Here at Opta, we love it when a significant record gets broken.
Only recently, James Milner took the record for the most appearances in the Premier League.
Then, on Saturday, a player almost exactly 24 years Milner’s junior became the youngest ever goalscorer in the competition, funnily enough, a record the former Leeds man once held.
When Max Dowman was born on 31 December 2009, X Factor winner Joe McElderry was top of the UK music charts with ‘The Climb’, while new releases in the cinema included classics such as Avatar, Invictus, and Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakuel.
Dowman’s goal for Arsenal against Everton also helped the Gunners further secure their position at the summit of the Premier League, and in this week’s SVQ, we’ll dive deeper into the significance of the 16-year-old’s historic moment.
Our Ask Opta question this week enquires about players who have had a lot of joy in a particular stadium as a visiting player, while in honour of Dowman’s achievement, our quiz is all about the Premier League’s youngest goalscorers.
We’ll start with another interesting stat from the weekend in the Premier League, though, as Manchester City’s title challenge suffered another setback.
⚽️ STAT - One-Shot Wonders
After a chastening evening in Spain in midweek when they lost 3-0 to Real Madrid in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League last-16 tie, Manchester City could really have done with a morale-boosting win against relegation-threatened West Ham on Saturday, especially after seeing Arsenal’s late victory against Everton.
Bernardo Silva’s either brilliant or accidental goal to put City ahead seemed to suggest it would be a routine night for Pep Guardiola’s side, only for former Arsenal defender Konstantinos Mavropanos to equalise, and the visitors failed to respond.
No team had recorded fewer than three shots in a Premier League match this season prior to the weekend, but Mavropanos’ header was the only effort the Hammers managed all game. It was an important one, though, as it secured them a 1-1 draw.
It was only the seventh time on record (since 2003-04) that a Premier League team has drawn a game despite only having one shot.
However, there have been two incidents of a team drawing having had no shots at all.