How the League Table Tells Lies

After 4 games this season, Hull were in 8th place in the Premier League.

If all the teams were ranked at that time according to the volume and quality of chances created versus those conceded (xGD), then Hull were 17th best.

Hull did an Aston Villa and handed care-taker boss Mike Phelan the job full time.

Funnily enough, Hull now sit in 18th place and according to those underlying xGD numbers are now 19th best in the league.

xG numbers are normally a better predictor of how the league table eventually takes shape than the table itself.

Hull’s Problem Visualised

Shots for:

Shots against:

Putting Data in Context

Hull pass the ball around the back like an elite team. The numbers surpass even those of Manchester City, Manchester United, Arsenal, Tottenham, Chelsea and Liverpool.

Michael Caley tweeted these out while I was in the middle of my research:

Question. Which Premier League team has attempted the most total passes from their back zone (back 40% of the pitch)? — Michael Caley (@MC_of_A) December 2, 2016

@DanKennett it’s 1) Hull 2) Liverpool. For comically different reasons ofc. — Michael Caley (@MC_of_A) December 2, 2016

Hull pass the ball out from the back like a relegation team. The team cannot get the ball out of its own half and keep possession.

Below is the passing network for the most likely line-up this season. The thickness of the arrows denote the volume of passing between the player combinations. Each player’s circle is sized according to the number of passes he makes and each is positioned at the average place on the pitch he makes a pass:

This is the flattest team shape seen in two and a half years of making these passing networks.

It took roughly 12 minutes of watching footage to find the perfect example of Hull’s problem here:

HCT in One Clip from Paul Riley on Vimeo.

Playing football this way, Hull not only create the least amount of chances in the league in open play, they create the worst quality chances in the league in open play too.

Hull put the ball in the box less than any other team. Put simply, this is a recipe for relegation.

Give us a few possible solutions from the data then



Tom Huddlestone advances the ball into forward areas more frequently than any other central midfielder at the club. He was doing so whilst playing against good quality opposition in the early games but has since fallen out of favour. Huddlestone has to play to rectify Hull’s problem with advancing the ball. Jake Livermore is next best at this and he also provides some legs to protext Huddlestone.

Robert Snodgrass is the most creative player at the club. He was the most creative player at his previous club Norwich too. As a left footed player playing on the right, he is more likely to cut inside and take poor quality shots from distance than to find good angles to get the ball into the box. A central role behind the striker gets him closer to goal for better shots (like those around the penalty spot in the graphic below) and gives him better angles to play the ball into the box. He is also more likely to retain the ball in the central areas of the final third than anyone else in the squad.

Mohammed Elmohamady was a key creative element of Hull’s promotion charge last year (and the previous year in the Premier League). His move to right back has really curtailed the amount of chances he creates for the team. He should be pushed forward into the area currently occupied by Snodgrass. Splitting that partnership up may also alleviate that heavy trend towards right sided build-up seen in the passing network earlier, which opponents will by now be well aware of.

I don’t wanna make this post too long, so that’s your lot. Follow me on twitter @footballfactman