Team Focus: Ings Can Only Get Better But Not Soon Enough For Battling Burnley
At such a crucial stage of the season, now is not the time to lose form. That, though, is what has happened to Burnley. The Clarets have lost 4 of their last 5 Premier League games and have scored just 1 goal in their last 8 league matches. George Boyd’s winner against Manchester City last month should have been the catalyst for success in Burnley’s quest for survival. Victory over the current champions moved them to within 1 point of safety following the culmination of gameweek 29.
Fast-forward to the present day, however, and Sean Dyche’s side currently foot the table and are 5 points from safety. Defeat to in-form Leicester City last weekend certainly dented confidence coming into the final stretch and it does not seem that the team boasts the quality to drag themselves out of the mire. Given that their last 3 league defeats have each come by a single goal margin, their profligacy in front of goal is cause for concern.
Top goalscorer Danny Ings must shoulder some of the responsibility for the lack of goals. The Englishman has scored 9 of their 26 league goals this season, an impressive return considering this is his debut campaign in the top-flight of English football. However, the 23-year-old has failed to net since Burnley’s 3-1 defeat at Manchester United back in February. Ings has now gone 886 minutes - almost 15 hours - of football without scoring.
The form that rendered Ings such an in-demand frontman, resulting in him being linked with moves to Manchester United and Liverpool, has all but deserted him. Since Burnley’s defeat at Old Trafford, Ings has mustered only 19 shots on goal, 7 of which have hit the target. This comes despite the Clarets creating a reasonable number of goalscoring chances (77) in that time.
Their inability to find the back of the net of late has contributed to their statistically calculated WhoScored weakness of ‘finishing scoring chances’. Failure to score in their last 5 league games is currently the longest run of its kind in Europe's top 5 leagues. This in part comes from the predictability in their approach to goal. The partnership between Kieran Trippier and George Boyd is well documented and has provided a foundation to the success they have enjoyed in England’s top tier this term. A majority of Burnley’s attacks come down the right side (41%), which has seen the team gain a style of play of ‘attacking down the right’.
Of the aforementioned 77 chances created, 29 have been through the duo on the right flank (Trippier 21 and Boyd 8), with the pairing playing the most key passes of all Burnley players over the last 9 league games. Utilising the pairing’s partnership on the right initially gave Burnley a fighting chance of staving off relegation, but now this approach has become all too predictable and, as a result, is easy to defend against. Without other viable offensive outlets across the pitch, the Clarets are suffering, with those tasked with finding crucial goals unable to do so.
Even when presented with the chances, though, Burnley are struggling. The Clarets’ 3 top scorers - Ings (9), Boyd and Ashley Barnes (both 5) - have respective conversion rates of 10.8%, 10.6% and 8.3%, which all rank among the worst third of the 57 players to have netted 5 or more times this term. With chances few and far between, the likes of Ings and Barnes need to begin taking the opportunities presented to them.
It’s not as though the players have given up on the cause, however. Burnley - as noted by data providers Opta - are covering the most ground per game (116.4km) of all Premier League teams this season. The side are clearly prepared to battle for their place in England’s top tier, but the lack of variation in attack is having an adverse effect. No team has scored fewer goals in the Premier League this campaign than Burnley (26).
Before the season comes to a end, Burnley must rediscover their goalscoring touch. Star man Ings in particular needs to show the impressive form he exhibited between the end of December and beginning of February, where he netted 5 and registered a further 2 assists in 7 appearances prior to his current goal drought. However, his manager needs to tinker the offensive approach of his side if fans are to see the best of the striker between now and the end of the campaign. Dyche has won a legion of admirers for his side's performances this season, but the Burnley boss would be wise to alter the Clarets’ attacking style if they are to remain in the Premier League.
Will Burnley rediscover their goalscoring touch in time to secure their top-flight safety? Or is it curtains for the Clarets? Let us know in the comments below
