It’s a whole week without domestic football, so we figured to catch up on some interesting numbers in the PSL currently. These are simple leaderboards ranking the best and worst teams across ten metrics (three categories). They do not take into account contextual variables like team playing styles, game states, etc. The end of this newsletter has details on where to get a deeper analysis. These are only league numbers. Enjoy.
1. Shooting
Most shots taken in the PSL this season:
199 - Kaizer Chiefs
170 - Orlando Pirates
157 - Marumo Gallants
154 - Sekhukhune
144 - AmaZulu
Most shots faced in the PSL this season:
173 - Magesi
157 - Chippa Utd
156 - Golden Arrows
152 - AmaZulu
144 - Cape Town City
The Top 5 teams for shot conversion this season (goals scored divided by shots attempted, excluding blocked shots):
24% - Sundowns
16% - Pirates
13% - Stellies
13% - Sekhukhune Utd
12% - AmaZulu
The Bottom 5 teams for shot conversion this season (goals scored divided by shots attempted, excluding blocked shots):
4% - Richards Bay
5% - SuperSport Utd
5% - Magesi
8% - CT City
9% - Marumo Gallants
The Top 5 teams for shooting accuracy in the league this season (excluding blocked shots):
52% - Stellenbosch
49% - Orlando Pirates
47% - Sundowns
44% - Sekhukhune
43% - Kaizer Chiefs
The Bottom 5 teams for shooting accuracy in the league this season (excluding blocked shots):
31% - Magesi
32% - Richards Bay
32% - TS Galaxy
36% - Royal AM
36% - Polokwane City
2. Box presence
The Top 5 teams for touches in the opposition box this season:
315 touches - Orlando Pirates (28.6 per game)
301 - Kaizer Chiefs (23.2)
293 - TS Galaxy (24.4)
255 - Marumo Gallants (19.6)
250 - Cape Town City (19.2)
The Bottom 5 teams for touches in the opposition box this season:
149 - Magesi
172 - Royal AM
175 - Polokwane City
198 - Chippa Utd
212 - Stellenbosch
3. “Pressing”
The Top 5 teams for possession won in the final third:
56 times - Richards Bay
46 - Kaizer Chiefs
45 - Cape Town City
45 - Polokwane City
44 - Supersport Utd
The Bottom 5 teams for possession won in the final third:
16 - Royal AM
19 - Magesi
21 - Golden Arrows
28 - Stellenbosch
32 - Chippa Utd
Think of them as conversation starters, not conversation enders. For more context and detailed analysis, you can follow the
. This week, they dig into detail on shot selection in the PSL.