Behind The Numbers: Van Persie's century

This week Arsenal statistician Josh James takes an in-depth look at Robin van Persie’s first 100 goals for the Club.

Robin van Persie became the 17th member of Arsenal’s '100 Club' when he scored his second goal against Bolton on Saturday.

Click here for a special 'Infographic' on Robin's century

The Dutchman brought up the landmark achievement in his 238th game for the Club, meaning his ton of goals have come at a rate of one in every 2.38 appearances. However, Robin started just 174 of those games, coming on as sub in the other 64. The breakdown of goals per competition is: 69 in the Premier League (2.35 games per goal), 17 in the Champions League (2.76 gpg), eight in the FA Cup (2 gpg) and six in the Carling Cup (1.83 gpg).

So he is the 17th player overall to reach the landmark, and the third during Arsène Wenger’s reign. Thierry Henry and Dennis Bergkamp both achieved the feat within eight days of each other in early 2003 (Bergkamp at home to Oxford on January 4, Henry at Birmingham on January 12).

Robin was the 12th fastest to 100 in terms of games; Ted Drake brought up his century in a remarkable 108 outings. The full '100 Club' is as follows:

	Dates at Arsenal	League	FA Cup	League Cup	Europe	Charity Shield	Total goals	Total games	100th goal game
1. Thierry Henry	1999-2007	174	7	2	42	1	226	370	181
2. Ian Wright	1991-1998	128	12	29	15	1	185	288	143
3. Cliff Bastin	1929-1946	150	26	0	0	2	178	396	174
4. John Radford	1962-1976	111	15	12	11	0	149	481	306
5. Jimmy Brain	1923-1931	125	14	0	0	0	139	232	144
6. Ted Drake	1934-1945	124	12	0	0	3	139	184	108
7. Doug Lishman	1948-1956	125	10	0	0	2	137	244	163
8. Joe Hulme	1926-1938	107	17	0	0	1	125	374	307
9. David Jack	1928-1934	113	10	0	0	1	124	208	156
10. Dennis Bergkamp	1995-2006	87	14	8	11	0	120	423	296
11. Reg Lewis	1935-1953	103	13	0	0	2	118	176	152
12. Alan Smith	1987-1995	86	6	16	7	0	115	347	251
13. Jack Lambert	1926-1933	98	11	0	0	0	109	161	149
14. Frank Stapleton	1972-1981	75	15	14	4	0	108	300	276
15. David Herd	1954-1961	97	10	0	0	0	107	180	165
16. Joe Baker	1962-1966	93	4	0	3	0	100	156	152
17. Robin van Persie	2004-	69	8	6	17	0	100	238	238

Robin’s first Arsenal goal came in the Carling Cup, against Manchester City on October 27, 2004 – he grabbed the opening goal in a 2-1 Third-Round win at the City of Manchester Stadium. Robin went on to notch 10 goals in his debut season, and his seasonal tallies since then have been as follows:

Robin’s stats for this calendar year are incredible. Since January 1, 2011 he has scored 26 goals in 31 games at a rate of one goal every 100.3 minutes of playing time. This run includes setting a new Premier League record for consecutive away games scored in (nine, between January 1 and May 22). He’s also scored six times for Holland in 2011, taking his international tally to 25 in 58 games.

Maybe swapping his shirt number helped? Robin switched from 11 to 10 at the start of last season and has scored 27 in 41 games (1.5 gpg) in his new shirt, compared to 73 in 197 (2.7 gpg) in the number 11.

As well as his 100 goals for the Club, Robin has also racked up 51 assists. But who has been the chief creator for Robin’s goals? Well, fittingly, the man who set up his 100th goal – Theo Walcott – has laid on more than any other player for the Dutchman. Assists have been credited for 85 of his 100 strikes, and Walcott has contributed 15 of them, ahead of Cesc Fabregas (12). The full list is:

Assists for Robin's 100

15	Theo Walcott
12	Cesc Fabregas
5	Alex Hleb, Bacary Sagna
4	Emmanuel Adebayor, Emmanuel Eboue
3	Nicklas Bendtner, Samir Nasri, Jose Antonio Reyes
2	Andrey Arshavin, Sol Campbell, Abou Diaby, Mathieu Flamini, Tomas Rosicky, Alex Song, Kolo Toure
1	Dennis Bergkamp, Marouane Chamakh, Gael Clichy, Ashley Cole, Denilson, Eduardo, Gervinho, Gilberto, Thierry Henry, Carl Jenkinson, Sebastian Larsson, Lauren, Freddie Ljungberg, Arturo Lupoli, Jermaine Pennant, Aaron Ramsey, Patrick Vieira
15	No assist credited

Not surprisingly, Robin is the record goalscorer at Emirates Stadium (44), he notched 12 at Highbury, 41 in away matches and three on neutral grounds (the Millennium Stadium and Wembley).

