Qatar Data: England and USA inseparable while Iran break Welsh hearts

Flashscore

Football versus soccer. That is, England versus the United States. That was the evening's highlight on the sixth day of play at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. But before we get to that fixture in our data review, let’s go through the three matches that preceded the much-awaited Anglo-American showdown. Welcome back, to Qatar Data.

Qatar Data 25/11

Opta by Stats Perform

The Welsh opened the day as favourites against Iran. The Iranians had conceded six goals against England in their first game of the tournament, but this time their defence was much better organised. They were solid and didn't give Wales a sniff. However, they then scored two goals in injury time proving the difference. Iran’s Rouzbeh Chesmi scored in the eighth minute of the additional time, making his goal the latest winning goal at a World Cup since 1966, when the statistics began to be recorded.

Let's take a closer look at some of the data from this match. Wales had the bulk of total ball possession and twice as many successful passes in the match but they couldn't do much with the ball. If you compare the number of shots on target, however, it is clear to see that Iran set the tone for most of the match in terms of attacking opportunities.

Wales v Iran match statsOpta by Stats Perform

For a long time, the Welsh goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey was keeping his side in the game. He made four great saves and that's no mean feat. But the most important line in this graphic is the last line - the red card he received late in the game which helped the Iranians take the momentum and score their two goals very late on.

Wayne Hennessey statsOpta by Stats Perform

And, finally, Gareth Bale. The Wales star striker didn't have a great game in Qatar, take a look at all his passes in the match. He only made nineteen successful ones and if you look at the direction he sent the ball, you can see that he only made five successful forward passes in the whole game. That's just not enough for a player of his quality.

Gareth Bale pass mapOpta by Stats Perform

See Wales vs Iran at Flashscore

The second game of the day ended with Senegal's expected win over hosts Qatar. Although Qatar scored their first-ever goal at a World Cup thanks to substitute Mohomad Muntari, the African team won 3-1 in the end and will face Ecuador in a winner-takes-all clash at the end of the group stage.

To give you an idea of how the match unfolded, take a look at this expected goals graphic. The Senegalese dominated the first half and made the most of that by scoring twice. After the break, however, they fell behind and Qatar started to create the better chances. The home side finished the match with a higher expected goals score but alas, no points came from it and thanks to the Netherlands' draw, they are now out of the tournament.

Qatar v Senegal xG Opta by Stats Perform

See Qatar vs Senegal at Flashscore

As for the Netherlands, In their first game, the Dutch managed to break Senegal's defence in the very last moments to win. But they were not so lucky against Ecuador. Cody Gakpo scored for a second game in succession but Enner Valencia equalised for Ecuador and the match ended 1-1.

Let's take a look at Cody Gakpo's heat map. The Netherlands striker was on the right side of the pitch for most of the game and was most comfortable in close proximity to the opposition's penalty area. Unfortunately for the Dutch, he just couldn’t capitalize on any more chances after scoring the opening goal very early in the game.

Cody Gakpo heat mapOpta by Stats Perform

The game had another star and that was Enner Valencia. Look how active he was. The equalising goal was his third for the tournament and he has scored six goals in the World Cup group stages since 2014. That, along with Messi and Ronaldo, is the most by any footballer over the period. And Valencia wasn't even at the 2018 WC at all.

Enner Valencia statsOpta by Stats Perform

Tracking the expected goals through the game, it may surprise anyone who didn't watch the match, that the red line actually belongs to Ecuador, not the Dutch. The Netherlands only had two shots in the entire match - one on-target and one off-target. That's the worst performance by a European team at the World Cup since 1966.

Netherlands v Ecuador xGOpta by Stats Perform

See Netherlands vs Ecuador at Flashscore

England went into their match against the United States knowing that if they got a point, they would be virtually assured of progressing out of the group. And that's what happened in the end. It was a boring goalless draw that means the United States have to beat Iran in their last group game to progress.

If we look at the momentum of the match, we can see that the superiority was continually shifting between the two teams throughout. But it didn't lead to chances, with neither England nor the USA able to produce an expected goal rating of one.

England v USA momentumOpta by Stats Perform

One of the most impressive players on the pitch was the much-maligned Harry Maguire. He was crucial to England keeping a clean sheet with his solid defensive performance, especially in the way he dominated aerially. And when going forward, in attacking transitions, Maguire showed great vision with his passing as well.