Премьер лигийн багууд энэ улирлын эхний гурван тоглолтод торгуулийн талбайн гаднаас 186 удаа цохилт гүйцэтгэсэн нь 2019-20 оны улирлаас хойших хамгийн өндөр үзүүлэлт боллоо.
2026-27 оны Премьер лигийн эхний гурван тойрогт багууд нийт цохилтынхоо 35 хувийг торгуулийн талбайн гаднаас гүйцэтгэсэн нь сүүлийн долоон жилийн дээд амжилт юм. Манчестер Юнайтед 28 цохилтоор энэ үзүүлэлтийг тэргүүлж байгаа бол Ливерпүүл 21 цохилтоор удаалж байна. Ливерпүүлийн хувьд энэ нь өмнөх улирлуудтай харьцуулахад тактикийн бага зэргийн өөрчлөлт болж байгаа бөгөөд Коди Гакпо Ньюкасл Юнайтедын эсрэг алсын зайнаас гоол оруулсан юм.
Өнгөрсөн улиралд Астон Вилла торгуулийн талбайн гаднаас 15 гоол оруулж, хүлээгдэж буй гоолын (xG) үзүүлэлтээсээ илүү гарсан амжилт үзүүлсэн бол энэ улиралд хараахан хаалга руу чиглэсэн цохилт гүйцэтгэж амжаагүй байна. Брентфорд багийн хувьд торгуулийн талбайн гаднаас хийх цохилтын чанараар лигтээ дээгүүрт ордог ч алсын зайн цохилтын хувьд харьцангуй үр дүнгүй тоглолт үзүүлж байгаа юм. Челсигийн хувьд Коул Палмер, Морган Рожерс нар алсын зайнаас гоол оруулж, багаа амжилттай эхлүүлэхэд хувь нэмэр орууллаа.
Халл Сити багийн хувьд шилжилтийн үедээ алсын зайнаас цохилт хийх тактикийг түлхүү ашиглаж байгаа бөгөөд Лиам Милларын Ковентри Ситигийн эсрэг оруулсан гоол нь үүний тод жишээ болов. Эвертон багийн тоглогч Эйнсли Мэйтланд-Найлс Манчестер Юнайтедын эсрэг тоглолтод торгуулийн талбайн гаднаас гоол оруулсан нь тус багийн хувьд онцлох үйл явдал боллоо. Тоттенхэм Хотспур сүүлийн жилүүдэд алсын зайн цохилтын тоогоо бууруулж байсан бол энэ улиралд эхний гурван тоглолтод 15 удаа цохилт гүйцэтгэж, тактикийн өөрчлөлт хийх хандлагатай байна.
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This Premier League season, The Athletic will explore various dimensions within the expected goals (xG) metric to unearth some key trends. This week it’s prowess from long distance shots.
Across the first three matchdays of the 2026-27 season, teams have attempted 186 shots from outside the box (excluding blocks). That is the most in the first three games of a season since 2019-20 (192). It accounts for 35 per cent of total shots taken, also the highest since the 37 per cent recorded seven years ago.
That prompted us to look at the xG generated and goals scored from shots outside the box by the 20 current Premier League teams since the start of last season.
Some teams have made a habit out of scoring screamers; others, not so much. Confirmation bias means some fans can place a bit too much importance on long-range shooting, but in an era of compact defending and low blocks, it will always have its place.
No team across the last eight completed Premier League seasons overperformed their xG with shots from outside the box more than Aston Villa did in 2025-26. Unai Emery’s side scored 15 times from just 6.8xG, with John McGinn scoring four and Emiliano Buendia and Morgan Rogers scoring three each.
Villa attempted 177 shots from range last season, only the fifth most, but got 33 per cent of those on target, the best mark in the league. Impressively, only two of the goals came from Opta-defined clear shots (that is with one or zero players in the way).
All of that suggests that Villa hit upon the perfect blend of creating quality long-range shots plus some luck. That is yet to come to pass this season, with Villa attempting 11 shots from distance but getting none of them on target. Regression can be mean.
Bournemouth led the league last season for shots from distance with 211 and xG from these shots with 8.6, scoring 12 times.
Three of those goals, including Antoine Semenyo’s equaliser in their season opener at Liverpool and Tyler Adams’ goal from near the halfway line against Sunderland, came from fast breaks. Bournemouth were quick to shoot from distance in transition against retreating defences, with no team recording more than their 15 shots from outside the box from fast breaks.
Early in Marco Rose’s reign, Bournemouth have attempted 13 shots from distance in three matches. They are yet to score but have directed two of those shots on target.
Andoni Iraola, meanwhile, has transplanted that strategy to Liverpool, whose 21 shots from outside the box in three matches is second in the league behind Manchester United. Cody Gakpo has scored their only goal from these shots in their opener against Newcastle United.
Long-range strikes have accounted for 42 per cent of Liverpool’s total shots. While it is early, it does mark a slight departure from Arne Slot’s time in charge, with only 30 per cent of Liverpool’s shots coming from range across 2023-24 and 2024-25.
