Over the last four seasons, no side has made more errors leading to a goal in the Premier League than Spurs, the Gunners or the Reds.
For several years now, Arsenal, Tottenham & Liverpool have looked the ‘nearly men’ of the Premier League.
No one epitomised almost achieving ultimate success more than Liverpool during last term’s title race, while it’s been the same for Arsenal, who have nearly challenged – but not quite – season after season and Tottenham, who have been on the periphery of the top four for some time.
And a telling statistic may just reveal exactly why all three can’t quite get their foot over the line.
| 2011-12, 12-13, 13-14, 14-15 | Errors leading to a goal | Errors leading to a shot | Appearances |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arsenal | 39 | 74 | 124 |
| Liverpool | 36 | 71 | 124 |
| Tottenham | 35 | 45 | 124 |
| Norwich | 30 | 36 | 114 |
| Wigan | 27 | 23 | 76 |
Indeed, as Opta stats show, Arsenal have made more errors leading to a shot or goal than any other Premier League team over the last four campaigns – with Liverpool and Spurs following closely behind.
| 2011-12, 12-13, 13-14, 14-15 | Team | Errors leading to a goal | Errors leading to a shot | Appearances | Mins Played |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| José Reina | Liverpool | 8 | 3 | 65 | 5,843 |
| Wojciech Szczesny | Arsenal | 8 | 10 | 110 | 9,900 |
| Simon Mignolet | Liverpool | 5 | 4 | 48 | 4,320 |
| Thomas Vermaelen | Arsenal | 5 | 4 | 72 | 5,497 |
| Kyle Walker | Tottenham | 5 | 4 | 99 | 8,688 |
| Hugo Lloris | Tottenham | 4 | 3 | 74 | 6,660 |
| Martin Skrtel | Liverpool | 4 | 9 | 103 | 9,015 |
| Mathieu Flamini | Arsenal | 3 | 2 | 35 | 2,268 |
| José Enrique | Liverpool | 3 | 4 | 74 | 5,945 |
| Per Mertesacker | Arsenal | 3 | 4 | 99 | 8,818 |
Individually, Pepe Reina was the biggest culprit and has now been sold to Bayern Munich by the Reds. But Reina’s successor, Simon Mignolet, has almost committed as many in just two seasons at Anfield.
Another goalkeeper, Wojciech Szczesny, is the Gunners’ biggest offender, while Hugo Lloris also makes the top 10 for Tottenham.
Arsenal fans may be pleased to see Thomas Vermaelen’s name on the above list, as he too has since left the Premier League, although Kyle Walker, Martin Skrtel, Jose Enrique, Mathieu Flamini and Per Mertesacker – who complete the table – are all still at their respective clubs.
Now just imagine where these sides would be without all those individual errors…
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