Athletic study shows West Brom play most long balls in Premier League under Big Sam
Sam Allardyce mounted a staunch defence of his West Brom tactics this week but a statistical study by The Athletic indicates his detractors may have a point.
Allardyce hit back at critics over his style of football earlier in the week, labelling his tag as long-ball merchant as “fake news” [Mirror].
But a study undertaken by The Athletic suggests the assumption is more than fair, with 21.9% of Albion’s passes under Big Sam termed as a ‘long ball’, a higher percentage than any other Premier League side.
That’s fractionally more than Burnley’s 21.3%, with Sean Dyche’s team perhaps the most derided for their ‘hit and hope’ tactics.
Furthermore, the study revealed that among Albion’s last six managers, only Tony Pulis’ side have launched more aerial balls, with 22.1%.
That includes Alan Pardew (20%) who is roundly derided around The Hawthorns.
Steve Madeley, who co-authored the article with Mark Carey, remarked on his personal Twitter profile: “Of all the criticisms that could be aimed at Sam Allardyce’s Albion, they have never felt like a ‘long ball’ side. And ‘long ball’ is the label that winds ‘Big Sam’ up most. Yet the stats suggest they are pretty direct.”
It’s true, in the sense that it feels like we have watched much worse than this current side under Big Sam.
The end of the Pulis reign was insufferable as was much, if not all, of Pardew’s tenure.
With Matheus Pereira pulling the strings and the likes of Okay Yokuslu and Conor Gallagher weighing in with dynamic midfield displays, there does feel an element of hope with this team.
It didn’t look that way at the beginning of Big Sam’s reign but a clutch of loan signings in the winter transfer window looks to have breathed new life into this team, and there is still the remote possibility of Premier League survival.
The stats are what they are, however, and there’s no shying away from that.
Big Sam may not like accusations of long-ball tactics but what Baggies fan really cares at the moment?
The 5-2 win at Chelsea showed we can mix it with the best and produce some stunning pieces of play, it’s just about replicating that on a regular basis now.
In other West Brom news, Mark Lawrenson rates Albion’s PL survival chances and predicts clash with Southampton.
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