I got bored today, so I started researching and punching buttons on my calculator because that’s what you do when you are a student on a holidat with too much free time on your hands. I started looking at shot accuracy because that seems to be what Liverpool is having a problem with. What I found surprised me. When comparing shots on goal to total shots attempted, the accuracy of Luis Suarez and Andy Carroll is virtually identical.
Luis Suarez has scored more goals, but he has also taken over twice as many shots. I did not include the statistic on the table, but he has also started more games than Carroll. As for the leading goal scorer from last season, Dirk Kuyt? Well, he hasn’t scored any. To be fair, he has not been selected as often under Dalglish, but 0 is still a lousy number to have hanging over your head when you previously scored 13.
The number that should jump out at you from the top table is 67% by Maxi Rodriguez. Maxi had the second highest goal tally last season (10), and thus far, his accuracy has been superb. Granted, he hasn’t taken many shots, but he has scored a goal in the not-so-many shots taken. That’s one less than Andy Carroll and Charlie Adam who have both logged over 30 shots each. It should be noted that even when compared to the top scorers, Luis Suarez has attempted more shots.
You. You can be my sub any time.
The stats get increasingly depressing when one takes a current look at the top 5 goal scorers in the Premier League. The accuracy for Van Persie, Rooney, Aguero, Ba, and Dzeko are all much higher than Liverpool’s forwards. There is something special about the 45% mark. It seems that a player has to be that accurate before he can expect 1 out of 4 of his shots to hit the back of the net.
If there is one thing Liverpool has not lacked this season, it is opportunity. The club bought players that were very good at creating opportunities, however the conversion of those opportunities to goals has been severely lacking. Currently in the club’s Premier League Campaign, one could describe the Reds as a club that can do everything except score a goal. It is easy to chalk it up to bad luck or exceptional goalkeeping, however the numbers suggest otherwise. The first thing the players need to focus on is simply aiming at the goal. Perhaps they are getting too excited or could be possibly frustrated by prior performances, but the accuracy of shots needs to improve. That does not mean training to take sniper shots at impossible angles, but simply hitting the target.
An anomaly that has puzzled me this season is how little of Maxi Rodriguez we have seen. Dalglish seemed to be getting the best out of Maxi last season, but he was pushed aside when Downing and Bellamy were brought in. It is puzzling why a manager would stick someone on the bench who has proven to be capable of scoring goals. One of the skills the Argentinian demonstrated last season was the ability to be a quality poacher. It would be interesting to see him operate in tandem with Suarez, since someone to finish second chances seems to be an element that is currently lacking.
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