How Agger helped us build from back
There is only one stat that really matters in football - the final score. But here at Liverpoolfc.com we know supporters love to delve through the facts and figures after each game, so we're allowing you to do just that with the help of Opta.
To make things a little clearer, we have broken down the statistics from the Reds' 3-0 win against Wigan on Saturday into sections which outline how both sides fared in terms of possession, how they rated going forward and defensively.
Distribution
Daniel Agger was Liverpool's most accurate passer, completing 96.8 per cent of his 31 attempted passes. Counterpart Ivan Ramis was top of the class in that regard, though, with 97.2 per cent of the Latics defender's passes finding their target.
Close behind him were Wigan's Ben Watson and David Jones and the Reds' Joe Allen, who lodged 94.1 per cent, 93.6 per cent and 93 per cent respectively.
The Wales international kept the ball firmly on the deck, opting to send just 2.3 per cent of his passes long - second only to Glen Johnson of all the players on the pitch.
Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard delivered more crosses than any other player - seven in total - one ahead of Jean Beausejour. The Wigan midfielder edged the accuracy battle, though, 16.7 per cent to 14.3 per cent.
Attacking
Suso played in an advanced role, tucked in behind Luis Suarez for the first 36 minutes of the game before being substituted, and the Spaniard was lively in the opening exchanges, shooting three times, twice from outside the penalty area.
Jose Enrique, thriving further up the field, was one of six Liverpool midfielders to take a shot on goal. Only Allen, in a much deeper position, did not try his luck.
The full-back scored his first goal for Liverpool when he tapped home an Ali Al Habsi parry. Earlier on, in the first half, he had fired his only other shot of the game a yard or so wide of the Kop goal.
As ever, Suarez was the busiest in front of goal for the home side. The Uruguayan continued his hot streak by firing goals number 12 and 13 of the current campaign to give the Reds a two-goal lead. In all, he sent seven efforts crashing towards the Wigan goal - four from inside the box.
On the other hand, Wigan's Franco Di Santo and Arouna Kone mustered a shot on goal each. Both were on target and both came from outside the Liverpool penalty area.
Four Wigan midfielders tried their luck from outside the box - Beausejour, Jordi Gomez, James McCarthy and Watson - but none of them managed to work Pepe Reina.
Defence
The Reds clocked up another clean sheet on Saturday, in no small part because of Martin Skrtel's unassailable record in duels. The centre-back won every contest for the ball he entered, both on the ground and in the air.
The Slovakian also made the highest number of clearances for the hosts, but he was beaten by visiting defender Gary Caldwell, who made seven.
Allen led the number of interceptions for the home team with five - a figure matched by Maynor Figueroa for Wigan, with Emmerson Boyce and Andre Wisdom the closest competitors.
Ramis and Wisdom were the busiest with regards to tackling, making five apiece. The Wigan man proved slightly more proficient, however, winning 100 per cent of his compared to 80 per cent for the Reds defender.
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