Position of weakness - Where goals were conceded

Heading towards disaster - How goals were conceded

Danger zones - Positions from which teams leak goals

Crying foul - Who are the dirtiest sides

Ever wondered what team formations are in reality, or what areas of the pitch each player actually occupies as opposed to his nominal position? Do some sides appear to concede an unusually large number of headed goals, are they vulnerable at corners, or do they seem to commit more fouls than the rest? Here are some answers.

We show how many goals have been scored from outside the penalty area, the origin of each goal and the method (head, right or left foot) with which it was scored. And in an attempt to solve arguments over who are the dirtiest teams, we list the number of fouls committed by every side.

Having dealt yesterday with the formations adopted by the Premiership’s top ten, we look at the rest today by showing the average position in which their players touched the ball in two league matches, one at home and one away. This shows their real system rather than merely listing players in, for example, a 4-3-3 line-up, as though they formed three straight lines on the pitch.

Usually the diagrams for away matches contain less advanced average positions than for those at home, either because managers are more cautious away or simply because there is a traditional advantage to playing at home.

Each graphic shows the 11 players in the team who made the most touches, so, very occasionally, this means a substitute is featured because he touched the ball more than a player who started.

The dots can make a significant point. Watford’s defenders are well forward as they are devotees of the offside trap, while their forwards have advanced average positions partly because they know the ball will come to them quickly and high up the pitch. There is no gradual build-up of an attack for them to join in by dropping back.

The graphics illustrate the difference between wingers and wide midfield players. On some occasions wingers have been the most advanced, or joint most advanced, players on their side, such as Stewart Downing, for Middlesbrough against Fulham, or Wayne Routledge, for Fulham against West Ham United. In contrast, Stiliyan Petrov and Steve Davis were Aston Villa’s wide midfield players against Charlton Athletic but did not patrol the flanks.

Above are tables comparing the experiences of all 20 Premiership clubs, such as the breakdown of how goals have been conceded. Tottenham Hotspur succumbed to a 35-yard shot by Iván Campo, of Bolton Wanderers, a quarter of an hour into the season and it set a trend — one third of the goals they have let in from open play came from outside the penalty area.

West Ham struggle at corners, from which they have conceded nine goals in the Premiership, while Everton are as good as safe if they clear the ball behind — they have yet to let in a goal from a corner.

Everton’s apparent ability in the air has helped in this regard, a strength demonstrated by the fact that they have conceded only two headed goals compared with eight by Portsmouth. As well as failing at corners, West Ham, for some reason, are also vulnerable to left-foot shots: 13 of the 27 goals scored against them have come in this manner, by far the highest proportion in the Premiership.