Friday 4 November 2016 21:05, UK
This week, Martin Tyler's stats and facts column looks at title comebacks, safe points totals and number of different scorers.
Send your questions to Martin
Tweet @SkyFootball using the hashtag #TylersTeasers.
Martin’s Starting Stats
I saw Wayne Rooney score against Tottenham for the 10th time on Super Sunday and it brought to mind the first time I ever saw him play. It was a Youth Cup semi-final in April 2002 and he scored twice and was magnificent at White Hart Lane as Everton knocked out Spurs. It was before he made his first-team debut for Everton, which also came against Spurs.
Sunday’s game was only the fourth time in the Premier League that Chris Smalling and Phil Jones have started together as centre-halves in a BACK FOUR. Marouane Fellaini scored his first goal against Spurs in his first Manchester United game against them; he had failed to score in eight appearances against them for Everton.
Michael Carrick played for Spurs from 2004 to 2006 and scored his first goal against them since March 2003. His only other goal against them was for West Ham.
Harry Kane failed to score in a Premier League away game after scoring in six consecutively which means – as we said in a recent column - Robin van Persie’s record of scoring in nine straight away games is safe for the time being.
Tottenham have played 57 games this season, while Manchester United will only play 44 – that’s their lowest total since the 1958/59 when they played 43 matches (42 league games and one FA Cup game – a defeat to Norwich). This year it’s 38 league games, one League Cup game and five FA Cup games.
Title tussles
Chelsea could be nine points clear if they win their game in hand. What’s the biggest points margin overhauled at the top of the Premier League table at this stage of the season? (Gerry, Chelsea fan)
MARTIN SAYS: Chelsea’s lead over Man City at the top is currently six points, but as you say, that could be nine if they win their game in hand. History suggests the odds of winning the league are in their favour. When sides are level on games played, no side has ever caught up a six-point margin at the top in the last nine games of the season, never mind a nine-point gap.
We asked Opta to look at the biggest successful chase over the last nine games when teams had played the same number of matches. The record, in this case, belongs to Manchester United who, in 2002/03, overturned a five-point deficit on champions Arsenal with nine games to go. They embarked on a remarkable 18-game winning streak from December en route to winning the league by five points – their final league title for four years.
However, there have been other instances of mammoth overhauls in Premier League title races where the side that was top after 29 games was caught – but where teams below have had games in hand.
In 1997/98, Manchester United had an 11-point lead over Arsenal with just nine games to play. However, Arsenal had three games in hand and, buoyed after their 1-0 win at Old Trafford in March 1998, the Gunners overtook United into top spot with a 5-0 thrashing of Wimbledon in April. They never surrendered their lead and won the league - part one of their league and cup double - by a point despite losing their last two games of the season.
More recently, only last season Chelsea were nine points clear of fourth-placed Man City after 29 games, but City had three games in hand. Having beaten city rivals United 3-0, Manuel Pellegrini’s side were let off the hook by their stuttering title rivals as they recovered from defeat at Liverpool and a shock home draw with Sunderland by winning their last five games to claim their second Premier League crown.
Staying up
According to the stats, what is the ‘magic’ points tally needed to stay up? (Mark, Sunderland fan)
MARTIN SAYS: We’ll answer your question by looking at the lowest, highest and average number of points needed to beat the drop over the years.
Bryan Robson’s West Brom from 2004/05 hold the record for the fewest amount of points gained by a club in a 38-game season that have gone on to avoid relegation with just 34 points. With none of their relegation rivals winning on the final day of the season, Geoff Horsfield and Kieran Richardson sealed a 2-0 win over Portsmouth at the Hawthorns as Albion finished a point above 18th-placed Crystal Palace.
Interestingly in 2009/10, West Ham finished a place above the drop zone with 35 points but, with 18th-placed Burnley on 30 points, an all-time low total of 31 points would have been enough to secure the Hammers’ Premier League survival.
