Liverpool and Manchester City’s clash at Anfield was the standout match this weekend and the two teams produced a pulsating spectacle that keeps the title race on a knife edge.
The draw means that just one point separates the top three teams with 10 games each left to play. For anyone brave enough to predict who will lift the Premier League trophy in May: good luck. Sunday’s epic contest proved that this battle is going to go down to the wire.
But rather than rehash the headline narratives, let’s delve a little deeper into some data-driven hits from this weekend’s football.
Arsenal use their heads… again
Arsenal’s 2-1 victory over Brentford ended in a similar manner to their earlier fixture in November: a late winner scored by Kai Havertz. More specifically, a late headed winner from Havertz.
That makes it 16 headed goals by Arsenal in the Premier League this season, which is already more than they have managed in any other campaign under Mikel Arteta.
Twenty-three per cent of their total goals have been scored via headers this season, which is bettered only by Luton Town and Nottingham Forest — who both have a slightly different style of play to Arsenal, to put it kindly.
Particularly against low-block sides such as Brentford (twice), Luton (away) and Crystal Palace (home), Arsenal have been able to combine great delivery with impeccable timing to unlock the game against stubborn opposition.
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It is little coincidence that Arteta’s side are leaping highest at the crucial moment. With recent signings Declan Rice, Kai Havertz and Jakub Kiwior all 6ft 2in (188cm) or taller, Arteta has brought greater steel and robustness to his team and that has been crucial in both boxes — in a similar fashion to title-rivals Manchester City, whose starting XI often resembles an episode of Land of the Giants.
For all of the many strings to Arsenal’s bow this season, their aerial dominance — in open play and set-piece situations — has been a crucial part of their title push.
Which team has the biggest injury crisis?
There is never a good time to lose a player to injury, but there is often a sharper focus on a side’s absentees at the business end of the season.
We have grown accustomed to managers lamenting their lack of options in post-match interviews, but who has the most right to be moaning?
Using data from Premier Injuries, we can assess the situation. As things stand, Rob Edwards is justified in referring to Luton’s issues as an “injury crisis”, with his side’s 11 the most of any side.
At the other end of the table, Liverpool’s 10 absentees is compounded by the fact their title rivals Manchester City and Arsenal don’t have many injuries at all.
No manager will be happy unless they have a full complement of players to choose from, but using the data above we can identify who is more justified in their complaints ahead of the final weeks of the season.
Tottenham win the ‘high-line derby’
Even without John McGinn’s dismissal after 65 minutes, Tottenham Hotspur’s tactical approach came out on top against Unai Emery’s Aston Villa in the race for fourth spot and a guaranteed place in next season’s Champions League.
Both sides have played with very high defensive lines this season, with no Premier League team provoking more offsides than Villa (131) or Tottenham (93) — and only Manchester City averaging a higher defensive line than the pair in 2023-24.
Sunday’s clash was a window into the positives and negatives of a high defensive line. From Spurs’ perspective, they were able to squeeze the pitch when Villa had the ball — which allowed them to swarm around their midfielders to win the ball high up. This was crucial in their second goal (scored by Brennan Johnson).
Only Manchester City have won the ball back in the attacking third more often than Tottenham this season, with their high defensive line being crucial in closing the gaps to successfully regain possession.
In contrast, the negatives of Villa’s high line were exposed with Spurs using the flanks to stretch the width of the pitch and force Emery’s defenders to retreat towards their own six-yard box — only to exploit the space vacated between the defence and midfield, with two well-worked cutbacks for Spurs’ third and fourth goals.
Kane cannot stop scoring
Elsewhere in Europe, one particular individual got the bulk of the headlines in Germany. You won’t be surprised to find out who it was.
Death, taxes, and Harry Kane scoring for Bayern Munich. The 30-year-old is simply inevitable when he has the ball close to goal, and his hat-trick against Mainz on Saturday saw him set two new records.
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Kane is now the first player to score four hat-tricks in his debut season in the Bundesliga and also the first player to score two goals or more in eight different games in his first season in the German top flight.
Unsurprisingly, no player across Europe’s top five leagues is close to his 30-goal haul (27 non-penalty goals) in the league this campaign.
If Kane scores once more in the Bundesliga this season, then 2023-24 will be the highest-scoring league campaign of his career.
The Englishman also scored 30 Premier League goals in 2017-18 and 2022-23. Surprisingly, Kane didn’t win the Golden Boot in either of those seasons — losing out to Mohamed Salah and Erling Haaland respectively.
Players to score 4+ hat-tricks in a single season (top 5 leagues) more than once this century:
𝐇𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐊𝐚𝐧𝐞 – 4️⃣ in 2016-17, 4️⃣ (so far) in 2023-24
Lionel Messi – 4️⃣ in 2017-18, 5️⃣ in 2014-15, 8️⃣ in 2011-12
Cristiano Ronaldo – 8️⃣ in 2014-15, 7️⃣ in 2011-12, 6️⃣ in 2010-11 pic.twitter.com/h3MPBa0935— Opta Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) March 9, 2024
It would take something special for Kane to miss out on the Torjagerkanone (Bundesliga top-scorer award) this season, and although Bayern look set to miss out on the title to Bayer Leverkusen, Kane will be pleased with his individual contribution.
Will he break Robert Lewandowski’s Bundesliga single-season goalscoring record of 41 goals from 2020-21? Given his rate of 1.2 league goals per 90 minutes, it looks like he will come very close.
GO DEEPER
Can Harry Kane break Robert Lewandowski's Bundesliga goalscoring record this season?
Not a bad first season in Bavaria, from an individual perspective.
(Top photo: Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)