

After running the numbers, stats boffins have revealed who the least efficient strike force in the Premier League is, with one side managing to under-perform their expected goals by a whopping 0.40 strikes.

The efficiency has been calculated by quantifying the number of expected goals - penalties excluded - a team might have according to how dangerous each chance is, the number of shots on target a team has, and how many they manage in total. 

As such, each team has been given a value that shows just how well or poorly they have performed in at the business end of the pitch over the course of the campaign. 

While it is not a direct indicator of where sides sit in the standings, the teams in and around the top and bottom of the stats table do general correlate with placement in the division - although Manchester United are a notable stand-out. 

Here Mail Sport run you through the numbers, provided by CIES Football Observatory, to show who has under- and over-performed their expected goals so far this season.  

Manchester United have scored the sixth-fewest goals in the Premier League for 2023-24

The Red Devils have only scored 1.25 goals a game when penalties are excluded this season

The Red Devils have only scored 1.25 goals a game when penalties are excluded this season

According to the data, the most efficient side at putting away chances is Premier League leaders Arsenal, who are exceeding their expected goals by a whopping 0.43 per game. 

Difference per match 

1. +0.43 - Arsenal

2. +0.24 - Tottenham

= 2. +0.24 - West Ham

4. +0.17 - Newcastle

5. +0.14 - Nottingham Forest

= 5. +0.14 - Luton Town

7. +0.11 - Liverpool

8. +0.08 - Aston Villa 

= 8. +0.08 - Wolves 

10. +0.05 - Burnley 

11. -0.03 - Fulham

12. -0.07 - Sheffield United 

13. -0.08 - Manchester City

14. -0.15 - Chelsea 

15. -0.16 - Crystal palace

16. -0.18 - Brentford

17. -0.20 - Brighton

18. -0.27 - Bournemouth

19. -0.30 - Manchester United

20 -0.45 - Everton 

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That the Gunners lead the way is perhaps not surprising given that they are also the top scorers in the division with 70 strikes in 2023-24, five clear of Liverpool in second.  

The Gunners are currently averaging 2.21 non-penalty goals a game, with an expected tally of 1.78, which is only the sixth-best of the 20 teams in the table. 

Although Liverpool are the next most prolific side in the top-flight, and Manchester City have an embarrassment of attacking riches and creative maestros within their ranks, it is in fact the Gunners' arch nemesis Tottenham in second spot and David Moyes' West Ham

Spurs take second spot after out-performing their expected goals by 0.24, level with the Hammers who have seen Jarrod Bowen flourish once more this term. 

In fourth spot is Eddie Howe's injury-ravaged Newcastle side who have scored 0.17 goals more than expected, with the Magpies closely followed by both Nottingham Forest and Luton Town, the relegation-threatened duo 0.14 goals better off than the stats indicate they ought to be. 

Next comes Jurgen Klopp's title-chasers Liverpool, with 0.11 more goals per game than expected, despite managing the second-highest xG-per-game

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