26 Mar 2012

1.6% - The shocking statistic that defines Liverpool's season...

Despite spending over 100m on attacking talent in the last 14 months, Liverpool are one of the lowest scoring teams in the premier league. It's not hard to understand why: a poxy 9% conversion rate and 20% crossing accuracy have conspired to create a perfect storm of attacking ineptitude. And it doesn't stop there; One other aspect of the club's attacking play is astonishingly bad, and as you will surely agree, improvement is desperately needed.

I am, of course, talking about corners, specifically goals scored from corners. Let's look at the facts:

* Total corners won in the league = 249 (Ave 8 per game)
* Total goals scored from corners = 4

Yes, you read that right: Liverpool have scored only 4 goals from 249 (league) corners this season (!) That's a conversion rate of 1.6%, with the club scoring a goal every 60th corner.

That is mind-bogglingly bad, and really underlines how poor Liverpool's crossing has been this season.

Three of the 4 goals from corners were scored by defenders (Skrtel x2; Coates x1), with Craig Bellamy grabbing the other.

249 corners and only 4 goals scored?! It's barely believable, but it's another brutal fact about Liverpool's increasingly catastrophic league season.

On the plus side, the huge number of corners illustrates the improvement in the club's overall attacking play, but it's all for nothing if the players can't capitalise.

Clearly, this is an area for improvement that Liverpool need to prioritise as a matter of urgency.

Jaimie Kanwar


52 comments:

  1. Have you got the stats of the others teams ? Seems low but...

    ReplyDelete
  2. Agree with this, you need to compare this with other teams, otherwise it's completely irrelevant.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Septimus_severus11:29 am, March 26, 2012

    JK,

    Yes your correct about the corners etc but that doesn't mean it will get addressed.
    Kenny doesn't appear to be listening to any criticism as he sees every question as threat.
    I think we need to put this season as a failure and wait for FSG assessment.
    We all know where the problems are with this squad and Manager, I have it on a very reliable source that Ian Ayre was behind pushing for the appointment of Kenny Dalglish.
    It will come out in due course watch this space.

    ReplyDelete
  4. This tells also much about the Comolli's moneyball-approach. You get just quantity with it, but not quality. Downing and Adam were bought because their crossing abilities, so it seems the money is wasted completely.

    ReplyDelete
  5. It's not irrelevant at all; what other teams do as no bearing on Liverpool.  4 goals from 249 corners is poor, and comparative stats are not needed to see that.

    I's like saying Liverpool's tally of 36 goals in 30 league games cannot be judged unless we see what other teams have scored.  It's objectively poor, as are the corner stats.

    ReplyDelete
  6. King can did a good job by bringing stability to the team but i think he is the correct person to take us forward. This year we should forget about champions league football we need to concentrate on cups. I hope we will be looking for a new coach in the summer. Some of the signings King Kenny brought in have not helped the situation either. We need a goal scorer who can link up with Suarez

    ReplyDelete
  7. If the average conversion rate is 0.8% then Liverpool are twice as good as the average at converting corners. Comparative stats would be useful here.

    ReplyDelete
  8. He is on a 2 year contract, we should give him the time.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Dear fellow
    Liverpullians just let us make a comparison between LFC and Newcastle:


    Kenny
    Dalglish: was appointed on 9 January 2011


    Kenny
    Dalglish has managed Liverpool in 64 games


    Kenny
    Dalglish has won 31 games


    Kenny
    Dalglish has drawn 16 games


    Kenny
    Dalglish has lost 17 games


    Kenny
    Dalglish’s win %: 48.44


    Alan Pardew:
    was appointed on 06 December 2010 just a month earlier than Kenny Dalglish


    Alan Pardew
    has managed Liverpool in 58 games


    Alan Pardew
    has won 23 games


    Alan Pardew
    has drawn 17 games


    Alan Pardew
    has lost 18 games


    Alan Pardew’s
    win %: 39.66


    We can
    clearly see that according to the games that both managers have managed up to today
    for their teams, statistically they are on the same verge.  Now, the questions that arise are these:


    1.     
    Does Newcastle have the same quality
    and depth of squad as LFC?


    2.     
    Is Alan Pardew a better manager as
    Kenny Dalglish?


    3.     
    Why Newcastle is performing this
    season better than LFC?


    4.     
    Why Newcastle has more points that
    LFC this season?


    So, for those
    who are arguing that we should give more time to Kenny Dalglish, they just can’t
    realize that it is not a matter of time, it is a time of what each manager
    shows through his team preparation and performance at the field in each game
    and in each season as we can assess whether a team progress or can further progress
    under him or not!   

