Want to be the pub/terrace know-all this weekend? Want to know who has committed the most fouls? Or who has covered the most ground? Which player has provided the most crosses and who last week put in a true captain’s performance? Then read on and let the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index arm you with enough stats to impress everyone but girly girls.
Saturday 9th February
Tottenham v Newcastle 12:45
Yet another superb strike from Gareth Bale secured all three points for Tottenham as they defeated 10-man West Brom 0-1 at The Hawthorns.
Despite his much vaunted attacking abilities, Moussa Dembele will be looking to sharpen up some of his defensive work this weekend. Out of all of Tottenham’s active players, he has committed the most fouls with 33 and only has a 56% tackle success rate from 71 attempted challenges.
Arriving under the weight of much expectation has clearly not fazed Lewis Holtby. Despite playing only 82 minutes in the league, he has already completed 38 passes in the opponent’s half at a rate of one every 2.2 minutes.
Jan Vertonghen remains the crucial lynchpin in AVB’s defence this season. The Dutch international has quickly settled into life in the Premier League, racking up 73 interceptions, 12 blocks and a 79% tackle success rate.
Gareth Bale’s 11 goals have seen him capture the attention of some of Europe’s top clubs. The gifted winger has been utilizing his talent of controlling the ball at extreme pace to great effect this season, going on 29 dribbles, placing him 5th on the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index.
Two goals from new signing Moussa Sissoko capped a memorable home debut as Newcastle came from behind to beat Chelsea 3-2 in a pulsating encounter at St James’ Park.
Moussa Sissoko made an immediate impact of the Premier League last weekend following his arrival from Toulouse. According to the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index, he’s had 7 attempts on goal, at a rate of one every 25.1 minutes.
Retaining the services of Fabricio Coloccini must be on the top of the priority list for Alan Pardew and his team this summer. His captain has been one of his side’s outstanding performers this season, establishing an 81% tackle success rate to go along with his 98 interceptions.
Following Demba Ba’s departure to Chelsea, Papiss Cisse will be expected to step up to the goalscoring-plate for the remainder of the season. However his accuracy in front of goal has not been as precise as last season, with only 53.3% of his 45 attempts on goal being on target.
Mike Williamson’s reading of the game this season has been excellent, the defender intercepting the ball 101 times, the highest in the Newcastle squad.
Chelsea v Wigan 15:00
Goals from Frank Lampard and Juan Mata were not enough to overcome a spirited Newcastle as the reigning European Champions returned to London empty-handed after a 3-2 defeat.
Frank Lampard has been in superb form in recent weeks and looks to have turned Chelsea around on offering him a new contract. He’s scored 10 goals this season, building on his shot accuracy rate of 66.6%.
Gary Cahill has been of increasing important to the Chelsea defence since his arrival in Stamford Bridge, with the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index providing some interesting figures on his performances. He leads the Chelsea squad for both interceptions and blocks, with 73 and 20 respectively.
Midfield dynamo Juan Mata has been in sparkling form this season, generating numerous chances for his team mates to latch onto. He is second in the league for assists provided with 12, and leads the Chelsea squad for crosses with 64.
Look for midfield enforcer Ramires to tidy up his defensive work in the run in towards the end of the season. He’s conceded more fouls than anyone else in the Chelsea squad (37) and only has a 52% tackles success rate from 73 attempted challenges.
A goal at the death from Shaun Maloney garnered a valuable point for struggling Wigan as they drew 2-2 with Southampton last weekend.
Scottish midfielder Shaun Maloney will likely be one of the biggest creative threats to what is a very physical Chelsea defence this weekend. He leads the Wigan squad for assists with 6 this season.
Expect Arouna Kone to also pick up the ball and test the Chelsea defence this weekend, he’s 26 dribbles is the most of any Wigan player this season.
Competitive midfielder James McCarthy is always looking to get involved in Wigan’s play. According to the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index he’s the central figure in their passing movements, having completed a squad-high 612 passes in the opponent’s half this season.
Despite a couple of errors in recent weeks, Oman international Ali Al Habsi is usually a model of consistency between the Wigan sticks and is ranked 6th on the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index for saves with 129.