They still scored 13 times from outside the box in that stretch, with Dominik Szoboszlai recording five of those strikes. Szoboszlai, who led the league with 52 shots from distance in 2025-26, has already attempted eight in three matches this season, getting three of those on target.
Cody Gakpo scores the first long-range Premier League goal of the Iraola era at Liverpool (George Wood/Getty Images)
Manchester United were level with Villa for shots on target from outside the box in 2025-26 with 58, scoring nine goals. They led the league in first-time shots from outside the box with 65, the fifth most by a team in a single season since 2018-19.
Cutbacks and layoffs to the edge of the area were a useful avenue for United under Michael Carrick due to the fluidity of their front line and the late runs forward from midfield. They were often well positioned to pick up clearances to the edge of the area from crosses too.
They lead the league again after three games in 2026-27 for shots from outside the box (28) and are level with Brighton & Hove Albion for the number of first-time efforts (nine).
Brighton’s nine first-time attempts have come from just 17 total shots from outside the box. Seven of those nine came against a Leeds United team that protected the box, especially after going 1-0 up, which meant Brighton could either shoot or lay off clearances to the edge of the area.
They had one such attempt each against Chelsea and 10-man Villa and, in both instances, the opposition had seven players inside the box, leaving Brighton players open at the edge of the area.
The Premier League’s other data darlings Brentford have performed the worst with shots from outside the box since last season, scoring twice from 6.0xG.
Their preference for taking the best-quality shots is well known. Brentford teams from 2024-25 and 2025-26 rank first and second respectively for percentage of shots from inside the box since 2018-19. Since the start of last season, no team has recorded a higher xG per long-range shot than their 0.05.
Brentford’s accuracy from these shots, though, has been an issue, with only Manchester City managing lower than their 18 per cent. They rank bottom for first-time shots among the 17 permanent teams with 33, hinting that they often give teams time to reorganise before they shoot.
Bryan Mbeumo lobs the tallest goalkeeper in Premier League history (Dan Mullan/Getty Images)
Under Pep Guardiola, Manchester City often looked to pass their way into the box to score but they had some of the world’s best long-range shooters too. Their 2019-20 team scored 17 times from distance, the most by a team since 2018-19. Three City teams (2018-19, 2021-22 and 2023-24) are joint second with 2025-26 Aston Villa with 15 goals.
Last season was the first time they slipped under the double-digit mark in this time with only eight goals from distance. Their top scorer from outside the box in Kevin De Bruyne (19 long-range goals since 2018-19) moved to Napoli, while the next two, Phil Foden and Rodri (10 goals each) played limited minutes.
After three games in 2025-26, they sit bottom for shots from outside the box with eight.
Even with the benefit of having played seven more matches than the others, Coventry City’s record from long range since last season is excellent. They have struck 19 goals from 233 shots.
Victor Torp scored five of those, including two free kicks. Across the last five completed Championship seasons, only Joel Piroe in 2021-22 (seven), Manuel Benson in 2022-23 and Morgan Whittaker in 2023-24 (six each) have scored more in a single season.
Torp has played only 47 minutes in the Premier League this season, with Coventry yet to score. They have attempted 11 shots from distance across three games but are yet to get one on target, with five blocked shots, but lead in xG per long-range shot with 0.05.
Ipswich Town also scored plenty of goals from outside the box in the Championship with 14. Jaden Philogene scored four of those, often cutting in from the left to attempt curlers from the edge of the box as seen below.
Philogene has missed the start of 2026-27 with an ankle injury and Julio Enciso has taken over the mantle, attempting eight of Ipswich’s 15 long-range shots. Four of those — all against Liverpool —called the goalkeeper into action.
Hull City ranked second from bottom last season for accuracy when shooting from distance at just 18 per cent, significantly lower than Coventry’s 29 per cent and Ipswich’s 25 per cent. They scored just twice from range despite generating 6.4xG, often shooting into crowds as 41 per cent of their long-distance shots were blocked.
After three Premier League matchdays, only Manchester United and Liverpool (seven each) have taken more shots from range on target than their five (from 14 attempts), while only one of those has been blocked. Their only goal of those — Liam Millar’s strike after running in behind — was the match-winner against Coventry.
CLUTCH ⚡️ pic.twitter.com/3O9GvTcqaU
— Hull City (@HullCity) August 29, 2026
Millar’s strike is part of a theme, with Hull generating a league-high three long-range shots from fast breaks in three matches. In addition to sitting deep and hitting teams on the counter, Sergej Jakirovic’s side have also taken their shots early in transition to catch teams off guard.
Chelsea are one of only two teams (alongside Manchester United) to score more than one goal from outside the box in the first three matches. Morgan Rogers’ strike against Arsenal followed Cole Palmer’s excellent curled effort for their fourth goal against Brighton the previous weekend.
