West Ham Not Out Of The Woods

They say the table never lies but win/lose/draw is a crude measure of performance; for starters it doesn’t take into account a level of superiority.

To rectify this problem we have analysed shooting statistics and generated two supremacy figures. We calculate the number of shots taken, subtract the number of shots conceded and divide by the number of games. We have repeated this method for all shots and shots on target only.

Shooting Supremacy

Very little separates Chelsea, Liverpool and Man City in terms of shots on target supremacy with Arsenal too far behind to sustain thier title challenge.

The interesting outlier is how Liverpool’s ‘all shot supremacy’ is much worse than that of Chelsea or Man City. Either Brendan Rodgers has players shooting from good quality locations or they have some excellent strikers – probably a combination of the two.

The fight to avoid relegation is an equally fascinating battle. The bookmakers are correct in making Cardiff and Fulham odds-on for the drop but the final position is up for grabs.

Crystal Palace are third favourites in the betting but they continue to impress with their shooting statistics. They are rarely out-shot in terms of quality or quantity and still have the ability of a lower-mid table team.

West Ham were seemingly safe after a four-game winning streak but they are on the cusp of a relegation battle.

They are six points clear of Sunderland in 18th position but Gus Poyet’s men have two games in hand. The problem for Sam Allardyce is his team are continuously outgunned in terms of shots and shots on target. The return of Andy Carroll is welcome but he might struggle to turn the numbers around because he has never been prolific.

Only Fulham are conceding more shots per game and the Hammers need to tighten up defensively or risk being relegated at odds of 16/1 (Paddy Power).