£122m v £33m net spend – but Everton are better than Manchester United in the final third

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Roberto Martinez’s men have scored more goals, have a better goals to shot ratio and have completed far more final-third-passes.

Manchester United’s summer spend was rather different to Everton’s.

Yes, the Toffees paid £28 million for summer signing Romelu Lukaku – but their total net spend was not much more than that: £33 million.

United, meanwhile, had a net spend of £122 million in the transfer window. The signing of Angel Di Maria alone was worth more than anything Everton’s net expenditure.

It is interesting, then, to note that, six games into the Premier League season, Roberto Martinez’s side have fared better in the final third than Louis van Gaal’s men.

As Opta stats show, Everton have scored more goals and had more than 50 more successful final-third passes. They have been out-crossed by Man United, as well as bettered in the air.

But, when it comes to chances created, dribbles won and possession percentages, United are only just in the lead – which hardly reflects the vast sums spent by each club this summer.

Intriguingly, Everton are also marginally more accurate in terms of their goals to shot ratio.

In United’s defence, they did spend a lot of money on all areas of the pitch, not just in attack, while Di Maria and Radamel Falcao have not been at Old Trafford for too long. But, considering the talent available to them, Everton have done well to match Van Gaal’s men in the final third, especially as they have not been in the best of form themselves.

No matter how bad United’s defending has been, that is one area in which they trump the Toffees, who have one of the worst defensive records so far this season. In attack, though, it is a very even contest – despite the millions more United have spent this summer.