Manchester City v Manchester United: relying on Tevez and Scholes

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  • English Premier League, Manchester City, Manchester United, Match Reports

Ahead of Monday night’s Manchester derby, we look at the impact of Carlos Tevez and Paul Scholes returning to their respective clubs as well as the battle of the top two Premier League keepers, David De Gea and Joe Hart.

TEVEZ IS INDISPENSABLE

Castrol EDGE performance data shows that Carlos Tevez has been involved in a goal every 55 minutes for Manchester City this season, a better ratio than any other player in the Premier league this season.

 

Among players who have had a hand in at least five of their side’s league goals this season, the Argentinean has proved the most efficient, finding the net four times and setting three other goals.

 

His partnership with Sergio Agüero has kept City’s hopes alive of a first Premier League crown: in the 304 minutes they have enjoyed together on the pitch, both players have scored a grand total of 11 goals (seven for Agüero and four for Tevez).

 

Top 5 mins per goal involvement in the PL this season

Minimum goal involvement of 5

 

 

TOP TWO KEEPERS GO HEAD TO HEAD IN MANCHESTER DERBY

 

Ahead of Monday night’s crucial Manchester derby, Castrol EDGE performance data shows that the best two goalkeepers in the Premier League this season will be playing a big role in the outcome.

 

Manchester City’s Joe Hart has been the standout goalkeeper in the Premier League this season, topping the goalkeeping standings for save percentage (77.5%), clean sheets (15) and clean sheet percentage (43%). Despite a poor start to the season, the improvement of Manchester United’s David De Gea has been impressive, so much so that he sits second only to Hart in saves-to-shots ratio (76.7%) and clean sheet percentage (42%).

 

Best Saves to Shots ratio in the Premier League – 2011/12

 

Player	Save percentage
Hart, Joe	77.5
De Gea, David	76.7
Vorm, Michel	74.3

 

 

 

 

 

 

Clean Sheets in the Premier League – 2011/12

 

Player	Clean Sheets	Games Played	% of clean sheets
Hart, Joe	15	35	43%
Krul, Tim	14	34	41%
Vorm, Michel	13	34	38%
Szczesny, Wojciech	13	35	37%
Friedel, Brad	12	34	35%
De Gea, David	11	26	42%
Mignolet, Simon	11	27	41%
Reina, José	11	32	34%
Cech, Petr	10	32	31%
Howard, Tim	10	34	29%

 

When directly comparing the two goalkeepers, Hart also holds a significant edge in minutes per goal conceded, with a miserly one goal conceded every 117 minutes compared to De Gea’s 84. However, De Gea’s shot-stopping ability has been one of the main reasons for Manchester United’s rise to the top of the table, with the Spaniard boasting a superior 3.5 saves per match compared to Hart’s 2.7.

 

Hart v De Gea in the Premier League – 2011/12

 

Player	Joe Hart	David De Gea
Team	Manchester City	Manchester United
Appearances	35	26
Minutes On Pitch	3150	2340
Goals Conceded	27	28
Minutes per Goal Conceded	117	84
Clean Sheets	15	11
Saves
Saves	93	92
Saves per game	2.7	3.5
Saves from Inside Box	48	43
Saves from Outside Box	45	49
Saves to Shots ratio	78%	77%
Catches
Punches	18	20
Catches	36	24
Dropped Catches	1	2
Catch Success Rate %	98%	96%
Kicks
Long Kicking Distribution	244	228
Kicking Success Rate %	45%	48%

 

 

VINTAGE SCHOLES IS SHOWING THE WAY FOR UNITED

 

Castrol EDGE performance data shows that Paul Scholes has played the most minutes in the Premier League this season without ever losing.

 

The Manchester Utd veteran has been on the pitch 933 minutes in the Premier League since making his return last January and has never ended on the losing side.

 

Incidentally, his first game back for the Red Devils was at Eastlands against Manchester City in an FA Cup 3^rd round tie on 8 January when he came on as a second-half sub – he only missed two of his 71 passes on that afternoon, proof that class is permanent.

 

Top 3 most minutes played without losing in the PL this season

   

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