Which players from Europe’s top leagues shoot too much and score too little?
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Nobody in Europe’s top leagues takes more shots than Cristiano Ronaldo, who shoots an astonishing 6.2 times per game on average. Given that he’s scored 10 goals in five games this season it’s hard to fault his willingness to have a go. After all, as the old saying goes: “if you don’t shoot you can’t score”. The players on this list, however, might want to consider staying behind after training for a bit of extra practice.
4) Bojan (3 appearances, 3 shots-per-game, 0 goals)
Bojan couldn’t stop scoring at Barcelona, but has yet to net for Stoke in a competitive game, despite shooting thrice a game. Clearly flick-ons from Peter Crouch don’t provide the same opportunities as Iniesta through-balls.
3) Yaya Toure (5 appearances, 3 shots-per-game, 0 goals)
The Ivorian has had a disappointing start to the season, not least because of his wayward shooting. The normally prolific midfielder has been lashing three shots at goal a game, without managing to score.
2) Pierre-Michel Lasogga (6 appearances, 3.2 shots-per-game, 0 goals)
The Hamburg youngster scored 13 in 20 games last season and is highly rated in FIFA, but he might see his shooting stats fall in the next update, given how often he is missing the target.
1) Mario Balotelli (4 appearances, 5 shots-per-game, 0 goals)
We know Mario isn’t afraid to have a go, and his finishing is usually deadly. However this season he has been shooting at an almost Ronaldo-like rate of 5 times a game without finding the net once, leaving his team-mates wondering “Why Always Mario?” as they stand screaming for a pass.
Eden Hazard (6 appearances, 1.2 shots-per-game, 1 goal)
Eden Hazard has played well this season and contributed hugely to Chelsea’s excellent start. However there is a continuing frustration amongst Blues fans over the Belgian star’s aversion to testing the keeper. Eden has a great shot on him and is often in great positions to have a go, but is sometimes too generous in playing in his less talented team-mates. His average of 1.2 shots a game puts him behind unlikely names like Steven Caulker, Phil Bardsley, Nemanja Vidic and Pepe in the charts; with teammate Ivanovic shooting almost twice as often.
(thanks to WhoScored.com for the stats)