{"id":3268,"date":"2019-07-24T10:35:59","date_gmt":"2019-07-24T10:35:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bettingwebsites.org.uk\/?page_id=3268"},"modified":"2021-09-16T13:14:24","modified_gmt":"2021-09-16T13:14:24","slug":"own-goals","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.bettingwebsites.org.uk\/articles\/football\/own-goals\/","title":{"rendered":"How Common Are Own Goals & Who Scores Them?"},"content":{"rendered":"
It\u2019s every player\u2019s nightmare isn\u2019t it, whether you\u2019re playing top flight professional football or just having a knockabout down the park with your mates.<\/p>\n
An attacker is steaming forward with the ball, he lines up a shot, wellies it towards the goal, you just manage to get a toe on the end of it to try and knock it wide and\u2026 top corner. The keeper was on top of it but your \u2018heroic\u2019 effort ended up sending them the wrong way.<\/p>\n
Often times no one is really to blame, but there have been some absolute corkers over the decades where responsibility lay unquestionably on a single player\u2019s shoulders.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
It barely needs explaining, but an own goal is when any player on the field accidentally puts the ball in the back of their own net, effectively scoring against themselves and helping the other team.<\/p>\n
It doesn\u2019t matter how this comes about either. If the last person to touch the ball before it crosses the line is a player from the defending side, then that is an own goal.<\/p>\n
Sometimes it\u2019s a simple deflection, sometimes it\u2019s a fumbled pass back to the keeper, and sometimes it\u2019s a howler of a mis-kick or failed attempt to put the ball behind \u2013 they all count. As to who is credited with the goal, well it depends on the circumstances and who you ask.<\/p>\n
The referee usually has the final say on who is credited with the goal, but some sources credit goals to their own rules based on if the interjection was deliberate, if the shot was on target or not, etc.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s arguably the most embarrassing thing that can happen to a footballer, so much so that the term is now used to explain slip ups in all walks of life, not just the beautiful game. For example, a politician trying to score points by slandering an opponent\u2019s speech defect, only to cause upset countrywide for being insensitive, could be said to have \u201cscored an own goal with that remark\u201d.<\/p>\n
You might think own goals would be a rare occurrence in professional football, and to some degree you would be right.<\/p>\n
When you look at the number of total goals scored in a premier league season and compare that to the number of own goals, that number is small.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s have a look at how many own goals have gone in over a five season stretch and what percentage of games that makes, bearing in mind the Premier League contains 380 games in a season:<\/p>\n
Season<\/th>\n | Own Goals Scored<\/th>\n | %<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
14\/15<\/td>\n | 33<\/td>\n | 8.8%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
15\/16<\/td>\n | 38<\/td>\n | 10%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
16\/17<\/td>\n | 36<\/td>\n | 9.5%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
17\/18<\/td>\n | 30<\/td>\n | 7.9%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
18\/19<\/td>\n | 32<\/td>\n | 8.4%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n That\u2019s pretty consistent from season to season and an average of 8.92%<\/strong>. So that shakily represents the likelihood of an own goal being scored in any given Premier League match.<\/p>\n You might assume that defensive players are most likely to score own goals, and quite right you would be, but have a look at the following stats taken from the same seasons as above and you might be surprised by how many of those goals were scored by forwards and midfielders:<\/p>\n Obviously, these stats will vary if you look at different leagues or a different group of seasons, but it\u2019s enlightening information nonetheless.<\/p>\n Defenders were responsible for 71.6%<\/strong> of all own goals over the sample seasons we looked at. Taking own goals scored by goalkeepers out of the equation, that leaves 25.4%<\/strong> of all own goals scored by midfielders and forwards – over a quarter.<\/p>\n For a bit of fun at someone else\u2019s expense, here are a few more stats and figures for you to use as ammo next time you\u2019re having a footy argument with your mates.<\/p>\n You hereby have our permission to quote these with confidence and claim that you found them out all by yourself.<\/p>\n Just spare a thought for the poor guys who have to live with the knowledge that they hold these unwanted records.<\/p>\n I bet Lewis Dunk\u2019s house was fun at Christmas time 2017\u2026<\/p>\n Dynamite stats to use when your annoying Liverpool supporting mate starts piping up.<\/p>\n And finally:<\/p>\n As a Northerner it pains me to say it, but with only one Southern team in the top 5 those of us North of Birmingham should hang our heads.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Own goals can have absolutely no effect on your bet or they can really mess things up for you, it all depends on what sort of bet you have placed.<\/p>\n It\u2019s worth checking with your bookmaker before you make a bet, because some of them might differ slightly, but in general the following applies:<\/p>\n There are some other more niche markets that may be affected, but it\u2019s best to go by what is above as a general rule, and check specifics with the bookmaker in question if you have doubts.<\/p>\n Some of the following examples were really funny at the time (unless you were a supporter of the team in question of course), but one has much darker undertones.<\/p>\n All of them have gone down in football history for one reason or another, and if you ever get the chance to watch playbacks of them we recommend it – especially if you need cheering up.<\/p>\n There are so many more out there, but here is a list of 5 that we think are most noteworthy for various different reasons.<\/p>\n |