Anthony Pilkington: Class and he tracks back
Norwich v Fulham 15:00
Norwich battled to a 0-0 draw over QPR last weekend, the Canaries often thwarted by the inspired brilliance of Julio Cesar in the Rangers goal. The result moves Norwich further away from the relegation dogfight, but Chris Hughton will still be seeking more ruthlessness in front of goal this weekend.
According to the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index, last weekend Robert Snodgrass became the first player in the Premier League to deliver 100 crosses, beating Leighton Baines by a single delivery.
The importance of the midfielder to Chris Hughton’s side cannot be understated at the moment, given his position as the central creative figure in the team. He leads the statistics for this Norwich side on numerous fronts, including completing more passes in the opponent’s half than any of his teammates (538), as well as more dribbles (17) and more assists (4).
Sebastian Bassong remains crucial to the Norwich cause this season, flourishing after an extended run of first team football. He has made 63 clearances this season, second only to Leighton Baines, according to the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index.
The class of Anthony Pilkington moving forward has been on display numerous times this season, but he is proving himself equally adept when it comes to tracking back. His 73% tackle success rate from 26 attempts is the highest in the Norwich squad.
Fulham fell to a 0-1 defeat at home to Manchester United last weekend, a late winner depriving Martin Jol’s side of what would have been a deserved point. Despite being exposed at times by the league leaders, Fulham had their fair share of chances and will be looking to pounce on any opportunity in front of goal against Norwich.
Dimitar Berbatov inevitably grabs most of the headlines for Fulham, but his strike partner Bryan Ruiz has been putting in some more than noteworthy performance recently too. He is currently joint seventh on the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index for assists with 7.
Sascha Reither has also been rightly garnering the plaudits this season, the unheralded signing adapting quickly to life in the Premier League. The German defender has delivered more crosses than any other member of the Fulham squad with 45 and has the second highest tackle success rate amongst right-backs in the Premier League with 76.6.%.
The defensive pairing of Brede Hangeland and Aaron Hughes have been combining for some impressive performance this season. Betwenn the two of them they have amassed an incredible 242 interceptions and 36 blocks.
Despite only playing minutes this season, Iranian striker Ashkan Dejagah is already proving himself suited to life in the Premier League. He’s either completed a pass in the opponent’s half or dribbled with the ball once every 4.2 minutes according to the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index.
Stoke v Reading 15:00
Stoke came within 12 minutes of holding Arsenal in their last Premier League game, before losing out to a deflected Lukas Podolski free kick.
Up until then Asmir Begovic had been in inspired form to keep the Gunners out. He’s made 130 saves this season, the 5th highest so far this season in the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index.
Stoke defender Ryan Shawcross has been putting his body on the line for Stoke this season, and has made the third highest number of blocks in the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index with 27. Team mate Robert Huth is in 7th with 22.
Stoke winger Matt Etherington has been unlucky with his deliveries this season, he has delivered 29 crosses without being credited an assist, more than any other midfielder in the league.
Reading have made a habit of late winners recently, taking ten points from twelve in their last four games. Their latest victims were Sunderland, with Jimmy Kebe scoring both goals in a 2-1 win.
Kebe’s goals took his tally for the season to five, from an efficient 16 efforts at goal with 68.8% on target. In fact, of the players in the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index to have scored five or more goals Kebe has needed the fewest shots per goal, with an average of 3.2 shots for each goal scored.
Team mate Adam le Fondre has the fifth best shots per goal ratio in the league, averaging 3.6 shots for each of his ten goals this season, making them one of the most dangerous strike pairings in the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index.In the middle of the park, Jem Karacan is one of only 16 players in the league to have attempted 25 or more tackles while still maintaining a 75% + success rate for tackles won. Karacan has won 77.1% of the 35 he has attempted.
Ian Harte is undergoing a renaissance of form this season at Reading, and delivered 9 crosses against Sunderland. Only Leighton Baines delivered more in the last round of games with 10.
New signing Hope Akpan has made the step up to Premier League football seamlessly for Reading, contributing 3 assists in 3 appearances at an average of one every 48 minutes 20 seconds.
