Direct Assists 2009-10

Okay, so the narrative review I usually wrap up the season with isn't going well. I think I've scrapped three drafts so far, no closer to what I'd like to publish. I blame the fact I eulogized this team all season long. So far, what I've written looks too much like previous posts, whether it's the 'What's Changed' post from December or the lamentation of Liverpool's away form from a month ago.

I do hope to have an encompassing season review up at some point. Probably Monday. I will still be blaming some combination of owners, tactics, squad depth, injuries, and away form. Obviously. So, in lieu, here's my total of direct assists from this season.



I've frequently complained about how assist statistics are kept. So I kept my own this season. Again, let me reiterate that these are direct assists: the pass/shot directly leading to the goal. Most of the time, it's cut and dry. But there are some qualifications; for example, I gave an assist for each penalty won and if a goal was scored from a rebound, I gave the assist to the player who took the first shot.

Unsurprisingly, Gerrard had the most by a decent margin, followed by Benayoun, Aquilani, and Insua. The latter two are somewhat surprising, especially since Aquilani only had one less Premiership assist than Gerrard despite playing in 15 fewer games. He didn't tally his first until the end of January and still finished joint-third. That stat alone is a big reason why I don't think he'll be sold this summer. Finally, out of 84 total goals, six were unassisted.

I didn't include it in the graphic for spatial concerns, but I have an Excel file with every goal and why I scored the assist as I scored it, in case you have any detailed questions.