markstats

football data and tactics

[markstats @markrstats]

@watmanAFC here you go

[markstats @markrstats]

Arsenal were well prepared for Bayern’s press. Playing long and dropping Ødegaard deeper gave them a way out. They lost the ball near their own goal just 12 times, vs with an average of 26 for Bayern’s opponents. Bayern were forced to let Arsenal control possession and territory

[markstats @markrstats]

To illustrate my previous tweet. Premier League npxGD and npGD: 25/26 from Carrick’s appointment vs 26/27 so far. United’s npGD per game: +0.94 → −0.14, with npxGD flat (+0.37 → +0.36)

[markstats @markrstats]

Man Utd’s underlying numbers under Carrick haven’t changed at all.

25/26: +0.37 npxGD per game
26/27: +0.36

Their goal difference has:
25/26: +0.94 npGD per game
26/27: −0.14

Last season the finishing and keeping were running hot. This season it’s the other way round

[markstats @markrstats]

United spent almost the entire first half in a negative game state, with just 36% possession.

Como keeps the ball with ease, and United can’t win it back. No surprise: only 9 teams in Europe’s top five leagues force fewer turnovers in the opponent’s danger zone than Man United

[Kaustubh Pandey @Kaus_Pandey17]

Como beating/dominating Manchester United in 2026 should actually be considered normal, if you've followed those clubs 😭

[markstats @markrstats]

FC Risk Aversion

[markstats @markrstats]

“Winning the title will help Arsenal shake off the pressure and play fluid football,” they said

[markstats @markrstats]

Last season under Glasner, Crystal Palace had one of the seven best defences in the Premier League

Seven games under Pierre Sage, they have the worst defence in the league, and it isn’t close

NPxG allowed per game: 1.28 → 2.20
Deep completions allowed per game: 9.3 → 13.6

[markstats @markrstats]

Liverpool after going 2-1 up:

Cede possession to a 10-man opponent and lose the xG battle (0.07 vs. 0.31)

Iraola’s Bournemouth showed the same pattern throughout last season. When not leading, they ranked 6th in the league for xG difference. When leading, they ranked 19th

[markstats @markrstats]

@Alex_Luna_3 Shorter windows (5s, 8s) were too noisy

[markstats @markrstats]

New team metrics on https://t.co/rapa6OlQ9E: GEGEN and OPPGEGEN

GEGEN is the opponent's pass completion in the 10 seconds after they win the ball in their own half. Lower means a stronger counterpress.

Brighton have the best counterpress in the Premier League this season

[markstats @markrstats]

Deploying Bruno Fernandes on the right of a 4-2-4 press is a big mistake. The space between Dalot, Santos and Bruno is enormous. Atleti will exploit it repeatedly if they are brave

[markstats @markrstats]

Tottenham won possession within 40m of United’s goal 11 times, the most by any team in a match this season

[markstats @markrstats]

Florian Wirtz in one chart: Premier League best attacker at receiving progressive passes, average at creating open-play threat

[markstats @markrstats]

The first 30 minutes were disastrous for United: 75% pass completion and just 10% of their touches in the final third. They had no answer to Spurs’ high press

[Marc Geschwind @MarcGeschwind]

If this was a clip from the Bundesliga it'd have 50k likes.

[markstats @markrstats]

After this game, I have more faith in De Zerbi’s Tottenham project than in Carrick’s United

[ACHRAF @LamdarhriAchraf]

The only positive of Manchester United before international break was the midfield ability to connect the dots.

Tottenham stripped that off by applying an intense pressure on them from behind and from the front (Solanke drops or Savio narrows inside).

Hence, United resorted to more long balls, passes to Lammens while he's under pressure which led to more long clearances. What made it worse is that nobody can win the aerial duel and the team is shattered to latch onto second balls.

[markstats @markrstats]

@Breaux_MCT https://t.co/Ty8heoZo4P

[markstats @markrstats]

Well, actually, since Man United’s high pressing is among the worst in the league, this De Zerbi midfield trio might make sense after all