John ‘stalwart’ O’Shea
Sunderland v Arsenal 15:00
A Craig Gardner penalty was not enough for Sunderland as they fell to a 2-1 defeat away to Reading last weekend.
Defender John O’Shea continues to display the composure in defence that made him a stalwart at Old Trafford for so many years. He leads the Sunderland squad for interceptions with 146 and clearances with 49.
Steven Fletcher continues to look like one of the bargains of the season for Martin O’Neill’s side. The Scottish international has been displaying excellent accuracy in front of goal, racking up a 74.3% rate from 39 shots and bagging himself 10 goals along the way.
Look for Adam Johnson and Stephane Sessegnon to once again pair up to provide Sunderland’s greatest creative threat from the flanks. Between the two they have so far provided 89 crosses and 10 assists.
Despite only playing 639 minutes this season, when he’s on the field it’s clear that Lee Cattermole has lost none of his competitive bite. He’s picked up 13 fouls and attempted 31 challenges.
Lukas Podolski’s deflected second-half free-kick earned Arsenal all three point against a typically dogged Stoke at The Emirates last Saturday.
All signs point towards Olivier Giroud finding the back of the net with greater consistency if he improves his accuracy in front of goal. He’s bagged a solid 9 goals so far in his first season of English football, yet only has a 50.8% accuracy rate from 63 attempts on goal.
Bacary Sagna has been struggling a little at times since his return from injury, yet he still displaying his trademark class in the tackle for the Gunners. He has the best tackle success rate in the Arsenal squad this season with 71.7% from 46 challenges.
After an outstanding performance against Brazil in midweek, Jack Wilshere’s form shows no sign of waning any time soon. The gifted midfielder has successfully completed a pass in the opponent’s half once every 2.6 minutes he has been on the field this season.
With fellow young English tyro Theo Walcott signing a new long-term contract, the future looks bright for this home-grown Arsenal side. The forward has been clinical in front of goal this season, bagging a goal once every 3.3 attempts he has on goal.
Swansea v QPR 15:00
Swansea fell to a 1-0 defeat against West Ham in their last Premier League outing, despite a string of fine saves from reserve ‘keeper Gerhard Tremmel who was once again called upon to cover for the injured Michel Vorm.
Tremmel has now made 73 saves this season, one every 14 minutes 57 seconds and the fifth highest overall in the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index.
Swansea have been applauded for their attacking play this season, but full back Ben Davies has been quietly impressive in defence, and is one of only five players in the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index to have attempted fifty or more tackles while maintaining a success rate above 75%. He’s attempted 54 tackles, winning 75.9%.
Angel Rangel, meanwhile, has been unlucky with his deliveries this season. Rangel has delivered 33 crosses without being credited an assist, more than any other player.
Sung Yeung Ki has a minutes per pass completed rating amongst the very best in the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index. He averages a completed pass in the opposition half every 3 minutes 12 seconds, a rate on a par with the likes of Steven Gerrard and Eden Hazard.
QPR got their second 0-0 draw in a row against Norwich in their last game, although they will perhaps be less pleased with this result than the previous game against Manchester City.
Adel Taarabt saw his penalty saved in that game and came close with several other efforts. Taarabt has had 73 shots at goal this season, with 58.9% of those on target and 4 goals to his name at a rate of 18.25 shots per goal.
Taarabt is ranked second in the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index for dribbles completed with 37, 4 behind Liverpool’s Luis Suarez.
New signing Christopher Samba also saw an effort cleared off the line to come close to a dream debut. Samba got forward a lot from the back, completing 11 passes in the opposition half during the game.
Goalkeeper Julio Cesar made his 100th save of the season against Norwich, taking his tally to 101 saves at a rate of one every 15 minutes 46 seconds.
Saints welcome back Lallana this weekend.
Southampton v Man City 17:30
Southampton will have been left disappointed with a 2-2 draw after they fought back against Wigan only to be denied all three points by a last minute goal by the Lactics.