Cole Palmer scores from distance for Chelsea against Brighton last month (Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)
That matches their season tally from 2020-21 and puts them on track to beat the seven goals they scored from 172 attempts in 2025-26. Since Palmer joined the club in 2023, Chelsea have scored 28 goals from outside the box and the 24-year-old has netted eight of those.
Across London, Tottenham Hotspur have steadily seen their attempts from range drop since 2018-19 when they scored 14 times from 211 shots. The attempts in the next four seasons read 177, 172, 166 and 165 before a brief rise to 184 in 2023-24 under Ange Postecoglou. It has fallen again in the last two seasons, with 138 and 135 respectively, resulting in 10 total goals.
That could change this season. Spurs have attempted 15 long-range shots in three matches so far, while Roberto De Zerbi’s Brighton recorded 358 shots from distance in his 70 Premier League matches in charge. His 2024-25 Marseille team also finished second in Ligue 1 for goals from outside the box with 10, one behind Saint-Etienne.
Nottingham Forest, meanwhile, have seen the opposite trend. After attempting 130 shots from outside the box in 2022-23, they attempted 162 in 2023-24, 169 in 2024-25 and 180 last season. The 2024-25 season proved their best in terms of conversion with 11 goals from distance, which fell to six last season.
Callum Hudson-Odoi has been one of the league’s best shooters from distance across his time at Forest, scoring eight long-range goals from just 37 shots. As seen from his shotmap below, many of these efforts are clustered around the left half-space from where he can curl shots with his right foot.
Arsenal recorded the third most shots from distance in a game this season, attempting 10 on opening night against Coventry City. Only two of those were on target, while three were blocked.
In 2025-26, Arsenal were incredibly efficient from range, scoring 10 goals from 148 such attempts, including five from 40 first-time shots. It was strategic too as they positioned multiple players in the box to create opportunities for cutbacks to the edge of the box like below for Martin Zubimendi against Sunderland.
A different strategy has taken prominence early in 2026-27. As my colleague Jon Mackenzie explained here, they have used diagonal passes from the wing and off-the-ball runs to drag defenders away to create chances in the box.
Fulham were also efficient in 2025-26, scoring 10 times from 158 shots. They loved a late stunner too — Harrison Reed’s 96th-minute strike against Liverpool was the standout, while Harry Wilson scored a 92nd-minute winner against Brighton. Kevin curled in the equaliser in the 91st minute against Manchester United too, but they went on to lose the game.
In 2026-27, Fulham are averaging 62 per cent possession after three games (fourth highest), with a great emphasis on funnelling the ball wide and creating crossing opportunities. Should that continue, their volume of long shots may drop in comparison to previous seasons.
Sunderland’s return to the top flight saw them struggle from distance, scoring just four times from 115 attempts.
Chemsdine Talbi netted two of those from nine shots, letting fly from the left against Burnley and scoring a deflected effort away at Liverpool. But Enzo Le Fee and Trai Hume combined for 34 long-distance strikes without scoring.
In 2026-27, Nilson Angulo scored with a free kick in their opener against Ipswich, but nine of their other 12 shots from range have been blocked.
Everton and Crystal Palace have similarly struggled to convert their efforts from range since last August.
Palace have underperformed their overall xG by over 17 (41 goals from 58.4xG). That has extended to their shots from distance too. They have attempted 119 such shots but just 24 of those have been on target and they scored just three times. Forty-six per cent of those chances were blocked, the highest rate in the league.
Everton, meanwhile, have attempted 131 shots and scored just three goals. Merlin Rohl and Jack Grealish scored two from 11 combined efforts, while James Garner scored the other while attempting 30 more shots from range.
Idrissa Gueye, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Iliman Ndiaye and Dwight McNeil attempted 56 long range shots between them and got 14 combined on target but failed to score.
Ainsley Maitland-Niles made it look all too easy at the weekend against Manchester United, scoring one of the most memorable goals at the Hill Dickinson Stadium with his first shot for the club.
Ainsley Maitland-Niles’ first shot for Everton goes very well (Carl Recine/Getty Images)
Newcastle Unitedstepped up their attempts from outside the box last season.
From 2022 to 2025, their share of efforts from distance stood at just under 28 per cent. That rose to 35 per cent in 2025-26, as they attempted 176 shots and scored eight times. Sandro Tonali led the team with 27 attempts, while Bruno Guimaraes scored three of those eight goals from just 22 shots.
Matthias Jaissle’s Newcastle have been defensively solid in their first three matches and have feasted on transition opportunities. Joe Willock’s goal against Liverpool, their only strike from distance in 2026-27, came on the break.
Leeds United’s Anton Stach scored four goals from outside the box in 2025-26, the third best tally in a season (two players with six and six players with five) since 2018-19. He has already scored their only goal from long range this season too with a free kick against Forest.
Finally, Ethan Ampadu could be due a long-range stunner, having attempted 15 shots from distance and generated 1.1xG (average of 0.07xG per shot) since the start of last season.
