3 Players Who Should Score More in 2014

We are just over half way through the Premier League season and that gives us enough data to start drawing conclusions on individual player performance.

Using shot data we have identified three players that are scoring fewer goals than you would expect given the quantity of shots per game and their location. 

Philippe Coutinho

We start with the obvious because even the player himself admits his goalscoring record isn’t good enough.

The Brazilian midfielder is averaging 3.9 shots per game, bettered by only Luis Suarez and Sergio Aguero so far this season. Two league goals is therefore a meagre return given his propensity to shot.

A combination of below average shot accuracy and location means he has a lower goal expectation than a striker but he should have bagged at least six goals from his efforts this season.

Andreas Weimann

The Austrian striker netted seven goals for Aston Villa last season but he is increasingly become a bit-part player.

At least the 22-year-old is still trying to score, he is averaging 2.4 shots per game compared to 2.1 last season. Unfortunately his accuracy has suffered, finding the target with just 21% of his shots and that is feeding his lack of confidence.

Paulinho

The Brazilian has been a regular goalscorer throughout his career, averaging a goal every 3.3 games before his move to England. With two league goals in 17 appearances for Tottenham, we know there is a problem.

Looking at his numbers however, his lack of goals might just be down to a combination of accuracy and luck.

The 25-year-old averages 2.9 shots per game, with almost two-thirds coming from inside the box.

He is taking plenty of shots, from good areas they just aren’t hitting the target frequently enough and when they do, they are being saved.

Like any player his numbers will be prone to short-term variance and the goals should start flowing when he returns from injury.