Jurgen Klopp has received plenty of praise this season for his game-changing substitutions. But the Liverpool boss is only fourth when it comes to ranking the top managers for goal-scoring subs…
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!10) Marco Silva (Fulham) – five goals
Total subs: 95
Five goals from replacements but only four managers have seen their bench players have a hand in more goals than the 11 from Silva’s subs. That said, only one manager has made more changes.
9) Sean Dyche (Everton) – five goals
Total subs: 60
Dyche has made at least 19 fewer subs than any other manager on this list. Five different scorers among Dyche’s subs, none more important than Idrissa Gueye’s winner at Crystal Palace.
8) Andoni Iraola (Bournemouth) – six goals
Total subs: 89
Five scorers of six different goals for Iraola, with Luis Sinisterra, who has played more minutes off the bench than any other Bournemouth player, responsible for two of them. Though one was the consolation in a 6-1 thwacking at Manchester City.
7) Rob Edwards (Luton) – six goals
Total subs: 88
Handsome Bob has seen his subs score huge goals against Palace and Forest, while Carlton Morris has done all he can lately to get himself off the bench, scoring a late, controversial leveller at Burnley after forcing a couple of own-goals at Sheffield United.
6) Unai Emery (Aston Villa) – six goals
Total subs: 82
Much as a he might not like the super-sub tag, Leon Bailey has done the business off the bench for Villa, scoring two and assisting three as a replacement. Playing for a contract, probably.
5) Eddie Howe (Newcastle) – six goals
Total subs: 78
Not much has gone Howe’s way lately but the Newcastle boss seems to be getting a tune out of Toon’s substitutes. Callum Wilson is his go-to change, and the striker has weighed in with two goals and an assist off the bench. Only two players have scored more as a sub.
4) Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool) – eight goals
Total subs: 91
For all the talk of Klopp changing the game with his squad approach, it turns out there are three managers getting more goals from their bench. Diogo Jota and Darwin Nunez have come up big for Klopp in their cameos, each bagging twice and offering a couple of assists.
3) Gary O’Neil (Wolves) – eight goals
Total subs: 79
The Wolves boss made arguably the best substitution of the season, throwing on Pablo Sarabia on 87 minutes while trailing against Tottenham. One goal – a beauty too – one assist, and three minutes plus added time later, Spurs were stunned and O’Neil was off down the Molineux touchline.
Ange Postecoglou and Gary O’Neil after a match.
2) Mikel Arteta (Arsenal) – 10 goals
Total subs: 84
Arteta wouldn’t call them substitutes. No, the Arsenal boss prefers the label ‘impactors’, which makes us think he’s doing it on purpose now. Still, his impactors seem to be working for Arteta, none more so than Gabriel Martinelli, who has three goals off the bench, including the all-important fourth and fifth in the 5-0 win over Palace.
1) Roberto De Zerbi (Brighton) – 12 goals
Total subs: 98
Only Arteta’s impactors have had a hand in more goals than De Zerbi’s subs, but the Brighton boss’s have scored more themselves. It can’t be ignored that no manager has made as many changes as De Zerbi – an average of 4.66 per game so far this season. It is hard to think of many more instant impacts than De Zerbi’s decision to introduce Ansu Fati and Kaoru Mitoma at half-time at Bournemouth. The pair combined inside 15 seconds to put the Seagulls ahead before Mitoma scored again to seal a 3-1 win.
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