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A key narrative of England's top flight this campaign concerns the decline of scoring in open play and the way sides are finding goals increasingly from set-pieces as an alternative.

When we compare goal sources to the first 11 games last season, there have been a drop of 39 scored in open play and 26 more from team set-pieces and spot-kicks, resulting in 13 less overall.

If we look at the broader view, shot attempts sides are producing show a remarkable drop of 370 in open play than at this stage last time out.

Regardless of the big increase in set-play finishes, there have actually been just two more attempts created from them excluding penalties, demonstrating the efficiency sides are at discovering methods to score from dead-ball situations.

Goal Averages Tell an Interesting Narrative

301 total goals notched in 110 games so far averages out at 2.74 goals each match, if this persists for the entire campaign could be the least for five years, since 2020-21 (2.69).

Yet merely 196 scores coming in open-play translates to 1.78 each match and is heading to be the least for since 2009-10, back in 2009-10 (1.76).

2009-10 is also the sole English top-flight campaign to see scoring more frequently from dead-balls without spot-kicks than this season's rate of 0.77 per fixture (0.79 per game).

Which Sides Account for This Change?

In terms of scoring from open-play, Wolverhampton Wanderers have recorded the most significant decline, netting a mere four in 11 games, 10 less than this point the previous campaign.

Excluding Wolverhampton, the EPL's decline in open play goals is largely a trend among London clubs, with five of the London's seven clubs recording a minimum of five less scores from open play than the previous year.

To be fair, this is mainly because their scoring numerous goals at the early stages of last season instead of their genuine struggle to convert in open play this campaign.

Conversely Man City have seen the most significant jump, with all but one of their 23 goals to date coming in open play.

Dead-Ball Dominance

Looking at clubs that came up with those that were relegated they replaced. Play-off winners the Black Cats have scored an additional three scores in open play than Southampton managed in their first 11 games on their way to demotion the previous campaign.

When it comes to goals scored from set-plays (excluding spot-kicks), the Gunners and the Blues have experienced the most significant jump, with both sides replacing the five fewer scores that they've produced in open-play with an equal amount from set-pieces.

Man United have netted double the number scores from set-pieces as they achieved in the first 11 matches the previous campaign before Ruben Amorim assumed control, while the Black Cats additionally have been better at scoring than the fellow red-and-whites they superseded.

City don't seem to have got the message about increasing scoring from set-pieces, as they've recorded three less than last season, similar to Forest, even if this could be because of the altered approach they're working to install.

Overall Patterns

Six teams – the Gunners, Chelsea, Fulham, Newcastle, Tottenham and West Ham – have been this term's leading trend-followers by scoring fewer goals from open play and increased from set-pieces, while Manchester City are the unique club to go against the grain to date by achieving the exact opposite.

It will be interesting to see if teams persist to rely so heavily on set-pieces as the season goes on or if they find again their general attacking flair and begin converting increased totals in open play as well.