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The English Premier League could bust all goal records this year as the average of ‘net bulgers’ has increased to 2.92 goals per game.
At the same stage last season the average was 2.56 goals per match—leading to a final EPL total of 942.
This year’s current average would lead to a total of 1,110 and that would be a new ‘best’. The last year to come close to that was back during the 1999/2000 season when 1,060 goals were scored. Manchester United ran away with the league that year with 97 goals and Arsenal were runners up 18 points behind them with 73 goals scored
Well, this season there are eight players on 10 goals or more in the Premiership and at the same stage last year just THREE players had hit double figures.
But it’s not just in the EPL that goal records are set to be crushed.
In the Colaship there have been 788 goals so far this season; at the same stage last season, minus a game, 775 goals had been scored.
In League One, there are 13 players into double figures after 26 games and 3 from Norwich City, including top scorer Grant Holt.
Leeds have scored 46 goals already and third placed Charlton have scored 50.
My beloved Norwich sit in second and after 26 games have scored a whopping 59 goals; making the super Yellows the top scoring team across all divisions. In fact Norwich City’s average is 2.27 goals per game and the Canaries are on target for 104 goals which would be a club record. The last time a team scored more than 100 goals in any division was in 2001-2002 when Manchester City hit 108 on their way back to the top-flight.
So 154 goals between the top 3 sides! At the same stage last season the top 3 of League One had accumulated just 128.
So what’s up with that? Are there more clinical finishers in English football this year? Are teams refusing to play for a point like they may have in the past? There have only been 11 goalless draws in the Premier League this season, at this stage last year, there had been 21.
Are teams endorsing a more attack minded mentality this term or could it simply be explained at the other end of the pitch; Are the defenders on display this year just plain crap? Maybe, but across all 3 divisions?
You decide.
It would be interesting to see how the goal figures correlate with the World Cup years.
Hmm, But League One strikers know they have not a hope in hell of making the national team.
I’d like to know how many of those 154 goals were penalties as compared to years past. I’d say that more pens are being called this year.
I just think Ned is running around paying opposing teams to let Canaries score.
Cannot find those stats. But the difference is huge and I cannot remember thinking that a lot more penalties were being scored.
@Dan V We don’t have to, defenders in League One are atrocious when faced with the awesomness that is ‘the holy trinity’ (Holt, Hoolahan, Martin).