Stat Attack: Norwich City vs Tottenham Hotspur

Norwich succumbed to a 2-0 defeat at the hands of in-form West Ham in the last round of Premier League fixtures, with 2 goals in the last 7 minutes condemning the Canaries to defeat. It was particularly tough for Chris Hughton to take, as his side boasted more possession and took more shots on goal.

Central to this excellent offensive effort was midfielder Leroy Fer, a player who has excelled for the Canaries all term. The EA SPORTS Player Performance Index shows that the Dutchman completed 24 passes in the opposition half, more than any of his teammates.

One of Chris Hughton’s signings in the January transfer window was centre half Joseph Yobo, with the centre back adding much needed Premier League experience to the Canaries back four. The Nigerian made his second league appearance for Norwich against the Hammers, and continued his solid start to life in East Anglia. In total, the former Everton man made 15 defensive contributions (based on blocks, clearances, tackles won and interceptions), which was the most in Chris Hughton’s squad.

Another new man at Carrow Road is winger Jonas Gutierrez, with the Newcastle man arriving on loan for the remainder of the campaign. Known for his tenacity and hard work, Gutierrez has all of the battling qualities that Norwich will need in their scrap against relegation. His ability to track back, and cover his full back has been evident this season, with the ‘Spiderman’ winning an incredible 86% of his challenges this term.

Jonny Howson has showcased his excellent passing so far this term, completing a pass in the opposition half at a rate of a pass every 3.6 minutes – the best in the Canaries squad.

Tim Sherwood has been something of a revelation since taking the reins at Tottenham, and his gamble of reintegrating Emmanuel Adebayor has paid off in spectacular style. He will be hoping that his side maintain their excellent form when they travel to Norwich this weekend.

The rampant Adebayor hit the back of the net twice against Newcastle, and if it wasn’t for Tim Krul, he could have had a hat trick. When examining the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index, it’s unsurprising that he was so ruthless in front of goal, as it shows that he hit the target with every shot he attempted, adding to his overall season-shooting accuracy of 72%.

Paulinho scored Spurs’ second goal against the Magpies, taking his overall tally for the season to 4. This, however, wasn’t the only area of the pitch where he excelled as the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index shows that he completed an impressive 29 passes in the opposition half – the second most in the Tottenham squad.

Etienne Capoue hasn’t featured in as many minutes for Tottenham as he would have liked this term due to a combination of injuries and poor form, but when fit and firing, the Frenchman has proved himself to be an excellent defensive midfielder. Capoue played the whole game for Spurs against Newcastle, and shielded the back four to great effect, making an excellent total of 9 interceptions. This was both the most in the Spurs squad, but also the most in the league.

Nacer Chadli may have only featured for 15 minutes against Alan Pardews men, but he made a sizeable impression in the time that he was on the pitch. In addition to his goal, the Belgian showed his excellent eye for a pass as he completed a pass in the opposition half at an impressive rate of a pass every 2.1 minutes.