EPL

Premier League data dive: Origi strikes against Everton yet again as Liverpool keep up title chase

By Sports Desk April 24, 2022

Divock Origi kept up his run of scoring against Everton as his late goal helped Liverpool claim a 2-0 win in the Merseyside derby.

The Reds were made to work hard by struggling Everton, who went into Sunday's match in the relegation zone after Burnley had defeated Wolves earlier on.

Liverpool are now back within a point of their Premier League title rivals Manchester City, while third-placed Chelsea moved five points clear of fourth-placed Arsenal with a last-gasp win over West Ham.

Brighton and Hove Albion and Southampton played out a 2-2 draw in the day's other game. Here, using Opta data, Stats Perform checks the best facts from Sunday's action.

 

Chelsea 1-0 West Ham: Pulisic spares Jorginho's blushes

Chelsea turned in a below-par performance against West Ham, but got over the line thanks to Christian Pulisic's last-gasp winner.

The Blues had lost their previous two matches at Stamford Bridge and looked set to be on their way to a third home game without a win when Jorginho sent a poor penalty straight at Lukasz Fabianski.

Jorginho had converted each of his last 13 penalties for Chelsea, excluding shoot-outs, with this being his first failure to score from the spot for the Blues since Boxing Day 2020.

But Pulisic swept in from Marcos Alonso's cross to win it. The United States international has been directly involved in 10 goals in 32 appearances for Chelsea across all competitions this term (seven goals, three assists), matching his tally from last season when he made 43 appearances.

Burnley 1-0 Wolves: Clarets out of the bottom three

Burnley claimed a second win on the bounce to lift themselves above Everton and move out of the relegation zone.

They have now won three home Premier League games in a row for the first time since a run of five between December 2016 and January 2017, and that is the same number of victories as they managed across the 26 games beforehand.

Indeed, Burnley have picked up seven points in their three Premier League games under Mike Jackson (W2 D1), the same number of points as Sean Dyche picked up during his final eight league games at the club (W2 D1 L5).

Wolves, meanwhile, have now suffered more defeats in their last five away league games (four) than they had in their first 12 on the road this season (W7 D2 L3).

Matej Vydra grabbed Burnley's winner. Four of his eight top-flight goals for the Clarets have been ones to claim three points.

Brighton and Hove Albion 2-2 Southampton: Ward-Prowse closes on free-kick record

James Ward-Prowse scored both of Southampton's goals as they came from behind to rescue a point in the south coast derby against Southampton.

Despite scoring as many goals on Sunday as they did in their previous seven home Premier League matches, Brighton failed to win a game in which they led by at least two goals for just a third time in the competition (P23 W20 D2 L1), having won each of their previous 13 such matches.

But after an own goal put Brighton further ahead, Ward-Prowse's excellent free-kick halved the deficit. He has now scored 14 direct free-kick goals in the top flight, just four shy of David Beckham's record, while only the Manchester United great and Laurent Robert (both five) have netted more free-kicks in a single season.

Ward-Prowse doubled his tally and restored parity with another long-range effort, and 44 per cent of his league goals for the Saints have come from outside the box (17/39).

Liverpool 2-0 Everton: Origi strikes again to give Toffees the Blues

It took Liverpool until the 62nd minute to break the deadlock at Anfield, though they were arguably fortunate not to have conceded a penalty not long before.

Nevertheless, Liverpool's dominance finally told as Everton's back-to-the-wall display was broken – Andy Robertson heading in before Origi scored late on. The striker has now netted six times in nine league appearances against Everton, scoring once every 62 minutes on average.

Liverpool have lost just one of their last 23 Premier League games against Everton (W10 D12), completing the league double over their neighbours for the first time since 2016-17. They now have 79 points, 50 more than Everton, which is the joint-largest margin they have held in the competition (along with the 2019-20 season).

Everton will end the day in the relegation zone for the first time since December 2019 (also after a derby defeat at Anfield), while this is the furthest into a season, after 32 games or more, the Toffees have found themselves in the bottom three since 1998-99.

