Oliver Hopkins

Youth, Peak Age or Experience: Which Premier League Squads Have the Right Age Profile? | Opta Analyst We analysed every Premier League squad by its age demographic to look at which clubs are going for youth and which are looking for experience.

theanalyst.com/articles/pre...

My latest for @optaanalyst.optajoe.com on the age breakdown of every Premier League squad:

Arsenal have conceded 3 goals in 9 league games.

Currently on pace to concede just 12.6 goals across the entire season 🤯

Arsenal Are On Course to Concede 14 Goals All Season: Can They Break Chelsea’s Record? | Opta Analyst Arsenal kept yet another clean sheet at the weekend in their 1-0 win over Fulham. That puts them on course to break one of football’s most unbreakable defensive records.

Arsenal's defensive record this season could be record-breaking.

They've conceded 3 goals in 8 league games. At that rate, they could beat Chelsea's famous 15-goal season from 2004-05...

Can they do it? And what does it mean for their title hopes?

theanalyst.com/articles/ars...

Right Now, Antoine Semeyo is the Best Player in the Premier League | Opta Analyst Antoine Semenyo is driving Bournemouth’s best-ever season. The stats prove he’s not just their star — he might be the Premier League’s most in-form player.

Bournemouth have scored 18 Premier League goals since mid-April.

Semenyo has either scored (10) or assisted (4) a ridiculous 77.7% of them.

Is he the best player in the Premier League right now? We look into the data to find out 📊🍒 theanalyst.com/articles/ant...

Declan Rice’s Newcastle Masterclass Proves He is the Complete Midfielder | Opta Analyst We examine the data that shows why is Declan Rice becoming Arsenal’s most complete – and possibly the Premier League's best – midfielder.

It's very hard to sum up a player like Declan Rice in only a few words, but I had a go for @optaanalyst.optajoe.com

He is one of the most complete midfielders in the world imo. And his performance against Newcastle showed that:

theanalyst.com/articles/dec...

Declan Rice’s Newcastle Masterclass Proves He is the Complete Midfielder | Opta Analyst We examine the data that shows why is Declan Rice becoming Arsenal’s most complete – and possibly the Premier League's best – midfielder.

Declan Rice vs Newcastle:

🔴 105 touches (1st)
🔴 75 passes completed (1st)
🔴 17 line-breaking passes (1st)
🔴 260m carried (1st)
🔴 11.3km covered (1st)

Arsenal’s midfielder is dominating all aspects of games. Is he the most complete midfielder in the Premier League?👇

theanalyst.com/articles/dec...

The greatest England manager ever?

Rayan Cherki is Europe’s King of Chance Creation – It's Why Man City Want Him | Opta Analyst Rayan Cherki’s dazzling 30-minute cameo on his international debut showed exactly why Manchester City are so keen to bring him to the Etihad Stadium.

Rayan Cherki created more chances per 90 than any player in Europe’s top five leagues in 2024-25.

Last night, he dazzled for France on his debut.

No wonder Man City want him. I looked at the numbers behind his incredible campaign ✍️📊 theanalyst.com/articles/ray...

Since his debut, among all Premier League defenders, Gabriel has:

Most Goals (17)
Most Headers (12)
Most Clean Sheets (57)

Rock.

Pressing, Poise and Parisian Control: The Blueprint Behind PSG’s Win Over Arsenal | Opta Analyst PSG take a 1-0 lead into the second leg of their Champions League tie against Arsenal. We analyse how they overcame Mikel Arteta’s side.

A 26-pass goal, a suffocating high press and a goalkeeper who refused to be beaten.

Was so impressed with PSG last night. Here's how they executed the perfect away performance against Arsenal in their Champions League semi-final first leg for @optaanalyst.optajoe.com: theanalyst.com/2025/04/arse...

Jamie Vardy's Having a Leaving Party: The Premier League Stats Behind a Leicester Legend | Opta Analyst Jamie Vardy has confirmed he will leave Leicester this summer when his contract expires. We analyse the data behind his remarkable career.

📈 143 PL goals
📉 Just 3 outside the box
🎯 1 title, 1 golden boot, 1 unforgettable legacy

Jamie Vardy’s having a leaving party — and here’s everything that made him a Premier League icon🦊

theanalyst.com/2025/04/jami...

It Was Declan Rice’s Night, But This Perfect Arsenal Performance Was About the Collective | Opta Analyst Arsenal delivered a statement performance at the Emirates to blow away Real Madrid and take control of their Champions League quarter-final.

