What you may have missed: Joey Barton? Cross? No, never...
Tuesday 16 August 2011 15:48
Now the dust has settled on the opening round of Premier League matches (other than Tottenham vs Everton, which ironically didn't take place as the dust hadn't settled...), we use the brand spanking new Stats Zone app to share a few things you may have missed...
1) Joey Barton's crossing didn't hit the mark
We think it was Friedrich Nietzsche who said; 'if you're going to sling a cross into the box, make sure your beat the first man, my son'. On second thoughts, it may have been Ron Atkinson, either way, philosophy fan-boy Joey Barton may wish to take the adage on-board, as none of his seven crosses against Arsenal found a Newcastle player.
Do you want to tell him, or should we?
2) Manchester United were 200% effective infront of goal
How we all laughed at the many, many jokes regarding last season's star man Mr Own Goal making a welcome return to the United line-up. But the fact is, Steven Reid's OG helped United score twice in a match that saw them have just the one shot on target. A fairly impressive conversion rate, we're sure you'll agree, although it may leave Fergie pining for a swift return from Javier Hernandez...
3) Forget pass and move - go long to Carroll!
It's certainly no surprise that Liverpool would look to hit 'target man' Andy Carroll with the odd long-ball, but what is slightly more striking is the regularity with which the Reds popped 25 or 30-yard balls to the giant Geordie goal-getter during Saturday's opener against Sunderland. The above chalkboard also demonstrates how often the Anfield side 'went long' on Saturday afternoon.
4) Alex Stokes up Chelsea's defence
Apologies for the awful, awful pun. The above suggests the burly Brazilian made a real difference to the Blues in Sunday's match at Stoke. The diagram on the right shows that in April's meeting between the pair the Potters were successful with nine of their 17 deliveries into the Chelsea penalty area. The diagram on the left shows that - with Alex coming into the side in the place of compatriot David Luiz - Tony Pulis' side saw all but one of their 21 crosses dealt with by their opponents.
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