Chesterfield's strengths and weaknesses ahead of busy Christmas period - stats report

With that in mind, we have delved into the stats to see how the Spireites are shaping up as they sit seventh in the League Two table after 20 fixtures ticked off. Here, we look at attacking, defending, possession, duels, types of goals and areas for improvement…

GOALS FOR

Paul Cook’s teams have never struggled to find the net and that is the case once again this season with the Spireites the second highest scorers (36) in the league behind MK Dons (38). Town have scored 21 goals at home which is the third best record in the division and they are eighth for away goals with 15. Interestingly, the Blues have the highest ‘xG difference’ in League Two, which means they have scored more goals than what they should have done based on the quality of chances that they have created. In terms of how they are scoring, 17 have come from open play, counter-attacks have mustered up six goals and 10 have come from set-pieces, ranking them in the top six for all these categories.

GOALS AGAINST

Right from the beginning Cook said that it will be their goals against column which defines their season and only five teams have conceded more than their total of 31 and those five sides are all in the bottom six. They have shipped in the same number as Harrogate Town who are third from bottom and only above the relegation zone on goal difference so it is clear which department they need to improve. Tightening up from set-pieces would be a good start as they are the sixth worst for aerials won. As for the types of goals conceded, 10 have come from open play, six on the counter, nine from set-plays and five from penalties. So they are not getting cut open from general play, but transitions (second highest) and set-pieces (eighth highest) are a problem. And they have given the most spot-kicks away.

SHOTS

Chesterfield are 15th when it comes to shots per game, with an average of 11.7, but it is hard to know how much we should read into that because high-flyers Walsall, MK Dons and Notts County are all below them in that regard. Meanwhile, they might also have been a bit unlucky when it comes to concessions because they are actually seventh best for shots on their own goal, and it has felt at times like opposition teams do score with their first attack at the SMH Group Stadium, so perhaps they are due some fortune.

POSSESSION

As we know, Chesterfield are an attack-minded possession-based side and they are ranked third for this particular stat with an average of 58.9% behind only Crawley Town with 60.3% and Grimsby Town 59.4%. The Spireites’ passing success rate (76.5%) is also the third best with Crawley again leading the way (78.4%) and Notts County second with 76.7%.

ANYTHING ELSE?

Cook’s men are pretty low down for tackles, interceptions and fouls, which could be because they have the majority of the ball themselves, or it could be seen to be another area to work on.