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A major talking point of England's top flight season so far concerns the reduction of scoring in open-play scenarios and the way clubs have been scoring more from set-plays instead.

Looking at how goals have been scored to matchday 11 the prior season, there have been 39 fewer goals in open-play and 26 more from set-plays and spot-kicks, giving us 13 fewer overall.

If we look at the bigger picture, shot attempts teams are taking reveal a staggering drop of 370 in open-play than at this stage last season.

Even with the significant rise in set-play finishes, there have actually been a mere two extra shots generated from these situations outside of spot-kicks, indicating the efficiency clubs are at discovering methods to net from dead-ball chances.

Scoring Rates Reveal a Story

301 total goals recorded in the first 110 fixtures to date works out at nearly 2.75 goals per fixture, if maintained for all 38 games could be the least for since 2020-21, back in 2020-21 (2.69 per game).

However, only 196 goals coming in open play averages out 1.78 each match and is heading to be the smallest for 16 seasons, back in 2009-10 (1.76 per game).

The 2009-10 season is also the sole English top-flight season to experience scoring more frequently from non-penalty set-pieces than this season's rate of 0.77 per fixture (0.79 per game).

Which Teams Bear the Most Responsibility?

In terms of goals scored from open-play, Wolverhampton Wanderers have seen the largest decrease, netting a mere four in 11 games, 10 less than at this stage the previous campaign.

Apart from Wolves, the Premier League's drop in goals from open play is very much a London thing, with five out of the city's seven teams scoring five or more fewer goals from open play than last season.

Honestly, this is primarily due to them scoring many goals at the beginning of last season instead of them really struggling to convert in open-play this season.

At the same time Man City have seen the most significant jump, with almost every one of their 23 goals so far coming in open play.

Dead-Ball Dominance

We've compared newly promoted sides with those that were relegated they took the place of. Sunderland Sunderland have scored three extra scores in open-play than the Saints managed in their first 11 games en route to relegation the previous campaign.

Regarding scoring from dead-ball situations (aside from penalties), the Gunners and Chelsea have recorded the largest rise, with both sides compensating for the reduction of five goals that they've scored in open-play with an equal amount from dead-ball situations.

Manchester United have scored twice as many goals from set-pieces as they achieved in the first 11 matches the previous campaign prior to their coach took over, while Sunderland again have been more successful at scoring than the club they replaced they replaced.

Manchester City seem unaware of the trend about scoring more from set-pieces, because they've scored three fewer than the previous campaign, like Forest, although this may result from the altered approach they've attempted to adopt.

League-Wide Trends

Six clubs – Arsenal, Chelsea, Fulham, Newcastle, Tottenham and West Ham – represent this term's top trend-setters by recording fewer goals from open-play and increased from set-pieces, while Man City stand as the unique club to go against the grain up to now by doing the exact opposite.

It remains to be seen to see if teams carry on to place such emphasis on set-pieces as the season goes on or if they rediscover their all-round creativity and begin scoring increased totals in open play too.