Analysis of scored and conceded goals by a football team throughout a season: A network analysis

Abstract

Network analysis can provide a new set of important information about players and teams’ behaviour throughout a match. Despite their pertinence, football analysis using network metrics is limited. Therefore, the aim of this study was to analyse the goals scored and goals conceded by a single team during a full season using network methods. Thirty-six games were analysed and from these the data about players’ connectivity in actions preceding 46 goals scored and 15 goals conceded were collected. The results showed that the most used players during the plays that resulted in the goals scored were forward players in the forward regions, mainly in the penalty area. The lateral defenders and midfield players were the players that mostly initiated the attacking plays that resulted in the goals scored. In sum, it was possible to conclude that network metrics can provide a new visualization and understanding of team-members’ behaviour, as well as characterize some patterns of play giving sport’s analysts information complementary to the traditional notational analysis.