Statistical Betting Preview: Norwich vs Swansea

Gary Hooper’s resurgence continued apace as he scored his fifth goal of the season to help the Canaries to a solid 0-2 win over West Brom at the The Hawthorns.

Few ‘keepers have been tested as much as John Ruddy this season, with the Norwich stopper currently ranked second on the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index for saves with 58. Chris Hughton will be hoping his defence can muster a bit more protection for Ruddy as the season progresses.

You will have struggled to find a player more physically committed to the cause last weekend than the Canaries’ Michael Turner, the centre-half throwing himself into his work at the Hawthorns. He completed 3 blocks, the joint second highest total in the league during the last round.

Gary Hooper mentioned this week that he has not given up hope of an England call-up ahead of next year’s World Cup and his goal provided Roy Hodgson with a glimpse of another potential attacking option at his disposal. Hooper currently leads the Norwich squad for shot accuracy, testing out the opposition goalkeeper with 77.8% of his 9 attempts so far this season. Hopper is an industry best 11/5 to score at any time this weekend with 888sport.com.

Midfielder Leroy Fer again got himself on the score sheet last weekend but it is in defence that he has been most impressive this season. He’s attempted more tackles than any other Canaries player with 70, winning a solid 65.7% of them.

Despite a low-key performance from Swansea in the first half against Hull on Monday, the Swans rallied after the break and Chico Flores’ goal was enough to see them earn a point and stay in the top half of the table.

Jonjo Shelvey is starting to show the kind of form for Swansea which many Liverpool fans thought him capable of before he left Anfield. No doubt his extended run in the Swans first team helped him to complete the most passes in the opponent’s half of any player in the Premier League during the last round. Shelvey is 7/2 to get himself on the scoresheet and score at any time this weekend with 888sport.com.

Swansea’s intricate passing and movement can be a joy to watch at times and their ability to both retain possession as well as shift the play is evidenced in some of their collective statistics. They currently have 10 players with 200 or more passes to in the opponent’s half to their name (Shelvey, Davies, Chico, Dyer, De Guzman, Michu, Rangel, Routledge, Pozuelo and Canas).

For all their eye-pleasing play though, the Swans would still struggle without players like Ashley Williams do to the hard yards for them. Williams currently leads the Swansea squad for successful tackles according to the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index, winning 76.5% of his 17 attempted challenges this season.

Cut from a similar cloth as Williams is Chico Flores, who’s reading of the game has been exceptional this term. His 44 interceptions is the current benchmark in the Swansea squad.