Interesting statistics from this season (Nov 2025)

[mattbianco1]

Just seen this article on the BBC site.

We all know we are short of firepower, but I didn't realise we were performing quite strong in many other areas:

• Most corners in the league - 26 more than anyone else
• Statistically the best in the league at winning the ball in the final third
• 2nd most touches in opposition box - 425 (only Coventry have had more)

The article also states we are:

• The only team in the league not to score a header
• The lowest scorers (which we knew)

Over to you Patrick Bamford. No pressure

What have we learned from the Championship so far?

Coventry flying and big sides struggling - what are the talking points from the Championship season so far?

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Kenilworth]

Makes those Selles decisions to sell Moore, not replace him, and bin off McBurnie all the more understandable.

All those corners and no headed goal. Who’d have thought that with the mighty McG, Binman, Mee, and Tanga?

We’re also shite at defending corners and other set plays. The absence of a target man striker for those situations doesn’t help. Makes us hugely vulnerable

 

[billyblademan]

Moore, and especially McB were very useful at defending set pieces for us. The target man is a miss not only at the top of the pitch, but in our defensive situations as well.

 

[Kenilworth]

Moore, and especially McB were very useful at defending set pieces for us. The target man is a miss not only at the top of the pitch, but in our defensive situations as well.

Bills

 

[Gavlar]

Just seen this article on the BBC site.

We all know we are short of firepower, but I didn't realise we were performing quite strong in many other areas:

• Most corners in the league - 26 more than anyone else
• Statistically the best in the league at winning the ball in the final third
• 2nd most touches in opposition box - 425 (only Coventry have had more)

The article also states we are:

• The only team in the league not to score a header
• The lowest scorers (which we knew)

Over to you Patrick Bamford. No pressure

What have we learned from the Championship so far?

Coventry flying and big sides struggling - what are the talking points from the Championship season so far?

www.bbc.co.uk

If you have no one to hit from set pieces and can't convert in the box then it makes no difference sadly.

 

[Nedski]

Those stats are actually insane. To have the most corners but no headed goals is ridiculous. To win the ball in the opposition's third the most but score the least is equally ridiculous.

There is something fundamentally wrong with our tactics if we're not taking advantage of the good work we appear be doing, and I'm sure a huge part of it must be our painfully slow build up play. We are very happy to let the opposition have all the time in the world to reset, reorganise, get 10 men behind the ball, which obviously makes scoring far more difficult.

If we're not scoring headers, why persist with the awful floated corners? It's like Robbo's long throws. We kept doing them with absolutely no success. Definition of insanity etc.

We've got the second lowest shots on target per game (3.2), but mid table for shots (12.4).

Wilder et al must be aware of these stats but there's a refusal to address them. Just attack quickly and shoot! That's all we ask!

 

[Berkshire Blade]

While xg isn't everything....

"Sheffield United have scored just 11 goals from an xG of 20.0 and conceded 26 times from shots totalling 20.6 xG at the other end of the pitch – no team have underperformed either to a more significant degree than them"

 

[MojoMuffin]

It is very interesting but also a massive contribution to the apathy at the moment.

Our eyes don't lie, we should be doing so much better and we aren't, which is why it's so frustrating to watch this team at the moment with games ticking by and us not picking up points. "You need luck in football" only goes so far, you need to take advantage of the opportunities you create.

I said it in another thread but the JTW is massive. The rest of our season relies on it and it will be very telling of our new owners and how they approach it. The fall off since the play-off final has been catastrophic and one I don't imagine they ever thought would happen like this. What was once a great opportunity for a club not far off is currently not far off languishing for seasons to come unless we turn this around.

These stats here and the issues facing various teams around us need to be capitalised on sharpish.

 

[LurkerBlade]

Those stats are actually insane. To have the most corners but no headed goals is ridiculous. To win the ball in the opposition's third the most but score the least is equally ridiculous.

