Ahead of Arsenal’s trip to Liverpool on Saturday, Castrol EDGE Performance data compares the performances of England rivals Theo Walcott, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Stewart Downing in the Premier League this season.
Recently, Oxlade-Chamberlain’s has provoked the most interest, and this is in large part due to the 18 year old’s impressive dribbling ability. On average, the former Saints winger completes a dribble every 20 minutes, which is more than any other player in the league, and his success rate (57%) is currently superior to both Walcott’s (34%) and Downing’s (39%).
Remarkably, Stuart Downing has yet to score or create a goal in the league this season, but his lack of assists could be due to Liverpool’s misfiring strikers. Downing has delivered 111 crosses – the ninth most in the league – and his pass success rate (85.5%) is better both of Arsenal’s wide men.
Like Downing, Theo Walcott has had a mixed season to date, but he has been involved in 28 league goals for the Gunners since the start of 2010/11. This is the fourth highest in the league for a midfielder and four more than Gareth Bale, who has been involved in 24.
Walcott, Downing and Oxlade-Chamberlain – Premier League 2011/12
| Player | Walcott, Theo | Downing, Stewart | Oxlade-Chamberlain, Alex |
| Games Played | 25 | 24 | 7 |
| Minutes Played | 1963 | 1751 | 326 |
| Goals | 5 | 0 | 2 |
| Assists | 7 | 0 | 1 |
| Shots, Total (inc Blocks) | 61 | 49 | 9 |
| Shots per Game | 2.4 | 2.0 | 1.3 |
| Passes Successful | 464 | 758 | 116 |
| Passes Successful per Game | 18.6 | 31.6 | 16.6 |
| Pass Success Rate % | 80% | 85.5% | 84.1% |
| Crosses Open | 104 | 111 | 8 |
| Crosses Open per Game | 4.2 | 4.6 | 1.1 |
| Dribbles Completed | 30 | 16 | 16 |
| Dribbles Completed per Game | 1.2 | 0.7 | 2.3 |
| Dribble Success Rate % | 34% | 39% | 57% |
| Shot Conversion Rate % | 10.9% | 0.0 | 25.0% |
Least minutes per dribble in PL 2011/12
| Player | Minutes Played | Dribbles Completed | Mins Played / Dribbles Completed |
| Oxlade-Chamberlain, Alex | 326 | 16 | 20.38 |
| Hoilett, David | 1916 | 64 | 29.94 |
| Kalou, Salomon | 181 | 6 | 30.17 |
| Ben Arfa, Hatem | 605 | 19 | 31.84 |
| Moses, Victor | 2269 | 67 | 33.87 |
Midfielders’ direct involvement in goals since start of 2010/11 season
| Player | Assists | Goals | Total |
| Nani | 22 | 15 | 37 |
| van der Vaart, Rafael | 12 | 20 | 32 |
| Dempsey, Clint | 7 | 22 | 29 |
| Walcott, Theo | 14 | 14 | 28 |
| Adam, Charlie | 14 | 14 | 28 |
| Silva, David | 19 | 9 | 28 |
| Lampard, Frank | 7 | 20 | 27 |
| Young, Ashley | 16 | 9 | 25 |
| Bale, Gareth | 8 | 16 | 24 |
Most crosses in PL 2011/12
| Player | Crosses Open | Assists |
| Baines, Leighton | 143 | 2 |
| Jarvis, Matthew | 142 | 4 |
| Nani | 134 | 8 |
| Pennant, Jermaine | 127 | 3 |
| Etherington, Matthew | 125 | 6 |
| Sebastian Larsson | 122 | 2 |
| Petrov, Martin | 113 | 4 |
| Bosingwa, José | 111 | 2 |
| Downing, Stewart | 111 | 0 |
| Bale, Gareth | 109 | 7 |
Who would you take to Euro 2012? Walcott, Downing or the boy built and named like a frieght train, Oxlade-Chamberlain?
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