Long-range hits and goals galore: inside the Premier League’s return to chaos | Andrew Beasley

Teams are running further and set-piece strikes are in decline as end-to-end football takes over the division

Goals in the Premier League are up. Chaos is returning. End‑to‑end football is back. The division is more open, in more ways than one.

The figures show a rise from 2.75 goals per game last season to 2.82 this year, a small average increase but one that could easily widen. The goals-per-game rate was at least 0.21 higher in the final 330 games than it was for the first 50 in four of the past five seasons. If 2026-27 has a similar upturn, it will become the second-highest scoring season in the Premier League era.