Is the Entertainment Fading? This Drop of Open-Play Goals from Open Play

A major talking point of the Premier League season so far has been the reduction of scoring in open-play scenarios and how teams are finding goals more from set-plays as an alternative.

Looking at goal sources to matchday 11 the prior season, we see a drop of 39 goals in open play and 26 more from set-plays and spot-kicks, giving us 13 fewer in total.

Examining the bigger picture, shot attempts clubs are making reveal a staggering drop of 370 in open play than this time last time out.

Regardless of the significant rise in set-piece goals, records show just two more attempts generated from them outside of spot-kicks, indicating the efficiency teams are at devising strategies to score from dead-ball chances.

Goal Averages Show an Interesting Narrative

301 total goals recorded in 110 matches so far calculates at nearly 2.75 goals per fixture, which if it continued for all 38 games might be the smallest for five years, from five seasons ago (2.69 per game).

But just 196 scores scored in open play equates to 1.78 per game and is heading to be the lowest for since 2009-10, since 2009-10 (1.76).

2009-10 also marks the unique EPL campaign to see goals scored more frequently from dead-balls without spot-kicks than this campaign's frequency of 0.77 per game (0.79 per game).

Which Teams Account for This Change?

In terms of goals scored from open play, Wolverhampton Wanderers have recorded by far the biggest drop, registering only four in their first 11 fixtures, a reduction of 10 than this point last season.

Outside of Wolves, the Premier League's decline in goals from open play is largely a London thing, with five out of the city's seven teams recording at least five less scores from open play than the prior season.

In fairness, that's largely down to their scoring many scores at the early stages of the previous campaign as opposed to their genuine struggle to score in open play this season.

Conversely Manchester City have seen the biggest increase, with almost every one of the 23 they've scored so far originating in open play.

Set-Play Proficiency

Looking at clubs that came up with the teams that went down they replaced. Play-off champions Sunderland have netted three more goals in open-play than Southampton managed in their opening 11 matches on their way to the drop the previous campaign.

Regarding scoring from set-pieces (not counting spot-kicks), Arsenal and Chelsea have seen the biggest increase, with the two clubs replacing the five fewer scores that they've produced in open-play with identical figures from dead-ball chances.

United have recorded double the number goals from set-pieces as they achieved in the 11 games the previous campaign ahead of the manager assumed control, while Sunderland once more have been better at converting than the fellow red-and-whites they replaced.

City seem unaware of the trend about scoring more from set-pieces, since they've recorded a reduction of three than last season, as have the Reds, though that might be down to the altered approach they're working to install.

League-Wide Trends

Six clubs – the Gunners, the Blues, Fulham, Newcastle, Tottenham and West Ham – are the current campaign's primary examples by recording fewer goals from open play and more from set-plays, while Manchester City are the sole team to defy the pattern to date by achieving the complete reverse.

It remains to be seen to watch if teams carry on to depend greatly on set-pieces as matches continue or if they rediscover their general attacking flair and begin converting additional scores in open play as well.