4 of the most interesting stats in the Scottish Premiership right now

Rangers' Daniel Candeias has been a creative force for his side so far. Picture: PA

LAST WEEK’S ARTICLE - Four of the most interesting stats from the Scottish Premiership so far

Mark Reynolds below par aerial ability

Aberdeen were well beaten in their Betfred Cup quarter-final against Motherwell on Thursday night. There were several reasons for this, but chief amongst them was the inability of Aberdeen’s central defensive three to lay a glove on Ryan Bowman and Louis Moult.

The Motherwell strike-pairing won the physical battle from start to finish. Even when the Aberdeen defence won a high ball, Moult or Bowman would make sure they didn’t get a clean contact on it, with the energetic midfield three of Motherwell gobbling up the loose ball.

The biggest culprit was Mark Reynolds, who had to be withdrawn just six minutes into the second half. The defender has never been the most dominant in the air, but even by his previous standards, this season’s numbers are particularly galling.

In the 2016/17 Scottish Premiership he averaged a 59.2 per cent success rate in aerial duels. This season it’s down to 43.48, which is the second worst mark of all active centre-backs in the top flight (better only to Danny Devine of Partick Thistle).

Having been out of the team in recent weeks, it’s unlikely Thursday’s showing is going to help him claim his place back.

Alan Campbell loves getting after opponents

The leading mischief-maker in the aforementioned midfield trio was the highly-impressive 19-year-old.

The best player on the park in his side’s 2-0 win over Ross County, Campbell then successfully subdued John McGinn in Motherwell’s come-from-behind draw with Hibs. Confidence shooting through him, he once again got the upperhand against some of the more recognisable names in the league, hounding Aberdeen’s players throughout the match.

Right now he currently leads all players in the Ladbrokes Premiership with 14.77 defensive duels per 90 minutes, which is almost two per 90 minutes better than his closest competitor.

What can I say? He loves to chase after opposing players, and he isn’t afraid to put in a tackle either.

Every one of Ali Crawford’s shots has been from outside the area

18 shots. All of them from outside the box.

Crawford is good at shooting from range, of that there is no doubt, but he has to be selective over when and where to let fly. For instance, he’s had three shots which were closer to the halfway line than the goal. His Expected Goals rating per shot attempt is 71st in the league.

Keeping the move going and, you know, getting into the box, would probably improve both that and his goal tally, which currently stands at zero. (via @x90Cynic)

Rangers create from the wings

Last week we reported that Daniel Candeias was leading the league in crosses. This week we bring another statistic which shines a favourable light on the Rangers winger, as he leads the Premiership in Expected Assists by some distance (3.64 compared to 2.59 for second place Chris Cadden).

Worryingly for his team, though, his mark is over twice as high as the next Rangers player on the list (Lee Wallace), while no others sit in the top 25. It means Pedro Caixinha’s team lack creativity from the central areas.

Carlos Pena made his first start of the season against Partick Thistle in the Betfred Cup on Tuesday. It shall be interesting to see whether he improves the team’s guile from the No.10 position. (via @TheGersReport)