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A key narrative of England's top flight season so far has been the reduction of scoring in open play and the way teams are netting more from set-plays as an alternative.

When we compare goal sources to the initial 11 matches last season, we note a drop of 39 scored in open play and 26 more from team set-pieces and penalties, resulting in 13 less overall.

If we look at overall statistics, efforts on goal teams are taking reveal an incredible 370 fewer in open-play than at this stage last time out.

Even with the big increase in set-piece goals, there have actually been just two more shots produced from these situations excluding penalties, showing the efficiency teams have been at devising strategies to score from dead-ball chances.

Scoring Rates Tell an Interesting Narrative

Over 300 goals scored in 110 matches to date calculates at nearly 2.75 goals per game, if maintained for all 38 games could be the lowest for half a decade, back in 2020-21 (2.69 average).

Yet merely 196 scores scored in open-play averages out 1.78 per fixture and is tracking to be the smallest for 16 years, from 16 years ago (1.76 per game).

That campaign is also the only Premier League campaign to experience scoring at a higher rate from non-penalty set-pieces than the current rate of 0.77 each match (0.79 average).

Which Sides Bear the Most Responsibility?

In terms of goals scored from open play, Wolves have experienced the largest decline, scoring just four in their first 11 fixtures, a reduction of 10 than this point last season.

Excluding Wolves, the Premier League's decline in open play goals is very much a trend among London clubs, with half of the capital's seven sides recording a minimum of five goals fewer from open play than the previous year.

In fairness, this is mainly because their scoring lots of goals at the start of the previous campaign as opposed to them having difficulty to find the net in open-play this season.

At the same time Manchester City have seen the largest rise, with almost every one of their 23 scores to date arriving in open-play.

Dead-Ball Dominance

Looking at the promoted teams with those that were relegated they took the place of. Sunderland the Black Cats have recorded an additional three goals in open play than the Saints did in matchday 11 on their way to relegation last season.

In terms of scoring from set-plays (excluding penalties), Arsenal and the Blues have recorded the biggest increase, with each team replacing the five fewer goals that they've scored in open-play with identical figures from set-pieces.

United have recorded twice as many scores from set-pieces as they achieved in matchday 11 last season before Ruben Amorim took over, while Sunderland once more prove more effective at converting than the club they replaced they replaced.

Manchester City seem unaware of the trend about increasing scoring from set-plays, because they've scored a reduction of three than the previous campaign, similar to Nottingham Forest, though this may result from the change in style they have tried to implement.

General Tendencies

Six clubs – the Gunners, Chelsea, Fulham, Newcastle, Spurs and West Ham – represent this term's primary examples by netting less scores from open play and more from set-pieces, while City stand as the only side to go against the grain so far by doing the contrary.

It remains to be seen to watch if teams persist to place such emphasis on set-pieces as matches continue or if they find again their all-round creativity and start converting more goals in open play also.