    ReplyDelete
  10. Alan Pardew has managed Liverpool for 58 games? 

    ReplyDelete
  11. I apologize for my mistake: I mean Alan Pardew has managed Newcastle for 58 games.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Your an idiot mate

    http://www.soccerbythenumbers.com/2011/05/why-goal-value-of-corners-is-almost.html

    1.6% of corners resulting in goals is pretty close to normal in football.

    ReplyDelete
  13. What has Pardew won - NOTHING! Is Newcastle still in with a shout for any trophy - NO! Have we beaten Newcastle this season - YES!

    ReplyDelete
  14. I think the interesting thing about your theory, which I am starting to suspect, is whether Alan Pardew, or many other managers for that matter, would get better results with Kenny's players? Pardew definitely got more out of Carroll, that's for sure. But the worry, for me, is that Newcastle are beginning to have better players in a few of their positions now. It could be argued that Krul, Colocinni, Tiote, Cabaye, Guttierez, Ba are already as good as anything that we have. Cisse, Taylor, Simpson and Santon are not too bad, either. If they get to keep Ben Arfa, he will be another one who is as good as anything we have in that position. Soon, it will not be that Newcastle are having a good season, they will have better players. In fact, I would back those 11 players that I have mentioned to beat our 11 if they could get them on the pitch fit on enough occasions.

    ReplyDelete
  15. So, according to your very well-aimed statement Kenny Dalglish's transfers are not as good of those Alan Pardew's, Kenny Dalglish does not have the ability to get the 100% from each of his players, Kenny Dalglish is far less cable tactically even from Newcastle's manager Alan Pardew.  So, is Kenny Dalglish the man who can turn around the fortunes of LFC?  I think we should all start wondering!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Makes sense. I hope there's a change at the end of the season.

    ReplyDelete
  17. what is the news you bring in your over dramatic title here?
    that liverpool does not have good striker to finsih the crosses?
    wow, until i read your news of today i didnt know that?
    where do you think Arsenal would be without Van Persy?

    ReplyDelete
  18. LFC  does not have good striker
    we know that
    where would u find arsenal without Van Persie?

    ReplyDelete
  19. Outperforming Villa...

    http://www.birminghammail.net/birmingham-sport/aston-villa-fc/aston-villa-news/2012/03/24/aston-villa-waiting-for-first-premier-league-goal-from-corner-this-season-97319-30615469/

    ReplyDelete
  20. 36 goals in 30 league games without any comparison is not objectively poor, it's subjectively poor. If all of the other teams had scored five it would be amazing. Obviously we know that it is just plain poor, given our league position, but it is thanks to the comparison we know this.

    I think this is a good article, and a well researched statistic, but without a comparison it is just a number. I do agree that it seems low, and I never feel we are a threat from corners. I think against arsenal we had over 20, didn't we?

    ReplyDelete
  21. I disagree - I believe that something can be objectively bad without the need for comparison. For example: if Liverpool have 20 penalties in one season and miss 19, that is objectively bad on its own merits, and no comparison is required to underline that fact.

    Corners are essentially free, uncontested crosses in an attacking area of the field, and Liverpool should be doing better. I'm sure some other teams have similarly poor stats, but this stat should be considered in the context of the side's crossing/passing accuracy, and woefully poor conversion rate.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Of course comparative stats are important. If it is comparatively high then it is fine. What an absurd statement!

    ReplyDelete
  23. Has Newcastle spent a fortune on players over that same period? No. Does the Carling Cup really count? No. 

    ReplyDelete
  24. Just saying 'they're important' is not an argument. In this context, why are they important? Irrespective of comparative stats, 4 goals from 249 corners is obviously something that Liverpool can improve upon, and that's the point that you and others are missing.

    I've highlighted an area for improvement, and the context is LFC's crap goalscoring performance this season. When considered alongside the poor crossing/shooting/conversation stats, it's clear that club needs to do better, and the comparative stats of Man United. Arsenal etc are irrelevant to that very real fact.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Alan Pardews transfers, Cabaye, Ba, Ben Arfa, on loan, Santon, Cisse. All on the money we gave them for Carroll. With nearly 10 million left over, meaning that the signing of Tiote was paid for and they also sold Nolan and Barton so probably have about 15 million left before they have actually spent anything. If they beat us they will be 11 points ahead of us. ARE YOU SURE YOU WANT TO CONTINUE THIS LINE OF REASONING?

    What part of 'Pardew is doing a far better job' do you not understand? 