There is something fundamentally wrong with our tactics if we're not taking advantage of the good work we appear be doing, and I'm sure a huge part of it must be our painfully slow build up play. We are very happy to let the opposition have all the time in the world to reset, reorganise, get 10 men behind the ball, which obviously makes scoring far more difficult.

If we're not scoring headers, why persist with the awful floated corners? It's like Robbo's long throws. We kept doing them with absolutely no success. Definition of insanity etc.

We've got the second lowest shots on target per game (3.2), but mid table for shots (12.4).

Wilder et al must be aware of these stats but there's a refusal to address them. Just attack quickly and shoot! That's all we ask!

I'm not sure it is tactics - it has felt to me that our choices and confidence has been lacking.

Campbell/Cannon/Ings have missed loads of good chances, other teams have defended better when mistakes/opportunities arise from our pressure.

Would also add our wide players have been guilty of over playing rather than taking a gamble.

 

[SUFC Guy]

I'm not sure it is tactics - it has felt to me that our choices and confidence has been lacking.

Campbell/Cannon/Ings have missed loads of good chances, other teams have defended better when mistakes/opportunities arise from our pressure.

Would also add our wide players have been guilty of over playing rather than taking a gamble.

Cannon and Cambell, but unfair on Ings to say he's missed loads of chances.

 

[Balham]

Tom Cannon is 13th on the list of United players sorted on xG per 90 mins, behind (amongst others) Ben Mee and Tyler Bindon. Overall, O'Hare and Campbell are broadly on target - both are on 3.4xG with COH on 4 goals and Campbell on 3. The big outlier on absolute terms is, as everyone knows, Sydie Peck on 0 goals vs 2.9 xG but there are 8 players yet to score whose xG rounds to 1.

The bigger issue in my eyes, however, is the underperformance from the goalkeepers. Adam Davies on the stats isn't bad (3 conceded vs 2.7 psxGA) but that masks the fact that he caused Coventry's second; excluding own goals Cooper has regressed enormously with 22 conceded vs 17.7 psxGA. Last season, he was at +6.5 (32 conceded vs 38.5 psxGA).

 

[bladesince64]

However shocking those stats are, for me, it is very encouraging to know because it highlights what the main problem is ie the striker conversion of turning chances into goals.

The fact that we are getting a lot of things right was a real surprise.

 

[Houston_Blade]

Most corners in the league - 26 more than anyone else

That translates to 26 more counter attacks made by the opposition than anyone else.

 

[Balham]

That translates to 26 more counter attacks made by the opposition than anyone else.

Along those lines, I wonder how many of those 425 touches in the opposition area were part of moves which somehow ended up with Tanganga playing the ball back to Cooper from halfway?

 

[ReeceofBDTBL]

Shame we’ve got the worst performing attackers in the league. Fotmob has Tom Cannon as not only the worst striker in the league, he’s ranked as the 3rd worst player in any position.

Then you’ve got this graphic illustrating perfectly how we’ve brought in the 2 worst wingers in the entire league. Contributing absolutely nothing

That’s how you end up having so much attacking play but with so few goals.

 

[mattbianco1]

Tom Cannon is 13th on the list of United players sorted on xG per 90 mins

That can be read in 2 ways...

[The pessimist] - why is the striker only 13th in our list. He should be in the top 2 or 3. This proves how shit Cannon is!

[The optimist] - this highlights that nobody is playing to Cannon's strengths. He's a poacher, let him poach.

NB: I don't know what the actual reason is

 

[tincan]

If the most corners and possession won back is to the credit of the players, then the lack of conversions into goals is the poor coaching. Clearly Wilders coaching isn't working, so recruit some top specialist coaches to target these weaknesses. A far cheaper and easier solution than changing half the squad..

 

[Houston_Blade]

Along those lines, I wonder how many of those 425 touches in the opposition area were part of moves which somehow ended up with Tanganga playing the ball back to Cooper from halfway?

I think they must be counting the touches in the box during half time warmups.

 

[Bladedog]

Have we got a set piece coach or are we just wingin it.