How old is your dog?
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How does More or Less introduce the episode and its main questions about dog years and Richard III?
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Hello and welcome to More or Less on the BBC World Service. I'm Ruth Alexander and here's Ben Carter. Football fans are often accusing rival sides of being one-man teams. The implication being that the club spent vast sums of money on one star player who drives the team up the table. But is there really anything in this? Ben, you're a Manchester United fan. Your side were a one-man team this season, weren't they?
No.
But that's not what the manager of your big rivals, Manchester City, reckons.
True. At the beginning of the season, Roberto Mancini said, we would win the title back because we'd signed striker Robin Van Persie from Arsenal.
And you have indeed just won the league.
Yes, Van Persie scored 24 goals in all, and it was his hat-trick that clinch United the title. But you know, United would still be top of the table, even if Van Persie hadn't scored any goals.
But I think a Man United fan would say that, wouldn't you?
Well, yes, but this is more or less. I have methodology. I've created an alternative Premier League table, which takes out all the points earned by the goals scored by each club's leading scorer.
How do the hosts set up the ‘one-man team’ football question and Van Persie example?
For example, if you took away Robin Van Persie's three goals against Aston Villa, the game would have ended up as a 0-0 draw. and United would have earned one point rather than three, meaning Van Persie's net contribution was two points. But it's unfair to do it just for Man United, so I've done it for the leading scorer in every Premier League team.
So what do you do when two teams' top scorers score in the same game?
Well, if they both score once, they cancel each other out. But if we take the game where Liverpool beat Norwich 5-2, Luis Suarez scored a hat-trick. So if you take his goals out, the game looks like a draw. But Norwich's leading goalscorer, Grant Holt, scored one goal for his side. So in effect, Liverpool would have won the game without Suarez's goals.
So what does your alternative league table look like then?
Well, of course, United are still top of the league, but only by seven points. Arsenal move up to second position, leaving both Manchester City and Chelsea just one point behind.
So Manchester United might not be a one-man team, but they are more heavily dependent on one man than are Arsenal, Chelsea and Man City.
Yes. Van Persie has scored 30% of Manchester United's goals, and those goals have earned his team 23% of their overall points tally. Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City spread their goals around a lot more, and as a result they are a lot closer to United in my table than in the real one.
What about Tottenham? Surely they're a one-man team. I mean, Gareth Bale has done amazingly well for them this year. He's the favourite for all the awards.
And understandably so. Bale's 18 goals have earned Tottenham 15 points, and without him they'd be in sixth position and 11 points away from a Champions League place. But Alistair Tweedale, editor at statistics website whoscored.com, says that despite Bale being at the top of his website's player ratings, there is a man who's arguably more important to Spurs' cause.
Moussa Dembele, when he does play, Tottenham have won 67% of their games... compared to 29% without him. Those are both respectively bigger and smaller values than with and without Bale. So whilst Bale is the one scoring the goals that win the games, there's an argument that Dembele is as important, if not more important, to Tottenham.
Of course, one man who won't be making a contribution for his team for the rest of this season or for the first six games of next season is... ..Louis Suarez.
Ruth, what's with the music?
Oh, that's my biting sutter.
Right. OK, well, if you take out Suarez's goals and the points they earned Liverpool, they'd be exactly where they are now, in seventh position.
So Suarez's goals weren't as important as people might think, but come on, Ben, statistically, who is the Premier League's most valuable player?
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Chapters
3 chapters
1
How does More or Less introduce the episode and its main questions about dog years and Richard III?
0:00–1:18
2
How do the hosts set up the ‘one-man team’ football question and Van Persie example?
1:18–6:11
3
How did Ben Carter construct an alternative Premier League table by removing top scorers' goals?
6:11–9:26