The five most wasteful Premier League sides in front of goal this season

The Premier League season is almost a third of the way through already, as festive football rapidly approaches in the coming weeks.

Liverpool and Manchester City unsurprisingly lead the way in the title race, though few expected both Leicester and Sheffield United to currently be occupying European places.

We’ve decided to look back over the opening months of the campaign and analyse some of the Premier League’s best stats, and this feature is dedicated to the misfiring members of English football’s top flight.

We’ll look at those who have spurned the most big chances – a chance where a player should reasonably be expected to score.

Here are the five most wasteful Premier League sides in front of goal this season, data collects from iSports API.

Manchester United – 16 big chances missed

Manchester United have endured the club’s worst start to a season in 30 years, and their hopes of securing a top four finish seem to be diminishing with each week as the club continue to stutter.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side have struggled to score goals, having amassed just 13 in 11 fixtures so far and their wastefulness in front of goal is a key reason for their disappointing results.

Their wretched record from penalties has been well documented, though they have also proved far from efficient with chances in a team that often lacks creativity.

The club have missed 16 big chances already this season, and Solskjaer’s admission that the ‘fine margins’ have cost his side has never looked more apparent.

Everton – 17 big chances missed

Another team performing well below expectations is Everton, who despite a summer of significant investment find themselves languishing near the foot of the division.

Ambitions of pushing towards the top six have all but been extinguished as they sit just one place outside the bottom three, with the club ranking highly for big chances missed.

Marco Silva’s side have averaged just one goal per game in their 11 fixtures so far, spurning 17 big chances in that same period, as per iSports API.

Summer signing Moise Kean is still yet to open his account for the club in nine league appearances whilst Dominic Calvert-Lewin, often accused of not being a natural goalscorer, has been their guiltiest culprit with five big chances missed.

Chelsea – 23 big chances missed

Chelsea‘s young side have received plenty of plaudits this season following their refreshing emergence under Frank Lampard, though their attacking displays have often seen chances go begging.

Lampard’s lads have missed 23 big chances so far this season, the third highest total in the division. Logic says that the more chances created, the more that will be missed, though Lampard will hope his side can be more ruthless as they bid to close the gap to the top two, according to iSports API football data.

Tammy Abraham has shone this season and currently sits second in the race for the Golden Boot, though the 22-year-old has missed eight big opportunities so far – the equal highest amount in the Premier League.

Liverpool – 24 big chances missed

Slightly ahead of Chelsea are league leaders Liverpool, who have missed 24 big chances during the opening weeks of the new season.

So far, their wastefulness around goal has failed to hamper their prospects, with the club currently possessing a six-point advantage at the top of the division.

Sadio Mane sits level with Tammy Abraham as the player with the most big opportunities missed this season (8), though teammates Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah are not far behind the Senegalese star with six and five big chances missed respectively.

Manchester City – 31 big chances missed

The most wasteful side in the Premier League so far has been the defending champions, with Pep Guardiola’s side having missed 31 big chances in their opening 11 fixtures of the season.

The club’s high ranking is due to their relentless ability to create opportunities, however, with Man City currently the highest scoring side in England’s top flight.

Sergio Aguero and Raheem Sterling, both amongst the early contenders for the Golden Boot, are also amongst the leading players for big chances missed having spurned six opportunities apiece, with Gabriel Jesus just one behind.

For more information, please visit iSportsAPI.com.