At 17 years old, defender Luke Shaw continues to draw admiring glances from many of the Premier League’s top sides. Southampton fans will be hoping he returns quickly from his ligament injury sustained on international duty with the England U21s so he can build on his excellent total of 84 interceptions and 10 clearances.
Fellow young defender Nathaniel Clyne has also been showcasing his talent to potential suitors this season in both defence and attack. He’s established an excellent 72.6% tackle success rate from 73 attempts, as well as providing 3 assists according to the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index.
Adam Lallana is in line to make his return from injury this weekend, a welcome boost for the Southampton midfield. Despite the layoff, he’s still provided more crosses than anyone in the squad with 37 and is joint second for assists with 4.
Midfield workhorse Morgan Schneiderlin has certainly been stepping up to the plate in Lallana’s absence, racking up a squad-high 483 passes in the opponent’s half this season.
In a game marked by two special goals, one in particular from an outrageous angle by Sergio Aguero, Man City battled to a 2-2 draw with Liverpool at The Etihad last Sunday.
Man City will be extremely pleased to have the services of Yaya Toure at their disposal once again following his return from the African Cup of Nations. Despite his absence he still leads the City squad for completed passes in the opponents’s half with 916, one every 2.2 minutes he’s been on the pitch, placing him 2nd on the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index.
Not far behind him in this regard is David Silva, who looks to be nearing something like his best form. Roberto Mancini will be looking to see him use his touch and vision to add to his total of 9 assists and 821 completed passes in the opponent’s half.
Gael Clichy has quietly established himself as one of City’s most solid defenders this season, compiling a squad-high tackle success rate of 77.1% from 48 challenges.
Much of the attacking responsibility will as usual fall on the shoulder of Carlos Tevez this weekend, something he has been welcoming with open arms this season. The Argentinian has registered either a goal or an assist once every 79.7 minutes according to the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index.
Sunday 10th February 2013
Aston Villa v West Ham 13:30
Aston Villa featured in a thrilling 3-3 draw against Everton in their last league outing. Two goals from Christian Benteke and one from Gabriel Agbonlahor earnt them a point that will please Villa fans, although the nature of the result coming from being 3-1 up will perhaps cause concern.
Benteke’s goals took him to 10 goals in the Premier League this season, one of 16 players to have hit the milestone. Of those 16 strikers, Benteke has taken the 6th highest number of shots to register his ten goals with 74. However, he also has the third best shots on target percentage of those 16 players with 71.6% of his shots on target. Only Juan Mata and Steven Fletcher have been more accurate in their pursuit of hitting double figures this season.
Ron Vlaar made 7 clearances in the game against Everton, and will be key to cutting off West Ham’s supply to Andy Carroll in this game. There have only been 6 players this season who have made more than 7 clearances in a game, and it’s Vlaar who still leads the ranking for most in one match with 11 against United in November.Vlaar’s stats get even more impressive when you consider only 16 players this season have attempted more than 25 tackles and still maintained a 75% + success rate. Vlaar is one of those with 37 tackles attempted and 75.7% of them successful. He’s joined in that 16 by team mate Barry Bannan, who has attempted 28 tackles winning 78.6%.
Bradley Guzan made ten saves in the game against Everton, the second highest in the last round of Premier League games, and the fourth time this season he has had to make ten or more saves in a match. Guzan also hold the record for most saves in a match this season, with 16 against Liverpool in December, and most in the league overall this season with 146.
Andy Carroll celebrated a first start for West Ham since November by scoring the winner in a 1-0 win over Swansea in their last game.
That was just Carroll’s second goal for West Ham this season, having had 29 shots at goal with 55.2% on target, a rate 14.5 shots per goal.
West Ham’s James Tomkins is one of 16 players in the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index to have attempted 25 or more tackles while maintaining a 75% success rate. He has attempted 34 tackles this season, winning 76.5% of them.
Sam Allardyce called retaining Mohammed Diame ‘vital’ as the transfer window closed last week. The midfielder has attempted more tackles (70) than any other West Ham player this season, barring his midfield team mate Mark Noble who has attempted 90 tackles.
