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One of the biggest stories of England's top flight season so far concerns the decline of goals scored in open-play scenarios and how sides are finding goals increasingly from set-pieces instead.

When we compare how goals have been scored to matchday 11 last season, we note 39 fewer scored in open play and an increase of 26 from set-plays and spot-kicks, leading to 13 less altogether.

Considering the broader view, shot attempts sides are producing have seen a staggering drop of 370 in open play than at this stage last season.

Regardless of the notable jump in dead-ball scores, we've actually seen a mere two extra shots created from them excluding spot-kicks, indicating how effective clubs are at devising strategies to score from set-pieces.

Scoring Rates Show the Tale

Over 300 goals recorded in 110 games to date works out at nearly 2.75 goals each match, which if it continued for the entire campaign might be the least for since 2020-21, since 2020-21 (2.69 average).

However, only 196 scores scored in open-play averages out 1.78 each match and is heading to be the lowest for 16 seasons, from 16 years ago (1.76).

2009-10 also marks the only Premier League campaign to experience goals scored at a higher rate from set-plays excluding penalties than the current rate of 0.77 each match (0.79 average).

What Clubs Account for This Change?

Regarding scoring from open-play, Wolves have recorded the most significant decline, netting just four in 11 games, a reduction of 10 than at this stage last season.

Outside of Wolverhampton, the Premier League's fall in open-play scoring is predominantly a London thing, with five of the capital's seven sides scoring at least five fewer goals from open-play than last season.

To be fair, that's largely down to them scoring numerous scores at the early stages of last season instead of them having difficulty to convert in open-play the current term.

Conversely Manchester City have seen the biggest increase, with almost every one of their 23 scores to date arriving in open play.

Dead-Ball Dominance

Comparing the promoted teams with the teams that went down that they superseded. Play-off winners the Black Cats have netted three more scores in open-play than the Saints managed in their opening 11 matches on their way to the drop last season.

In terms of scoring from dead-ball situations (excluding penalties), the Gunners and Chelsea have experienced the largest rise, with each team compensating for the reduction of five scores that they've netted in open play with the same number from dead-ball chances.

Manchester United have netted two times more scores from set-pieces as they achieved in matchday 11 the previous campaign prior to the manager took over, while the Black Cats again are better at netting than the club they replaced they replaced.

Manchester City don't seem to have got the memo about scoring more from set-plays, as they've recorded three fewer than the previous campaign, like Forest, though that might be down to the change in style they've attempted to adopt.

Overall Patterns

Six sides – the Gunners, the Blues, the Cottagers, Newcastle, Spurs and the Hammers – have been the current campaign's primary examples by netting less scores from open play and increased from set-pieces, while Man City stand as the unique club to defy the pattern to date by performing the exact opposite.

It will be fascinating to observe if teams persist to depend greatly on set-pieces as the campaign progresses or if they rediscover their overall inventiveness and commence netting additional scores in open-play also.