    ReplyDelete
  26. I assume you didn't celebrate when Anthony Gerrard put his spot kick wide then? - Why would you, it doesn't count. Might has well have been the Emirates cup.

    Is it an offical trophy? Yes.
    Does it go down in history books? Yes.
    Were City/Arsenal/Man U/Chelsea/Spurs players/managers all watching the match that sunday afternoon all thinking, if we had have taken this seriously we could be there winning this? Yes.
    Did it guarentee us a place in Europe, improve revenue and the economics of the club? Yes.
    Has winning the trophy influenced on our 'better' players commiting and staying with LFC for at least a year longer, Suarez, Pepe ect, at all? Yes, even if not a lot, players want to win things.  

    It's lost its value as a cup because teams have lost respect for it, by Liverpool taking it seriously, they have started to restore the respect for it by giving it respect, if more teams do the same, it will continue to improve.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Sorry, i never answered your question. No he is not the man to take Liverpool anywhere other than further down the league.

    I think the game has changed too much and he is well out of his depth and if he was anyone else he would be labelled 2nd rate by now.

    ReplyDelete
  28. Although an alarming stat, I think the reason that people want to compare to others is that it's not a regular stat that comes up. it's the first time I've ever read anything regarding conversion stats for corners from any team. So yes, it looks appauling, but we don't actually know how many corners are converted on average throughout teams.

    Just thinking about it how many goals do we see from corners each week in the EPL? 1/2 maybe, through in the fact that that's 10 games and averaging anything from 4-10 corners a game that's a conversion that could be as low as 1/100 or as high as 2/40.

    Still low, shockingly low stat to address, but would be interesting to see how it compares in the league for reasons addressed above.

    ReplyDelete
  29. Dan, I am afraid your comment makes too much sense.  

    ReplyDelete
  30. What constitutes a goal from a corner?  Is it 'directly' from the corner, i.e. the first touch after the corner has been taken, or, is it any goal within a few touches of the corner being taken (eg, corner is taken, player A heads it down, player B shoots and scores)?

    ReplyDelete
  31. I don't think anyone is having a pop, Jamie, we're just saying we would like to see a comparison, that's all. I think everyone agrees that it "sounds" like a  shocking statistic, but in the balance of fairness, it would be good to see a comparison with other teams. 
    If liverpool have 20 penalties and only score 1 goal, it is still subjective to say that it is bad. You could objectively say it was bad if you compared it to another club who had 20 penalties and scored 20 penalties. Alternatively you could objectively say it was good if other clubs had been awarded 30 penalties, and not scored any goals. 

    Both subjective and objective statements have equal rights to exist, but it's important not to get the two confused. 

    ReplyDelete
  32. I didn't say anyone is having a pop; we're just debating the issues, and that's fine.

    We'll have to agree to disagree. I disagree that scoring one penalty in twenty requires subjective analysis/interpretation to decide that improvement is needed. Looking at those stats without emotion/interpretation etc, the only conclusion is that it is poor and needs improvement. The same goes for the corner stats. Other clubs may have similar poor results but that doesn't change the fact that Liverpool's corner conversion is extremely bad, and needs improving.

    ReplyDelete
  33. You're obviously no scientist. Nuff said. And actually a stupid defense. And to think I agrre with you on most other rational views you have. Bu this is a stretch.

    ReplyDelete
  34. I have lot of friends from newcastle, i went up their for both bup finals in the 90's doen the key side and idols (class place) and i can tell you they would swap thier league position for mid table and get a cup anyday!!!

    ReplyDelete
  35. Jaimie give up theres no defense on this subject, honestly this is a stupid argument. Of course a comparison is needed!

    ReplyDelete
  36. Sorry, but my argument is sound. It's not my fault if people can't see the logic. Objective arguments are based on facts; I have presented cold hard facts; what other teams do is totally irrelevant to the stats as they pertain to Liverpool.

    Let's just say Man United's corner conversion stats are 1.4; what possible difference does that make to the fact that Liverpool have only scored 4 goals from 249 corners?! Absolutely NONE. Liverpool's stats matter, not United's or Arsenal's.

    ReplyDelete
  37. JK,

    I have consulted the source you quote in your original article. The data there clearly show that Liverpool's corner to goal conversion rate is the highest in the Premier League this season.

    ReplyDelete
  38. As I recall winning an FA cup or Carling cup was never a part of the plan for this season. The way we won the Carling Cup was hardly inspiring to boot either. The objective this season was nothing more than TOP 4 PL. There is no guarantee the the FA Cup is ours nor is there any confidence in my opinion that we beat Newcastle again in the very near future. The delusional fans of this club are the ones, if they have their way, that will see us relegated once again after fifty or so years.

