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A major talking point of England's top flight this campaign has been the decline of goals scored in open-play scenarios and how teams are finding goals more from dead-ball situations as an alternative.

Comparing how goals have been scored to the initial 11 matches the prior season, we see a drop of 39 scored in open-play and 26 more from team set-pieces and spot-kicks, resulting in 13 less in total.

Examining the broader view, shot attempts clubs are making have seen a staggering drop of 370 in open play than this time previously.

And despite the big increase in set-piece goals, we've actually seen only two additional attempts generated from them outside of penalties, showing the efficiency clubs have been at finding ways to net from dead-ball situations.

Goal Statistics Tell the Tale

301 total goals scored in 110 matches to date averages out at 2.74 goals per fixture, if maintained for all 38 games might be the least for five years, from five seasons ago (2.69 average).

But just under 200 goals scored in open-play translates to 1.78 per game and is heading to be the least for 16 years, since 2009-10 (1.76 average).

That campaign is also the unique EPL campaign to see scoring more frequently from set-plays excluding penalties than this campaign's frequency of 0.77 per fixture (0.79).

Which Teams Are Most Responsible?

In terms of goals scored from open-play, Wolverhampton Wanderers have recorded the largest decline, netting only four in 11 matches, 10 fewer than at this stage the previous campaign.

Excluding Wolverhampton, England's top division's decline in goals from open play is predominantly a London thing, with half of the capital's seven sides scoring a minimum of five less scores from open play than last season.

In fairness, this is primarily due to their scoring many goals at the early stages of last season instead of their genuine struggle to score in open-play this season.

At the same time Manchester City have recorded the largest rise, with all but one of their 23 scores to date coming in open play.

Set-Play Proficiency

We've compared the promoted teams with the teams that went down they took the place of. Play-off winners the Black Cats have scored three more scores in open-play than the Saints managed in matchday 11 en route to the drop the previous campaign.

In terms of scoring from dead-ball situations (aside from spot-kicks), the Gunners and the Blues have experienced the biggest increase, with each team making up for the five fewer goals that they've netted in open-play with an equal amount from set-pieces.

Man United have recorded twice as many scores from set-plays as they achieved in the 11 games last season before the manager took over, while the Black Cats once more are more successful at netting than the similar-colored team they replaced.

Manchester City don't seem to have got the message about netting additional goals from set-pieces, since they've scored three fewer than last season, similar to Forest, although that might be down to the change in style they're working to install.

League-Wide Trends

Six clubs – Arsenal, the Blues, the Cottagers, Newcastle, Spurs and the Hammers – are this term's primary examples by netting less goals from open play and additional from set-pieces, while Manchester City stand as the unique club to buck the trend so far by performing the exact opposite.

It remains to be seen to watch if clubs persist to place such emphasis on set-plays as matches continue or if they find again their all-round creativity and start converting more goals in open play too.