Declan Rice's brilliant free-kicks were staggering – but Arsenal’s 3-0 win over Real Madrid was about so much more.

From Saka’s levels of performance to Lewis-Skelley’s maturity at 18, this was a true team performance.

My piece for @optaanalyst.optajoe.com theanalyst.com/2025/04/arse...

The Premier League is Back – How Difficult Are Every Team's Remaining Games? | Opta Analyst As the race for Champions League qualification intensifies, we analyse the fixture difficulty of each Premier League club’s remaining games.

The Premier League run-in is here. Some teams have a dream schedule, others an absolute nightmare. Used the Opta Power Rankings to break down who has the easiest and hardest fixtures left...

theanalyst.com/2025/03/prem...

How Adam Wharton's Crystal Palace Return Helped Banish Selhurst Park Struggles | Opta Analyst At the heart of Palace's victory against Villa was Adam Wharton, who marked his first start in nearly four months with a commanding midfield display.

Crystal Palace finally brought their away form home, thrashing Aston Villa 4-1 at Selhurst Park.

At the heart of it was Adam Wharton, who marked his first start in nearly four months with a commanding midfield display.

✍️ @oliverhopkins.bsky.social

theanalyst.com/2025/02/adam...

Nice to see Burnley owner Alan Pace sharing the love on my latest story for @optaanalyst.optajoe.com

I’m very invested in their defensive record now 😂

In the context of the piece, the lack of draws served to highlight the growing gulf in quality that the format brought. And by extension, diminishing excitement.

More isn’t always better…

I looked at the data behind the new Champions League format.

Has it really worked?

Man City set to play Bayern or Real Madrid as things stand ☠️☠️

Why North London Derby Was a Coming-of-Age Game for Arsenal’s “Ridiculous” Myles Lewis-Skelly | Opta Analyst In Arsenal's win against Tottenham in the north London derby, no player stood out more than the youngest player on the pitch: Myles Lewis-Skelly.

Myles Lewis-Skelly leads all Premier League players this season for duel success rate (72.2%).

Declan Rice even compared his strength to Moussa Dembele.

✍️ @oliverhopkins.bsky.social on why last night's game against Tottenham was his coming of age moment:

theanalyst.com/2025/01/myle...

Mo Salah (82) now has more Premier League assists than David Beckham (80)

Relentless, Rapid, Reliable: The Rise of Antonee Robinson at Fulham | Opta Analyst Antonee Robinson's blistering speed, overlaps, and growing defensive maturity make him a weapon Marco Silva can’t do without.

Is Antonee Robinson the best left back in the Premier League right now?

A piece for @optaanalyst.optajoe.com that looks at the data behind his blistering speed, lung-busting overlaps, and growing defensive maturity:

theanalyst.com/2024/12/anto...

+2 tonight! Such a weapon

Blocking, Decoys and Brute Force: How Arsenal Unleash Gabriel At Corners | Opta Analyst Arsenal are the most dangerous Premier League team from set-pieces. Here's how they unleash Gabriel at corner situations.

Arsenal have scored 20 corner goals since last season—five more than any other team. The secret?

Blocking, decoys, crowded boxes, and Gabriel’s absurd aerial dominance.

I break it all down here for @optaanalyst.optajoe.com

theanalyst.com/2024/12/gabr...

Blocking, Decoys and Brute Force: How Arsenal Unleash Gabriel At Corners | Opta Analyst Arsenal are the most dangerous Premier League team from set-pieces. Here's how they unleash Gabriel at corner situations.

To be fair, a lot of clubs do. Arsenal in particular:
theanalyst.com/eu/2024/12/g...

Yeah, one of the biggest dissonances in football is the amount the crowd roar in anticipation for a corner 😅

Yep, fourth-best % in the PL this season. The season average is ~3%

Arsenal only take corners one way, but boy are they good at them:

Blocking, Decoys and Brute Force: How Arsenal Unleash Gabriel At Corners | Opta Analyst Arsenal are the most dangerous Premier League team from set-pieces. Here's how they unleash Gabriel at corner situations.

Arsenal's Corner King 👑

Since the start of last season, Arsenal have scored more corner goals than any other PL team. Gabriel has 5 of them.
We analyse how they unleash him through:

— Inswingers
— Blocking
— Crowding the area

✍️ @oliverhopkins.bsky.social

theanalyst.com/2024/12/gabr...

Inject it