Erik ten Hag got it in the neck for his substitutes in the Manchester derby, but how does he compare to other Premier League managers in terms of the impact of his changes?
We’ve ranked the bosses according to goal contributions from their subs, with the goals scored in brackets.
22) David Moyes (West Ham) – 2 goal contributions (1 goal)
Total subs: 75
Only Pep Guardiola of the managers to have been in charge for the whole season have made fewer substitutions, but even so, that’s an embarrassing impact. He’s below both Sheffield United managers.
21) Nuno Espirito Santo (Nottingham Forest) – 2 (1)
Total subs: 37
Forest have only scored 9 goals in the ten games he’s been in charge for. Should have conceded one fewer as well, but let’s not go into that.
20) Paul Heckingbottom (Sheffield United) – 3 (2)
Total subs: 54
Not great, but as a percentage of the 11 goals they scored under him it’s not so bad. Scoring 11 goals in 14 games is bad though, as is conceding 39.
19) Chris Wilder (Sheffield United) – 4 (1)
Total subs: 52
Not a bad return in 12 games. Oli McBurnie is responsible for half the contributions.
18) Roy Hodgson (Crystal Palace) – 6 (1)
Total subs: 71
Jean-Philippe Mateta had more goal contributions in 212 minutes from the bench (5) under Hodgson than in 1200 minutes when starting (4).
17) Steve Cooper (Nottingham Forest) – 6 (3)
Total subs: 75
An average of 4.4 subs per game couldn’t save him from the chop.
16) Vincent Kompany (Burnley) – 6 (4)
Total subs: 122
Chelsea loanee David Datro Fofana doubled the tally in his first two appearances, providing an assist against Manchester City before scoring a brace to snatch an unlikely points against Fulham. Burnley have scored one goal in the four games since, conceding 13. As Roy Keane says, Kompany and his team have been “dreadful”.
15) Thomas Frank (Brentford) – 7 (3)
Total subs: 117
For some reason we assumed these were all thanks to Yoane Wissa, but he’s scored just one of them.
14) Rob Edwards (Luton) – 7 (6)
Total subs: 107
Two goals each for Jacob Brown and Elijah Adebayo, for a team that’s claimed one point fewer than Arsenal from losing positions this season.
13) Mauricio Pochettino (Chelsea) – 8 (4)
Total subs: 100
Not at all surprising given Chelsea are 18th in the ‘second-half table’. His subs against Liverpool in the Carabao Cup final were memorably awful, certainly in comparison to Klopp’s kids.
12) Erik ten Hag (Manchester United) – 8 (5)
Total subs: 110
Scott McTomoninay has scored four of those goals from the bench, and also one of the assists. Not hugely surprising that neither Sofyan Amrabat or Omari Forson contributed a goal as substitutes in the Manchester derby. That decision alone was a sackable offence.
11) Sean Dyche (Everton) – 8 (6)
Total subs: 77
That’s a big chunk of their 29 goals, made more remarkable by traditionalist Dyche making under three subs per game.
10) Andoni Iraola (Bournemouth) – 9 (6)
Total subs: 116
Two goals for Luis Sinisterra, who’s been introduced from the bench 12 times this season.
9) Ange Postecoglou (Tottenham) – 10 (4)
Total subs: 113
Five contributions for Brennan Johnson from the bench, who got two assists as a sub last time out in the comeback win over Crystal Palace.
8) Pep Guardiola (Manchester City) – 10 (4)
Total subs: 74
He’s never been a great one for subs, and averages just 2.7 per game this season. Kevin De Bruyne has three of the ten contributions, with a goal and an assist coming in his first appearance in five months, to turn the game against Newcastle on its head.
7) Gary O’Neil (Wolves) – 11 (9)
Total subs: 102
If you don’t remember Pablo Sarabia’s touch and volley against Tottenham we’re no longer friends. He also grabbed an assist in the three minutes he was on the pitch to win that game.
6) Marco Silva (Fulham) – 14 (6)
Total subs: 118
36 per cent of Fulham’s goals this season have been scored or assisted by substitutes. That’s absurd.
5) Eddie Howe (Newcastle) – 15 (9)
Total subs: 101
Eight different goalscoring substitutes for Newcastle.
4) Unai Emery (Aston Villa) – 16 (7)
Total subs: 107
A testament to strength in depth Emery now has at his disposal, with Leon Bailey contributing to six goals from the bench, with Moussa Diaby and Youri Tielemans notching a couple of assists each. Incredible that Aston Villa can at any point afford for any of those three players not to be starting.
3) Roberto De Zerbi (Brighton) – 18 (12)
Total subs: 128
He’s only seven substitutions short of his full allocation for the 27 games Brighton have played.
2) Mikel Arteta (Arsenal) – 20 (11)
Total subs: 107
Three goals apiece for Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard, and four assists in 126 minutes from the bench for forgotten man Fabio Vieira.
1) Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool) – 22 (11)
Total subs: 119
Not hugely surprising given the quality and depth of their forwards, but it’s still a lot, and scoring ten goals after the 90th minute is ridiculous and unfair.
