Premier League 2019/20: Newcastle's corner success

Some teams score on the break, others after patient spells of possession; Newcastle, however, have a different gameplan. Despite their goal struggles this season being joint-lowest scorers in the division on par with Norwich Newcastle have been surprisingly successful at scoring from corners this season.

In this tactical analysis, we look into the statistics and a key routine implemented by the Magpies to analyse what makes them so successful when the ball goes behind.

The Numbers

Following my previous analysis of Man Uniteds corners, I came across other interesting statistics which led me to write this article. Below is a goal typology chart showing each teams number of goals scored by way of a corner. The goal frequencies are measured against the league average of 6.5 goals. The order of the teams is dictated by the number of corners taken by each team, starting with the highest at the top.

The initial reading of the chart looks promising for Newcastle who sit comfortably above the average with an impressive nine goals from corners this season. This is just one goal behind table-toppers Liverpool (10) and several above rivals Crystal Palace and Southampton, who both fall below the league average.

From the chart above we can also see that these nine goals scored by Steve Bruces men make up 36% of Newcastles goal total for the season. This is partly down to the lacklustre finishing shown by Newcastle forwards this year, but also indicates a reliance and focus on maximising scoring opportunities when corner kicks are won.

That leads onto the next observa