They have lost 11 of their last 12 Premier League away games (D1), including each of the last seven in a row. It is their longest run of consecutive away defeats since a run of eight between April and October 1994.

Origi has now scored 11 goals as a substitute in the Premier League, the outright most by a Liverpool player, overtaking Daniel Sturridge's 10. 

Liverpool recorded a possession figure of 82.7 per cent against Everton – only Man City (83 per cent v Swansea City in April 2018) have recorded a higher such figure in a Premier League game since Opta started collecting this data (2003-04). 

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  • Ronaldo 'entitled to his opinion', says Ten Hag after Man United criticism Ronaldo 'entitled to his opinion', says Ten Hag after Man United criticism

    Manchester United head coach Erik ten Hag has brushed aside Cristiano Ronaldo's latest comments as he continues to block out the criticism surrounding his tenure. 

    Ronaldo, who recently surpassed 900 career goals during the international break, returned to Old Trafford in 2021 for a second stint at the club he made his name at. 

    The Portugal international netted 27 goals in 55 appearances in all competitions across one and a half seasons but fell out of favour under Ten Hag before joining Al Nassr in December 2022.

    During the 2021-22 season, no one registered more goal contributions in the Premier League for United than Ronaldo (21, 18 goals and three assists), while he also produced an expected goals tally (xG) of 17.75, also the highest in the Red Devils squad. 

    And speaking to former United team-mate Rio Ferdinand on a podcast, Ronaldo said Ten Hag had been wrong to say in a pre-season interview that the club were "a long way away" from winning the Premier League. 

    When questioned about the veteran forward's comments, Ten Hag said: "No, he said this, if you read the article very well.

    "He is entitled to his opinion. It's OK. He is far away in Saudi, far away from Manchester."

    United headed into the international break off the back of successive defeats in the Premier League, the latest coming in a 3-0 humbling against arch rivals Liverpool. 

    The Red Devils have now lost as many as two of their first three league games in a season for the second time under the Dutchman's tenure (also 2022-23). 

    They last lost three of their first four back in 1986-87, when Ron Atkinson was sacked and replaced by Sir Alex Ferguson. 

    While United are unbeaten in their last 12 Premier League away games against the Saints, the encounter at St. Mary's seems a seismic one for Ten Hag's future at the club.

    The two-week break since the Liverpool defeat has seen Ten Hag's future widely discussed, but the Dutchman insisted that the outside noise did not bother him. 

    "It doesn't impact me. I know where we are in the process and what we have to do and where we are going," Ten Hag said.

    "I have said before we are still in a transition period.

    "We have to integrate a lot of young players in the team and still have to deal with injuries and bring players back into the team.

    "Before anyone thinks about excuses, no, we have to win every game. I know that. The team knows that. It doesn't matter who is available."

  • Lopetegui to assess Fullkrug as focus remains on trusting the process Lopetegui to assess Fullkrug as focus remains on trusting the process

    Julen Lopetegui has refused to rule out Niclas Fullkrug’s involvement when West Ham return to Premier League action against Fulham on Saturday.

    Fullkrug, who was signed from Borussia Dortmund during the transfer window, picked up an injury on international duty with Germany during their 5-0 win over Hungary, a game the 31-year-old scored in.

    Lopetegui has picked up one win from his first three league fixtures at the helm, but the Spaniard says his side are still in the process of becoming the team he wants them to be.

    "Let's see, he has a little problem, it was a pity,” Lopetegui said on Fullkrug. “But it's true that we will evaluate him too, today. 

    “Yesterday we thought he was a little bit better, today we're going to see how he is exactly and tomorrow we are going to make the last decision about him.

    "It's a process, and we have had 10 days here to work with the players. Unfortunately, a lot of them weren't here, so it's not easy, but we've done what we could.

    “It's a quick turnaround now to Fulham, but we're putting all our focus on our next match."

