Sheffield United are fifth on the EFL Championship table, meaning they are occupying the promotion play-off spots. Leading the team on goalscoring is 36 years old striker Billy Sharp, with 14 goals to his name. While he is not currently experiencing his career-best season, he has scored double-digit goals for the seventh time in his second-division career. His goals are why Sheffield United are still in the promotion play-off spots. Nearly a quarter of Sheffield United’s goals have been netted by Billy Sharp.
Billy Sharp ranks in the 87th percentile for goals per 90, having scored 0.44 goals per game so far this season. He is also outperforming his xG output of 0.37 goals per 90 this campaign. He has taken only around 1.85 shots per 90 this season but has hit the target around 44% of the time. On average, Sharp has touched the ball around 4.5 times in the opposition’s penalty box every game, putting him in the 90th percentile this campaign. He only attempts around two dribbles per game but has completed nearly three-quarters of them.
All but one of Billy Sharp’s goals for Sheffield United this season have come from inside the box. And the only goal that came from outside the box? It was just outside the edge of the penalty area. This means Sharp knows where to take his shots. He has taken 64 shots till now, which means he has scored a goal every 4.57 shots. He has missed a few big chances as well, but his 44% shot accuracy has done the job for Sheffield United most of the time. Sharp has had very few opportunities to score from inside the six-yard box.
Billy Sharp has produced threats many times this season for Sheffield United. The xT timeline shows that Sharp has generated an xT value of 0.5 or greater primarily during the first half, but he has also done it during parts of the second half of the games he has played this season. His most threatening passes come from the edge of the penalty area, which means he should have completed several passes into the penalty area this season.
Sheffield United should thank Billy Sharp’s goalscoring exploits this season, for, without him, they may not be in the promotion play-off spots right now. In addition to his 14 goals, he also has seven assists to his name, which means he is involved in a goal every 127 minutes.
