I was reading several things on Saturday morning, ahead of the Premier League matches starting this afternoon.
Then I read some statistics, had to read them again to make sure I had read them correctly, and again to be absolutely sure.
They were statistics about two Premier League clubs.
It was on The Athletics where I read them.
None of Brentford’s last 42 goals in the Premier League were scored by an English player (not including own goals).
It gets even better though, in the last 75 goals Wolves have scored, none have been scored by an English player.
Looking back, the last time an English player scored a Premier League goal for Wolves was Max Kilman. This was on 1 February 2024 in a 4-3 home defeat to Man U. Kilman was sold to West Ham months later.
I think I understand why not many English Wolves players score for them…
In the 4-3 League Cup defeat to Chelsea in midweek, it appears that none of the fifteen Wolves players who took to the pitch were English.
Their last Premier League match saw a 3-2 defeat to Burnley. There was actually one English player under the age of sixteen who took the field. However, that was Sam Johnstone, their goalkeeper…
How does Newcastle United compare?
The 2025/26 Premier League goals so far have been scored by Woltemade (4), Bruno (3), Osula (1) and Murphy (1). So only one Premier League goal scored by an Englishman for United so far this season.
In all competitions we have Woltemade (6), Gordon (4), Barnes (3), Bruno (3), Osula (3), Joelinton (2), Murphy (1) and Schar (1). That is eight of the 24 goals scored by three English players.
What about Newcastle United in 2024/25?
Here are NUFC’s goalscorers last season, the total number of goals scored in all competitions and, by the way, how many of them came in the Premier League:
27 (23) Isaac
9 (9) Barnes
9 (6) Gordon
9 (8) Murphy
6 (4) shares
6 (4) Tonal
5 (5) Bruno
4 (4) Joelinton
3 (0) Willock
2 (1) Burn
2 (1) Miley
2 (1) Osula
1 (0)Wilson
Last season, Newcastle United players scored a total of 85 goals in all competitions, 35 of which were between seven English players.
Of the total 85 goals, 66 were scored in the Premier League and 25 of them were shared by five English players.
Three of Newcastle’s four top scorers were English.
Does it matter?
I’m certainly not one to think you need a team of English players, BUT it’s certainly not ideal to have no players at all, as Wolves did in midweek.
It makes sense to me to have a core of English players and then an injection of quality from elsewhere up top.
At Newcastle United, in my opinion, we have the best of everything. A brilliant English manager with loads of excellent English players (Pope, Ramsdale, Tino, Hall, Burn, Trippier, Ramsey, Gordon, Miley, Barnes, Murphy and so on), and then some real quality from elsewhere (Woltemade, Thiaw, Bruno, Tonali, Botman, Wissa, Joelinton, Elanga, Schar etc).
We are even further blessed, due to the fact that we have such a healthy amount of Geordies/lifelong Newcastle United fans, with Burn, Miley, Murphy and Hall.
This season we have seen Pope, Ramsdale, Tino, Hall, Burn, Trippier, Ramsey, Gordon, Miley, Barnes, Murphy and Lascelles all play for Newcastle United, enough to make up an entire team plus one substitute. It is highly doubtful that any other Premier League club could currently claim the same. There’s also the little fact that eight of these twelve above are England internationals, all eight signed by Eddie Howe and the NUFC boss who guided the likes of Tino, Hall, Burn and Gordon to their first ever England caps after signing for United.
A great balance and mix brought together by Eddie Howe, long may it continue.
By the way, I thought I couldn’t think of many English players at Liverpool. Last week they lost at home to Man U and Arne Slot did not have a single English player in their starting XI…
#credible #Premier #League #stats #comparison #Newcastle #United