    Fulham, meanwhile, entered the international break off the back of a 1-1 draw with Ipswich Town at Portman Road, with the Cottagers sitting in 12th in the early-season table.

    Marco Silva’s new-look squad showed signs during their encounter with the Tractor Boys that they are close to kicking into gear, having taken four points from their first three Premier League games.

    While Silva acknowledged his players were forced to adopt a different style of play in their last fixture, he is confident they can continue their unbeaten run on home soil.

    "Tough Premier League game, as always, against a side that you know are going to be really hard to play against,” Silva said. “We know it can be tough to play here because last season we played against them in a different competition with great support from the home crowd.

    "We were solid in the second half, but not in the way that we like to play, not with that quality in our build up, and it was more difficult for us to create chances.

    "It's a game, of course, that we wanted to win, we wanted the three points. We got one point, and we move on to prepare for the next one."

    PLAYERS TO WATCH

    Fulham – Antonee Robinson

    Since the start of last season, only Kieran Trippier (10) has more assists among defenders in the Premier League than Fulham’s Robinson (eight).

    All eight have come in open play, with only Mohamed Salah (13), Brennan Johnson (10), and Anthony Elanga (nine) having a better 100% open-play assist rate in the division during that time.

    West Ham – Jarrod Bowen

    Bowen has nine Premier League goals away from home since the start of last season, with only Erling Haaland (16) and Ollie Watkins (10) netting more, while his only goal this term came away at Crystal Palace.

    MATCH PREDICTION: DRAW

    Fulham won both Premier League meetings with West Ham last season by an aggregate score of 7-0. They’ve not won three consecutive league games against the Hammers since between October 1965 and October 1966.

    During his time in charge of the Cottagers, Everton and Watford, Silva has more Premier League wins against West Ham than any other side (P9 W6 L3), with the 17 goals his sides have scored against the Hammers in the competition also being his most.

    Fulham have also lost only one of their four top-flight games that followed an international break last season (W2 D1), while West Ham lost three of their four such games in 2023-24 (W1). 

    West Ham’s only win so far in the Premier League this season came away to Crystal Palace (2-0). They last won their opening two away league games of a season in 2015-16 (first three).

    The Hammers have also won 16 of their 28 Premier League games against Fulham, their best win rate against any side they’ve faced at least five times in the competition (57%).

    But so far this campaign, only Newcastle United (54) have faced more shots in the Premier League this season than West Ham (52), while their expected goals against total of 6.4 is also the second-highest, behind newly promoted Ipswich (6.9).

    OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

    Fulham – 40%

    Draw – 26.2%

    West Ham – 33.8%

  • Rooney, Barry, Crouch? Who are the ultimate Premier League 'Barclaysmen'? Rooney, Barry, Crouch? Who are the ultimate Premier League 'Barclaysmen'?

    The international window is over, as Premier League football returns this weekend, but the two-week break had supporters reminiscing. 

    From 2004 to 2016, Barclays was the Premier League's sponsor.

    And in a trend that has taken over social media, "Barclaysmen" have been picked out as players synonymous with that 12-year period. 

    Here, we take a deep dive into Opta data to find out which players were the actual hallmarks of the Barclays Premier League. 

    410 - Gareth Barry led the way with 410 matches played for Aston Villa, Manchester City and Everton between 2004 and 2016 – he is, of course, also the Premier League's all-time record holder for appearances too, with a whopping 653 to his name.

    James Milner is set to overtake Barry this season, though, and 369 of his 637 matches came in this 12-year span.

    178 - Bursting onto the scene as a 16-year-old, Wayne Rooney would go on to become one of the greatest goalscorers the division has ever seen. 

    Starting his career with Everton, Rooney joined Manchester United in 2004, where he won five league titles during the Barclays era. 

    In that 12-year span, no player scored more goals than the mercurial forward, who netted 178 times, with his former United club-mate Robin van Persie (144) second, ahead of Chelsea's Frank Lampard (132).