    ReplyDelete
  39. LMFAO, this is better than Saturday Night live. Comic, no?

    ReplyDelete
  40. I'd like to copy paste some of your comments in the post here to explain my case for your irrational argument. But of course one cannot copy paste because you prevent the reader for doing so. But interestigly you post post links to videos on this site which presumably are breaching copyright laws. I mean I just don't get this logic like the logic of your argument on this suject. How can something be bad, as you describe it, if all others are doing the same thing. That would be the norm wouldn't it? LOL.

    ReplyDelete
  41. I'd like to copy paste some of your comments in the
    post here to explain my case for your irrational argument on the subject. But
    of course one cannot copy paste because you prevent the reader from doing so.
    But interestingly you post links to videos on this site which presumably are
    breaching someone’s’ copyrights. I mean I just don't get this logic like the
    logic of your argument on this posts' subject. How can something be bad, as you
    describe it, if all others are doing the same thing? That would be the norm
    wouldn't it? LOL.

    ReplyDelete
  42. Akash Super Star Fc8:32 pm, March 26, 2012

     sack dalglish & appoint FRANK RIJKAARD immediately

    ReplyDelete
  43. I'd celebrate if the opposition missed a penalty in the Emirates Cup as well, so that's no big deal.
    I doubt City, Arsenal and all were fussed at all when we beat Cardiff on penalties. In the history books, it goes down as a win but people will know that this competition had lost its attraction by now.
    Sure, we have European football but, believe it or not, if Newcastle beat us at the weekend they will be the ones with an outside chance of Champions League, not us. Ask the players what they would rather have.

    If the win encouraged our players to stay a year longer it has yet to encourage them to put in better performances week in, week out.

    Winning cups is a random thing that can happen to any number of sides. No one joins a club because it wins cups. Next Year, any number of teams can win the Carling Cup if they try, you've said so yourself. Players will join clubs that are likely to compete for titles and challenge for Champions League places. Most of the time, those are the teams that will be competing for Cups in any case. Probably not since Pompey won the FA, and Birmingham won the Carling Cup last season, has a team as low as us won a cup. Usually, the teams who win it are in the top 5 or 6 in any case.

    ReplyDelete
  44. That's sneaky of Pardew! Signing Ben Arfa behind Hughton's back to they'd have to give him the job after Hughton got the boot...

    ReplyDelete
  45. I'm still trying to work out how we spent over 100 metres on attacking talent???!!

    ReplyDelete
  46. RafaBenitezisnumber111:58 pm, March 26, 2012

    Just imagine where we would be if that 100 million had been given to Benitez. Champions, thats where.

    Benitez was consistently given chumps money, consistently had to do shrewd bargains, consistently wasn't allowed to buy the players he wanted (David Silva, Alves to name but two - AND they would have come, we had the carrot of Europe, and the Spanish contingent). Benitex usually had around 20 million max a season net outspend.MAX. It is also important to note, that he bought players and sold them at a higher price, thus making his net spend bigger by his own making - not the owners.......

    Rafa Benitez got to come back one day. Give him the backing and we'll be champions and consistently challenging in Europe.

    ReplyDelete
  47. Hughton signed him on loan, Pardew signed him permanently a month after he got the job.

    ReplyDelete
  48. Absolute drivel. If our low crossing/shooting/conversion stats are all better than everyone else then we win trophies. That is why it is "important" and that is why it is an argument. Nothing irrelevant about it. 

    You can stubbornly persist with your argument but it is faulty logic and perhaps you need to reflect upon it.

    ReplyDelete
  49. No, you have missed the point. The corner analysis is for the LEAGUE only, not the cups. Like everyone else, you have not addressed the main issue at all; you've just deflected the point with a meaningless reference to comparative stats. Address the issue.

    ReplyDelete
  50. I know its a arrogant thing to say but they are a different club to Liverpool, thus have different standards for a long time, thanks to the level of success each club has earned over time. 

    ReplyDelete
  51. Improved statistics do not necessarily equal improved results:

    http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2012/mar/27/martin-oneill-sunderland-statistics

    ReplyDelete
  52. What's the average conversion rate for the league? As its not a stat you see bandied around every day some context would help. Or even, what was the conversion rate last season, or under Benitez?

    Its like saying two/thirds of the Liverpool squad got the clap off 
    Konchesky's mum this season. It sounds high, but is it really worse than normal?

    ReplyDelete