New England Soccer Today

By the Numbers: #LAvNE

Photo credit: Kari Heistad/capturedimages.biz

Photo credit: Kari Heistad/capturedimages.biz

(These stats include MLS playoff games)

With the New England Revolution set to take on the Los Angeles Galaxy in the MLS Cup Final on Sunday, New England Soccer Today took a look at how the two clubs stack up in some key statistical areas.

Scoring Breakdown: The LA Galaxy were one of the best teams from open play this season, scoring a league-high 59 goals during the run of play, eight more than the New York Red Bulls who finished second with 51.  In addition, open play accounted for 78.7 percent of the Galaxy’s total goals, which was the third-highest rate in the MLS.  The Galaxy also scored 10 goals from set pieces, while netting four penalty kicks, a goal on the counter attack, and an own goal.

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Meanwhile, the Revolution had a much more diverse portfolio of goals, as they were middle of the pack with 35 goals scored from open play, while scoring 7 on the counter attack, tied for first in the MLS, and 14 from set pieces, which was fourth in the MLS.

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Breaking Into The Box: The Galaxy and Revolution are among the MLS leaders with percentage of shots from inside the 6 yard box, with 7 percent of their shots coming from within this area, which ranks fourth and fifth, respectively.  The Galaxy have had greater success shooting from within the 18-yard box, with 52 percent of their shots coming within this area, whereas the Revolution rank second to last in the MLS with 44 percent of their shots coming from the same zone.  The Revolution rely on longer range shots, with 49 percent of their shots from outside the box, which ranks third in the MLS.  The LA Galaxy shoot 41 percent from outside the box, the fourth lowest percentage in the league.

The LA Galaxy also keep opponents out of their 6 yard box, with only 4 percent of their opponent’s shots coming from within the box, which is the third-lowest rate in the MLS.  The Revolution are in the middle of the pack of the MLS (7th in the league) with 5 percent of opponent’s shots from within six yards.  The Revolution do allow shots from within the 18 yard box, as 55 percent of opponents shots are within 18 yards, which is third highest in the MLS.  Galaxy opponents fire 51 percent of their shots from within the 18 yard box, which is 7th in the league.  Galaxy opponents shot 45 percent of their total shots from outside the box, while the Revolution opponents shot 40 percent from long distance, fourth lowest in the league.

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Straight Down The Middle: The Galaxy are third in the MLS with 66% of their attempts coming from the middle of the field, while the Revolution typically attack from the sides, with only 59% of their shots coming from the middle, ranking 17th in the MLS.  The Revolution are accustomed to attacks down the center of the field, with 66 percent of their shots faced coming from the center of the field, which 4rd highest percentage in the MLS.  The Galaxy are also on the lower end of the spectrum, with only 58 percent of their opponents shots coming from the center of the field, third lowest in the MLS.

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Applying the Pressure: New England leads the MLS in time spent in the oppositions third (32%).  The LA Galaxy are towards the top of the league in time spent in the opposing third (28 percent, 6th best) as well as spending only 24 percent of the time in their own zone (24 percent, 3rd best in the MLS).  The Revolution are not far behind, with 25± percent of the action being spent in their zone, fourth best in the MLS.

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Pass Completion and Possession: The Galaxy are second in the MLS in passing accuracy, completing 81.9 percent of their passes.  The Revolution have completed 75.7 percent, ranking last in the league.  The Galaxy also are among the top of the MLS in possession with 53.5 percent over the course of the season, while the Revolution rank 14th in the MLS with 48.4 percent.

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Hitting The Mark: The Galaxy and Revolution rank first and second, respectively, in the MLS in shots on target per game.  The Galaxy also are first in total shots per game with 15.7, which is 1.7 shots higher than the Crew in second place.  The Revolution rank sixth in shots per game with 13.7.  The Revolution’s attack isn’t as strong on the road, with 12.1 shots per game and 4.3 shots on target per game on the road, which ranks 7th in both categories.  The LA Galaxy rank second in shots per home game with 16.9 and shots on target game with 6.3.

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Scouting Report: The Galaxy’s primary formation is a 4-4-2, starting with this formation in 24 of their 38 matches and compiling a 13-6-5 record in those matches.  They have also utilized a 4-1-2-1-2 at times, in 12 of the 38 matches, but this formation has had weaker results with a 5-4-3 record.  The Galaxy also have three of the recently named Best XI with defender Omar Gonzalez, midfielder Landon Donovan, and forward Robbie Keane being named to the team.  Team leaders are presented in the table below.

Goals Robbie Keane – 19 Gyasi Zardes – 16 Landon Donovan – 13
Assists Landon Donovan – 15 Robbie Keane – 12 Marcelo Sarvas – 7
Shots Robbie Keane – 122 Gyasi Zardes -74 Landon Donovan – 66
Shots on Goal Robbie Keane – 54 Gyasi Zardes – 30 Landon Donovan – 24
Rating* Omar Gonzalez – 7.60 Robbie Keane – 7.58 Landon Donovan – 7.55

*According to whoscored.com; Minimum 20 Games

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