     

    Rooney wasn't just a goalscorer. He also provided 88 assists in this era, taking his total goal contributions tally to 266, 54 more than the next-best, Lampard (212).

    1,430 - Naturally, being the top goalscorer from 2004 and 2016, Rooney also tops the rankings for the most shots taken during that period, with 1,430.

    Rooney's most prolific season came during the 2011-12 campaign, when he netted 27 Premier League goals, but it wasn't enough to stop rivals Manchester City from lifting their first top-flight title since 1968. 

    Midfielder Lampard (1,118) is next on the list for shots, with Van Persie (963), Jermain Defoe (939) and Steven Gerrard (919) next.

    95 - What about creativity?

    When it comes to assists, there were no better in this time span than Cesc Fabregas, who laid on 95 goals across spells at Arsenal and Chelsea.

    Interestingly, though, Gerrard (767) led the way for chances created, with Lampard (759) also coming in ahead of Fabregas, though it is worth noting the Spaniard spent time away from the Premier League after leaving Arsenal for Barcelona.

     

    43 - When it comes to headed goals, you won't be surprised to see that six-foot-seven-inch Peter Crouch led the way, with 43.

    Crouch represented Aston Villa, Southampton, Liverpool, Portsmouth, Spurs and Stoke during the Barclays era, becoming well-known for his lanky frame and ability in the air. 

    He 'heads' the list by 12 goals to former Everton forward Tim Cahill, who scored 31 goals with his head despite being three inches under six foot.

    30 - Having come close to having the most goals in the Barclays era, Lampard tops the list for the most goals scored from outside the box across its 12-year timeframe. 

    Known for his incredible knack of being in the right place at the right time, Lampard's ability both in and outside the box made him one of the deadliest midfielders the division has ever seen. 

    Strikes against Norwich City, Fulham and away at Goodison Park are standouts, with the Englishman often finding the back of the net when pulling back his cultured right foot. 

    11 - While James Ward-Prowse leads the way for the most free-kick goals scored in the Premier League, Sebastian Larsson might just be the true embodiment of a Barclaysman.

    The former Arsenal, Birmingham City and Sunderland midfielder scored 11 direct free-kick goals between 2004-05 and 2015-16, one more than five-time Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo and Morten Gamst Pederson, who must be another candidate for the ultimate Barclaysman.

    That being said, who had the most direct free-kick shots? It wasn't any of the above. Instead, it was Lampard, who tried his luck 173 times, scoring on nine occasions.

    486 - Charles N'Zogbia. Remember him?

     

    A star for Wigan Athletic, N'Zogbia completed 486 dribbles during his time in the division. Surprisingly, Glen Johnson, a full-back, was the next best with 481, ahead of Eden Hazard (463).

    Remarkably, though, Ronaldo comes in at fifth, and that is despite only playing in five of the Barclays seasons. He completed 449 dribbles in total, an average of 2.7 per game.

    1,107 - Jussi Jaaskelainen, the baby-faced Finn, made 1,107 saves in the Barclays era, which puts him ahead of Mark Schwarzer (1,018) and Tim Howard (1,014).

    Petr Cech, meanwhile, was the goalkeeper to keep the most clean sheets (178).

    48 - Now time for the unlucky statistics during the Barclays era. During his spells with Arsenal and Man United, no one struck the woodwork more than Robin van Persie. 

    Despite netting 144 goals in his 280 Premier League appearances, ranking 14th on the all-time list, the Dutchman could have been among the top 10 scorers to play in the division had it not been for the crossbar and posts.

    Van Persie also squandered the most big chances (80), though Sergio Aguero (78) was hot on his heels.

    910- Out on his own by three, former Aston Villa, Man City and QPR defender Richard Dunne is the unfortunate man to have scored the most own goals between 2001-02 and 2012-13, with 10.

    Across his time in the Premier League, the Republic of Ireland did manage to score more goals at the right end, finishing his career in 2015 with 11 top-flight strikes. 

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