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One of the biggest stories of the Premier League season so far has been the reduction of scoring in open-play scenarios and how sides are netting increasingly from set-plays instead.

Looking at goal sources to the initial 11 matches the prior season, we see a drop of 39 scored in open play and an increase of 26 from team set-pieces and penalties, resulting in 13 less overall.

Considering overall statistics, shot attempts clubs are making show a remarkable 370 fewer in open play than at this stage last season.

Even with the notable jump in dead-ball scores, we've actually seen only two additional shots created from these situations excluding penalties, demonstrating the proficiency clubs have been at discovering methods to score from set-pieces.

Goal Statistics Reveal a Story

301 total goals recorded in 110 games up to now calculates at 2.74 scores per game, which if it continued for the whole season would be the smallest for since 2020-21, from five seasons ago (2.69).

But just 196 goals scored in open-play translates to 1.78 per game and is heading to be the least for 16 seasons, since 2009-10 (1.76 average).

The 2009-10 season additionally represents the sole English top-flight campaign to witness goals scored more frequently from set-plays excluding penalties than this campaign's frequency of 0.77 per game (0.79 per game).

Which Teams Account for This Change?

When it comes to goals scored from open play, Wolverhampton Wanderers have seen by far the biggest drop, netting just four in 11 matches, a reduction of 10 than at this stage the previous campaign.

Excluding Wolves, the Premier League's decline in open-play scoring is very much a London phenomenon, with five of the London's seven clubs scoring at least five goals fewer from open-play than the previous year.

To be fair, this is primarily due to their scoring numerous scores at the start of last season as opposed to them having difficulty to find the net in open-play the current term.

At the same time Manchester City have experienced the biggest increase, with nearly all of their 23 goals so far coming in open play.

Set-Piece Success

Looking at the promoted teams with the teams that went down they replaced. Play-off winners the Black Cats have scored three more scores in open-play than Southampton did in their first 11 games en route to the drop last season.

When it comes to goals scored from set-pieces (aside from penalties), the Gunners and the Blues have recorded the most significant jump, with each team replacing the reduction of five scores that they've scored in open-play with identical figures from dead-ball situations.

Manchester United have netted two times more scores from set-plays as they managed in matchday 11 last season ahead of Ruben Amorim took over, while the Black Cats once more have been better at scoring than the club they replaced that went down.

Man City appear not to have received the trend about scoring more from set-plays, as they've netted three fewer than last season, like Forest, even if that might be down to the change in style they have tried to implement.

Overall Patterns

Six teams – Arsenal, the Blues, the Cottagers, Newcastle, Tottenham and West Ham – represent the current campaign's top trend-setters by scoring fewer scores from open-play and additional from set-pieces, while Manchester City represent the unique club to buck the trend up to now by achieving the complete reverse.

It remains to be seen to watch if clubs carry on to rely so heavily on set-pieces as matches continue or if they find again their all-round creativity and commence converting increased totals in open-play as well.