Noble was credited his third assist of the season after delivering his 46th cross this term for Andy Carroll to head in against against Swansea. Noble has also completed 482 passes in the opposition half this season, more than any of his West Ham team mates.
Tom Cleverley: Developing nicely
Manchester Utd v Everton 16:00
A late winner from Wayne Rooney sealed a 1-0 win for Manchester Utd in a back-and-forth encounter at Craven Cottage on Saturday.
Following an excellent outing in the midweek friendly against Brazil, Wayne Rooney looks to be entering his trademark purple patch. He’s established a very solid 69.9% shot accuracy rate from 56 attempts, also compiling 7 assists. Sir Alex Ferguson will be looking for him to continue this trend of creating opportunities for others when he tracks back to receive the ball in deeper positions this weekend.
However, the undoubted star of the show for Utd this season has been Robin van Persie, the prodigiously talented Dutchman registering a goal or an assist once every 80.8 minutes this season according to the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index.
Michael Carrick continues to display the kind of form which prompted Man Utd to offer him a new contract. He’s been superb in both defence and attack this season, leading the squad for passes completed in the opponent’s half with 755 and also racking up 50 interceptions.
Tom Cleverley has been developing nicely into the kind of player who can take over this role eventually, maturing his all-round game under Sir Alex Ferguson. He’s achieved the best tackle success rate in the Man Utd squad according to the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index, with 74.2% from 31 atttempts.
A dominant second-half display from Marouane Fellaini, including two goals, brought Everton back from the brink to earn a 3-3 draw in a thrilling encounter with Aston Villa.
Marouane Fellaini will be key in shutting down Utd’s dominance of possession this Sunday, a challenge he’ll likely throw himself into with the same intensity as he has done all season. His 80 attempted tackles is the highest in the Toffees’ squad.
Expect to see Leighton Baines testing Man Utd’s left-side defence this weekend as well, the red-hot fullback ranking second on the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index for crosses provided with 99.
Having returned to Merseyside, Steven Pienaar has once again become a central figure in David Moyes’ side. He’s completed 701 passes in the opponent’s half, more than any other Everton player this season.
Phil Jagielka continues to sustain his remarkable form this season, a run that will see him pushing hard for a starting berth in the next England side. His tackle success rate of 87.7% from 57 challenges is the best of any central defender in the premier League to have made over 25 challenges.
Monday 11th February
Liverpool v West Brom 20:00
A stunning strike from Steven Gerrard was not enough to earn his Liverpool side a victory as they were held to a 2-2 draw at Manchester City last weekend.
Steven Gerrard will be looking to build on his striking performance against Brazil this weekend, hopefully adding to his huge total of 755 passes completed in the opponent’s half this season.
Brendan Rogers will no doubt have been delighted with the recent form of Daniel Agger in the Reds defence. The Danish international has made a positive defensive contribution once every 12.2 minutes this season according to the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index.
Jose Enrique is another who looks to be hitting top defensive form, establishing the best tackle success rate in the Liverpool squad at 81% from 32 challenges.
Expect to see Luis Suarez at the centre of Liverpool’s play this weekend as usual. The Uruguayan striker has either dribbled with the ball or completed a pass in the opponent’s half once every 3.9 minutes this season.
West Brom fell victim to the talents of Gareth Bale last weekend as they went down 1-0 at home to Tottenham.
Rumours are circulating that Romelu Lukaku might be extending his loan stay at West Brom beyond the end of this season and it’s not difficult to see why the Baggies would be keen to secure his services for a little while longer. He’s been on target in front of goal 37 times this season, bagging 9 goals along the way.
Gareth McAuley continues to be one of Steve Clarke’s defensive rocks this season, racking up 236 positive defensive contributions this season at a rate of one every 9.9 minutes.
Much of the Baggies’ best play moving forward often centres on Chris Brunt, the midfielder leading the West Brom squad for crosses with 43, collecting 5 assists along the way.
Despite throwing himself into his defensive duties with enthusiasm, Youssouf Mulumbu would do well to curb some of his slightly more rash attempts at winning the ball. According to the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index he leads the West Brom squad for attempted tackles with 78, yet has only won 47.4% of them.
