Stats: Injuries cost Arsenal £12.9million and a league place in 2017/18

Would you believe it!

Arsenal didn’t have the best luck with injuries last season and the latest statistics suggest that the Gunners would’ve finished 5th had it not been for so many.

Injuries cost Arsenal 12.9 million last season, as the club’s highly paid stars missed vital games that could have cost the club the league title.

Santi Cazorla’s absence alone is said to have cost the club more than £3million.

A new tool from FreeSuperTips analyses official 2017-18 Premier League data and reveals the dirtiest team and players, as well as those who were unluckiest with injuries – and the impact that this had on each club..

West Ham were among the unluckiest teams when it came to injuries, with their injury bill totalling a whopping £12.6 million. The calculator reveals that they would have finished ten league places higher and been in the Champions League next season, if not for injury.

The True Cost of Injury and Ill Discipline allows users to compare injury statistics for all Premier League clubs last season, including the total number of games missed, the average score when a team’s top scorer is injured, the cost to the club in paying injured players, and their estimated league position with no injuries.

Tottenham once again had Harry Kane to thank as they finished in the top three for a third successive year, but the calculator shows Spurs would have slid to sixth position and missed out on a vital Champions League spot if other teams’ top scorers were healthier. North London rivals Arsenal were less fortunate, with Mesut Ozil and Santi Cazorla alone costing the Gunners an eye-watering £5.9 million through absence.

The tool also examines disciplinary records, totalling up every single foul, yellow and red card throughout the season and creating a weighted ranking which reveals which team were the dirtiest, which players committed the most offences and how the table might have looked with better discipline.

Leicester’s Wilfred Ndidi was the dirtiest player, racking up a massive 60 fouls and being one of only two men to receive two red cards during the campaign. Stoke’s poor discipline ultimately got them relegated, as the Potters would have finished 17th with a better record, while Huddersfield would have dropped back down to the Championship with more cards.

The data reveals just how much poor discipline can affect the league table come May, with seemingly innocuous yellow cards soon racking up. Likewise, with the transfer season in full flow, managers might be slightly more reluctant to gamble on an injury-prone player, considering the potential cost of wages and league points.

Most Injured Premier League Players (cost) 2017-18

Most Injured Premier League Teams (cost) 2017-18