How do Sunderland compare to the rest of the Premier League for xG after beating Newcastle United 2-1?
Sunderland signed off for the international break in the perfect possible way, coming from behind to beat arch-rivals Newcastle United 2-1 in their own backyard.
Completing the Wear-Tyne double has left the Black Cats on 43 points with seven games to spare, reflecting the sensational job done by Regis Le Bris. Rather than battling relegation, Sunderland are now weighing up an outside push at European qualification.
That being said, Sunderland’s excellent campaign so far has undoubtedly been built on a solid defensive record, with the Black Cats conceding just 36 goals in 31 games - only Arsenal (22), Man City (28), Everton (35) and Crystal Palace (35) have conceded fewer. What’s more, Sunday’s win at St. James’ Park ended an eight-game streak for Sunderland across all competitions in which they’ve scored just one goal or less. So, how does their attacking record compare to the rest of the Premier League?
Sunderland xG compared to Premier League rivals
1 - Chelsea: 59.3 2 - Manchester City: 55.3 3 - Manchester United: 53.2 4 - Arsenal: 52.7 5 - Liverpool: 51.1 6 - AFC Bournemouth: 50.0 7 - Brentford: 49.0 8 - Newcastle United: 46.7 9 - Brighton & Hove Albion: 45.9 10 - Crystal Palace: 45.8 11 - Leeds United: 43.1 12 - Fulham: 40.3 13 - Aston Villa: 38.0 14 - Everton: 37.2 15 - West Ham United: 36.4 16 - Nottingham Forest: 35.8 17 - Tottenham Hotspur: 32.5 18 - Sunderland: 30.3 19 - Wolverhampton Wanderers: 28.0 20 - Burnley: 27.1
Sunderland are third-bottom when it comes to expected goals at just 30.3, with only the bottom two of Wolves (28.0) and Burnley (27.1) generating less. In fact, the Black Cats are a bit of an anomaly in this regard, sitting as the only team in the bottom six for xG who aren’t actually in the Premier League’s bottom six places in the actual table.
It’s quite worrying that Sunderland have overperformed their xG by 1.7 when it’s already so low, hinting that one or two results could have gone against them this season. But even then, the likes of Omar Alderete, Dan Ballard and Nordi Mukiele have formed a rock-solid defensive platform, allowing them to see out results under immense pressure.
Sunderland’s top Premier League goalscorers:
Brian Brobbey - 6
Chemsdine Talbi - 4
Wilson Isidor - 4
Enzo Le Fee - 4
Dan Ballard - 2
Sunderland host Tottenham Hotspur after the international break, and the North Londoners are just one place above them in the xG table on 32.5, but they’ve actually scored 40 and conceded a whopping 50 goals.
North East rivals Newcastle are eighth for xG on 46.7, but have conceded nine more goals than Sunderland. Meanwhile, there are few surprises at the top of the xG table, which is occupied by the likes of Chelsea (59.3), Manchester City (55.3), Manchester United (53.2) and Arsenal (52.7).
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