A few weeks ago we told you that FC Dallas' Maximiliano Urruti was the best finisher so far in this young MLS season. Since then a new player has taken that mantle.
Romain Alessandrini of the LA Galaxy has scored some incredible goals so far, four in total, and it's clear that he's threat to score as soon as he hits the field. While his four goals have not helped LA get off to a fast start, they have shown why the Galaxy were smart to acquire the Frenchman in the offseason.
He has scored his four goals despite his shots having an expected goals value of just 1.41. This means that based on the quality of his chances he would be expected to score 1.41 goals on average. The 2.59 difference between his goals and expected goals is the largest in MLS:
Player |
Goals (excluding penalties) |
Expected Goals |
Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
Romain Alessandrini (LA) |
4 |
1.41 |
2.59 |
<a href="http://mlssoccer.com/players/erick-torres">Erick Torres</a> (HOU) |
4 |
1.50 |
2.50 |
Maximiliano Urruti (DAL) |
3 |
.74 |
2.26 |
<a href="http://mlssoccer.com/players/david-villa">David Villa</a> (NYC) |
4 |
1.82 |
2.18 |
<a href="http://mlssoccer.com/players/josef-martinez">Josef Martinez</a> (ATL) |
5 |
2.86 |
2.14 |
Is this kind of finishing unsustainable? Maybe. But it's clear that defenders will have to stick close to Alessandrini if they don't want him to score.
Two important notes before looking at Week 7's xG numbers: Penalties have a value of .79, and own goals are not factored into the values.
Game |
Result |
Home xG |
Away xG |
|---|---|---|---|
Philadelphia Union vs. New York City FC |
0-2 |
.70 |
1.72 |
Vancouver Whitecaps FC vs. Seattle Sounders |
2-1 |
1.24 |
.92 |
San Jose Earthquakes vs. FC Dallas |
1-1 |
.95 |
1.04 |
Montreal Impact vs. Atlanta United FC |
2-1 |
2.28 |
.41 |
Orlando City SC vs. LA Galaxy |
2-1 |
1.88 |
1.33 |
Chicago Fire vs. New England Revolution |
3-0 |
1.46 |
.23 |
New York Red Bulls vs. D.C. United |
2-0 |
.97 |
.64 |
Columbus Crew SC vs. Toronto FC |
2-1 |
1.65 |
1.10 |
Houston Dynamo vs. Minnesota United FC |
2-2 |
2.52 |
1.46 |
Colorado Rapids vs. Real Salt Lake |
1-2 |
1.04 |
1.57 |
Portland Timbers vs. Sporting Kansas City |
0-1 |
.85 |
.98 |
