Newcastle United have been accused of implementing game delaying tactics and timewasting throughout the season.
Although game management is something that is used by every team in the division, Newcastle have seemingly bore the brunt of these complaints.
And whilst Newcastle certainly don’t shy away from the ‘dark arts’ - are complaints about their tactics justified by the data? Or do the underlying numbers paint a different picture to what is actually going on?
To discover this here we have used data provided by OPTA, to take a look at the average time it takes each Premier League team to restart play from a goal-kick - just one way to judge the amount of time teams can ‘waste’ without the ball being in-play.
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(note: data correct at time of writing)
1. Nick Pope
How long does it take, on average, for Newcastle United and their Premier League rivals to restart play from a goal-kick? (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images) Photo: Laurence Griffiths
2. Liverpool
According to OPTA, Liverpool take an average of 21.5 seconds to restart play from a goal kick. Photo: Nathan Stirk
3. Manchester City
According to OPTA, Manchester City take an average of 24.1 seconds to restart play from a goal kick. Photo: Ryan Pierse
4. Leicester City
According to OPTA, Leicester City take an average of 24.6 seconds to restart play from a goal kick. Photo: David Rogers