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One of the biggest stories of England's top flight this campaign has been the reduction of goals scored in open play and the way teams are finding goals more from set-plays instead.

When we compare how goals have been scored to the first 11 games last season, we note a drop of 39 scored in open play and 26 more from team set-pieces and penalties, leading to 13 fewer altogether.

Considering the broader view, efforts on goal clubs are making have seen an incredible drop of 370 in open play than at this stage previously.

And despite the significant rise in set-piece goals, there have actually been a mere two extra shots created from them excluding spot-kicks, indicating the efficiency clubs are at discovering methods to net from set-pieces.

Goal Statistics Reveal an Interesting Narrative

Over 300 goals notched in the first 110 fixtures to date averages out at nearly 2.75 goals per game, if this persists for the entire campaign would be the least for since 2020-21, from five seasons ago (2.69 average).

However, only 196 scores scored in open-play translates to 1.78 per game and is tracking to be the lowest for 16 seasons, from 16 years ago (1.76).

That campaign additionally represents the unique EPL season to experience goals scored more often from set-plays excluding penalties than the current rate of 0.77 per game (0.79 per game).

What Clubs Account for This Change?

When it comes to scoring from open play, Wolverhampton Wanderers have recorded by far the biggest decline, netting just four in their first 11 fixtures, 10 fewer than this point the previous campaign.

Outside of Wolves, England's top division's fall in goals from open play is largely a trend among London clubs, with five of the London's seven clubs recording at least five less scores from open-play than the prior season.

Honestly, this is primarily due to them scoring lots of goals at the beginning of last season as opposed to them really struggling to score in open-play this campaign.

Conversely Man City have seen the most significant jump, with almost every one of their 23 scores so far coming in open play.

Dead-Ball Dominance

Comparing the promoted teams with the teams that went down they replaced. Play-off champions Sunderland have recorded three extra scores in open play than the Saints achieved in their opening 11 matches en route to relegation the previous campaign.

In terms of goals scored from dead-ball situations (excluding spot-kicks), the Gunners and the Blues have seen the biggest increase, with both sides compensating for the five fewer goals that they've netted in open-play with an equal amount from set-pieces.

United have scored double the number scores from set-plays as they managed in the first 11 matches the previous campaign prior to Ruben Amorim took charge, while the Black Cats additionally prove more successful at scoring than the fellow red-and-whites they replaced.

Manchester City appear not to have received the memo about netting additional goals from set-plays, as they've scored three fewer than the previous campaign, as have the Reds, although that might be down to the change in style they're working to install.

League-Wide Trends

Six clubs – Arsenal, the Blues, the Cottagers, Newcastle, Spurs and West Ham – represent the current campaign's top trend-setters by recording fewer goals from open play and additional from set-plays, while City are the unique club to defy the pattern so far by achieving the contrary.

It will be interesting to observe if sides persist to rely so heavily on set-pieces as the campaign progresses or if they rediscover their overall inventiveness and begin netting increased totals in open play also.