West Ham, however, do hold the unenviable record of being the side relegated with the most points in a 38-game season, with 42 in 2002/03. In arguably the tightest relegation scrap in the Premier League era, Glenn Roeder’s side were held to a 2-2 draw at Birmingham on the final day of the season - a result which left the door open for Bolton Wanderers to claw to safety as their 2-1 win over Middlesbrough saw them reach 44 points.
In a 42-game season, Crystal Palace were relegated with 49 points in 1992/93 – but obviously each team played four more matches that season.
Based on the amount of points needed in each of the 38-game seasons, an average of 36.5 points has been required to avoid relegation.
The last five seasons paint a different picture, though, as sides have typically required 37.4 points to dodge the drop.
First-half flurries
Aston Villa scored four goals in the first half against Sunderland. Is that a record? (Russel, Villa fan)
MARTIN SAYS: Aston Villa had scored just four goals away from all season before firing four in just 45 minutes against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light on Saturday. It was a result which eventually cost Gus Poyet his job at Sunderland.
However, Villa themselves have fired four in a first half once before in the Premier League which was against Wimbledon during the 1994/95. Brian Little’s side raced into another 4-1 lead at the break before adding three in the second-half to run out 7-1 winners.
However, Villa failed to match the Premier League record for goals scored by a team in a first half, which stands at five. That has occurred seven times in Premier League history.
Manchester City had a lot more success at Turf Moor back in 2010 than they did on Saturday evening, hitting five in the first-half of their 6-1 win over Burnley.
Arsenal also scored five in the first 45 minutes against Southampton back in 2003. They were 5-1 up at the break thanks to a 10-minute hat-trick from Jermaine Pennant on his Premier League debut.
The feat occurred twice in 2001 with Manchester United doing so in a 6-1 win against Arsenal at Old Trafford (I commentated on that one), while David O’Leary’s Leeds shocked rivals Bradford to lead 5-1 at the break and complete a 6-1 victory.
There were also two occasion during the 1997/98 season where Blackburn hit five past Sheffield Wednesday in a first half, only for Sheffield Wednesday to score five of their own inside 45 minutes of football against Bolton.
Everton also hit five first-half goals against Southampton in November 1996. Everton went on to win 7-1 that day..
Lots of scorers
Hi Martin, really enjoy your column – keep up the good work! I saw at the weekend that Mathieu Flamini’s strike against West Ham made him Arsenal’s 15th different goalscorer in the league this season. I was wondering if this was a record? (Benjamin, Palace fan)
MARTIN SAYS: Manchester United hold the record for the most goalscorers in a single season with 20 in their successful 2012/13 season, during which they claimed a landmark 20th league title. In Sir Alex Ferguson’s last ever game at Old Trafford, a 2-1 victory over Swansea, the record was clinched in fitting style as stalwart Rio Ferdinand volleyed home Robin van Persie’s corner three minutes from time.
Mark Hughes’ Manchester City side of 2008/09 sit joint-second on the list, with 19 different goalscorers finding the back of the net. Topping the charts for them that season were the likes of Brazilian record-signing Robinho, who scored 14 league goals, and surprisingly Stephen Ireland.
Tottenham Hotspur also had 19 different goalscorers in the 2009/10 season in which they qualified for the Champions League. Harry Redknapp’s Spurs were led by now-Sunderland striker Jermain Defoe, who scored 18 top-flight goals, and Peter Crouch who scored eight.
If Arsenal want to match the record, they will need the likes of Kieran Gibbs, Nacho Monreal (who sharpened his shooting boots in the FA Cup), Per Mertesacker, Mikel Arteta, Chuba Akpom and Francis Coquelin to hit the net.
Manchester United – 2012/12 – 20 goalscorers
Manchester City – 2008/09 – 19 goalscorers
Tottenham Hotspur – 2009/10 – 19 goalscorers
Blackburn Rovers – 2003/04 – 18 goalscorers
Blackburn Rovers – 1998/99 – 18 goalscorers
Arsenal – 2009/10 – 18 goalscorers
Hull City – 2009/10 – 18 goalscorers
Everton – 2011/12 – 18 goalscorers
Tottenham Hotspur – 2013/14 – 18 goalscorers
