Everton one of five Premier League sides to outperform Man City this season in incredible stat

Manchester City suffered their second consecutive Premier League defeat on Sunday as they were beaten 1-0 by Arsenal at the Emirates.

It’s the first time Pep Guardiola has lost back-to-back league matches since 2018 with City, having been beaten 2-1 by Wolverhampton Wanderers the week before. Prior to that, it had been going so well for the champions, who had won all of their first six games of the 2023/24 season.

But without Rodri in the side for the last two and a half matches, City have looked far from their usual best. The Spaniard’s defensive capabilities have always been renowned, but his passing range and creativity have perhaps never been more appreciated.

With Kevin De Bruyne - the player with the most Premier League assists last season - out through injury, it has limited the number of chances created by City. That has been demonstrated by one incredible stat after eight games of the new campaign: Relegation-threatened Everton have registered a higher number of expected goals (xG) than City so far this season.

In fact, City have registered an xG of 16.8 across the campaign, the sixth highest in the division, with Newcastle United top on 18.78. Everton’s xG is 17.56 but the Toffees have managed just nine goals. In comparison, City’s 16.8 xG has yielded 17 goals, eight of which have been scored by Erling Haaland.

The numbers do indicate that the Blues are not firing on all cylinders at the start of this season, and City have achieved the highest xG numbers in the Premier League in all of seven campaigns that Guardiola has been in charge of.