Ten games in, it's time to check out the numbers!
A quick refresher on what we're doing here...
I keep track of the minutes played for each player, also noting the goals scored for and against while they are on the pitch.
I also keep track of the other teams in the league and specifically how many goals they score and concede, both home and away to non-Liverpool opponents.
Using this information, I calculate the normalized GF and GA statistics for each player. For example, a GF "score" of 0.00 means that for that player, you can expect the team to score exactly the average number of goals vs any opponent. A negative number means you can expect expect fewer goals than the average BPL team, and a positive number means more goals. Conversely, a negative GA number means the team conceded fewer goals with that player on the pitch, and of course a positive GA means the team can expect to concede more goals than the average BPL team when he's on the field. Finally I subtract the GA from the GF stat to give us a "score" for each player (labeled net_p90) in the tables below.
The value in this kind of measurement can only be realized if the player you are looking at plays less than all the minutes. E.g. players like Gerrard, Mignolet, and Lovren all have the same score because they've played every minute of every game.
For a more detailed explanation of the methodology (especially if you are having trouble sleeping), see the Player Analysis - Methodology post.
So, away we go - the ten game analysis - selection limited to players with 180 or more minutes.
| lastName | pos | net_gfp90 | net_gap90 | net_p90 | minutes | appearances | avg_points |
| Sturridge | ST | 1.33 | -0.08 | 1.42 | 270 | 3 | 2 |
| Manquillo | FB | 0.54 | -0.51 | 1.04 | 536 | 7 | 1.57 |
| Allen | MID | 1.01 | 0.02 | 0.99 | 313 | 6 | 1.67 |
| Can | MID | -0.45 | -1.44 | 0.98 | 186 | 4 | 1.75 |
| Balotelli | ST | 0.24 | -0.48 | 0.71 | 606 | 8 | 1.38 |
| Henderson | MID | 0.51 | -0.05 | 0.56 | 825 | 10 | 1.4 |
| Sterling | MID | 0.41 | -0.16 | 0.56 | 823 | 10 | 1.4 |
| Mignolet | GK | 0.37 | -0.15 | 0.52 | 900 | 10 | 1.4 |
| Gerrard | MID | 0.37 | -0.15 | 0.52 | 900 | 10 | 1.4 |
| Lovren | CB | 0.37 | -0.15 | 0.52 | 900 | 10 | 1.4 |
| Markovic | MID | 0.08 | -0.34 | 0.42 | 281 | 5 | 0.8 |
| Sakho | CB | 0.12 | -0.27 | 0.39 | 248 | 3 | 1 |
| Skrtel | CB | 0.25 | -0.07 | 0.32 | 630 | 7 | 1.57 |
| Moreno | FB | 0 | -0.25 | 0.25 | 720 | 8 | 1 |
| Johnson | FB | 0.5 | 0.43 | 0.07 | 386 | 5 | 1.8 |
| Coutinho | MID | 0.2 | 0.53 | -0.33 | 463 | 8 | 1.38 |
| Lallana | MID | -0.6 | -0.25 | -0.34 | 413 | 6 | 1.33 |
For comparison's sake, here's last year's data (min 720 minutes):
| lastName | pos | net_gfp90 | net_gap90 | net_p90 | minutes | appearances | avg_points |
| Cissokho | FB | 1.66 | -0.02 | 1.68 | 1090 | 15 | 2.2 |
| Flanagan | FB | 1.71 | 0.16 | 1.55 | 1891 | 23 | 2.35 |
| Sterling | MID | 1.48 | -0.05 | 1.53 | 2139 | 32 | 2.28 |
| Suarez | ST | 1.62 | 0.13 | 1.49 | 2961 | 33 | 2.24 |
| Henderson | MID | 1.33 | -0.16 | 1.49 | 3128 | 35 | 2.29 |
| Allen | MID | 1.41 | -0.02 | 1.43 | 1443 | 24 | 2.29 |
| Sturridge | ST | 1.41 | -0.01 | 1.43 | 2246 | 28 | 2.25 |
| Johnson | FB | 1.51 | 0.07 | 1.43 | 2516 | 29 | 2.38 |
| Skrtel | CB | 1.48 | 0.07 | 1.4 | 3221 | 36 | 2.17 |
| Mignolet | GK | 1.34 | 0 | 1.34 | 3420 | 38 | 2.21 |
| Coutinho | MID | 1.45 | 0.13 | 1.32 | 2236 | 32 | 2.22 |
| Sakho | CB | 1.38 | 0.12 | 1.25 | 1296 | 15 | 1.93 |
| Agger | CB | 1.04 | -0.15 | 1.19 | 1509 | 20 | 2.45 |
| Gerrard | MID | 1.33 | 0.13 | 1.19 | 2895 | 34 | 2.29 |
| Leiva | MID | 0.92 | -0.03 | 0.95 | 1871 | 27 | 2.04 |
| Toure | CB | 0.94 | -0.01 | 0.95 | 1443 | 20 | 2 |
Mignolet has played every minute in the past two seasons, so we can say he is a proxy for Liverpool.
Note that last season, Liverpool scored 1.34 more goals than expected while conceding exactly the league average.
This year, we've conceded less than the average, at -0.15. Normally that would be great news, but as you can see we are scoring a goal less per game vs the average than last season.
The Good
Our defense has improved!!
The Bad
We can't score without Sturridge!
How does your favorite player stack up? Anything else you'd like to see?
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