The team against whom he has scored most is Blackburn (10). He has scored against 42 different teams, including each of the other Premier League outfits, apart from the three newly-promoted sides – Swansea, Norwich and QPR.

His only hat-trick to date was at home to Wigan last season, while Saturday’s double was his 17th brace for Arsenal.

It’s been a case of quantity and quality though – he won the BBC Goal of the Month award for his goal against Liverpool in December 2008, an award he had also claimed in September 2006 for a spectacular volley away at Charlton. Famed for his tremendous left foot, Robin has also netted five direct free-kicks for the Gunners.

According to Opta stats, the vast majority of Robin’s goals were scored with his left foot (71) compared to 23 with his right (which he has christened his ‘chocolate leg’) and six with his head. Twelve were scored outside the box, 88 inside, including 12 penalties.

Robin’s 100 goals
* = penalty

20011/12

Date	Competition	Team	Score	Goals
Sept 24, 2011	Premier League	Bolton Wanderers	3-0	2
Sept 13, 2011	Champions League	Borussia Dortmund	1-1	1
Aug 28, 2011	Premier League	Manchester United	2-8	1
Aug 24, 2011	Champions League	Udinese	2-1	1
Season total				5

2010/11

Date	Competition	Team	Score	Goals
May 22, 2011	Premier League	Fulham	2-2	1
May 15, 2011	Premier League	Aston Vila	1-2	1
May 8, 2011	Premier League	Stoke City	1-3	1
Apr 24, 2011	Premier League	Bolton Wanderers	1-2	1
Apr 20, 2011	Premier League	Tottenham	3-3	1
Apr 17, 2011	Premier League	Liverpool	1-1	1*
Apr 10, 2011	Premier League	Blackpool	3-1	1
Mar 19, 2011	Premier League	West Bromwich Albion	2-2	1
Feb 27, 2011	Carling Cup	Birmingham City	1-2	1
Feb 16, 2011	Champions League	Barcelona	2-1	1
Feb 12, 2011	Premier League	Wolverhampton Wanderers	2-0	2
Feb 5, 2011	Premier League	Newcastle United	4-4	2
Jan 22, 2011	Premier League	Wigan Athletic	3-0	3
Jan 19, 2011	FA Cup	Leeds United	3-1	1
Jan 15, 2011	Premier League	West Ham United	3-0	2*
Jan 1, 2011	Premier League	Birmingham City	3-0	1
Dec 8, 2010	Champions League	Partizan Belgrade	3-1	1*
Season total				22

2009/10

Date	Competition	Team	Score	Goals
May 9, 2010	Premier League	Fulham	4-0	1
May 3, 2010	Premier League	Blackburn Rovers	1-2	1
Oct 31, 2009	Premier League	Tottenham Hotspur	3-0	2
Oct 25, 2009	Premier League	West Ham United	2-2	1
Oct 17, 2009	Premier League	Birmingham City	3-1	1
Oct 4, 2009	Premier League	Blackburn Rovers	6-2	1
Sept 30, 2009	Champions League	Olympiacos	2-1	1
Sept 26, 2009	Premier League	Fulham	1-0	1
Sept 12, 2009	Premier League	Manchester City	2-4	1
Season toal				10

2008/09

Date	Competition	Team	Score	Goals
May 24, 2009	Premier League	Stoke City	4-1	2*
May 5, 2009	Champions League	Manchester United	1-3	1*
Apr 15, 2009	Champions League	Villarreal	3-0	1*
Mar 17, 2009	FA Cup	Hull City	2-1	1
Feb 24, 2009	Champions League	AS Roma	1-0	1
Feb 16, 2009	FA Cup	Cardiff City	4-0	1
Jan 28, 2009	Premier League	Everton	1-1	1
Jan 3, 2009	FA Cup	Plymouth Argyle	3-1	2
Dec 21, 2008	Premier League	Liverpool	1-1	1
Nov 30, 2008	Premier League	Chelsea	2-1	2
Oct 29, 2008	Premier League	Tottenham Hotspur	4-4	1
Oct 18 2008	Premier League	Everton	3-1	1
Sept 30, 2008	Champions League	Porto	4-0	2
Sep 13, 2008	Premier League	Blackburn Rovers	4-0	1
Aug 30, 2008	Premier League	Newcastle United	3-0	2*
Season total				20

2007/08

Date	Competition	Team	Score	Goals
Apr 28, 2008	Premier League	Derby County	6-2	1
Mar 29, 2008	Premier League	Bolton Wanderers	3-2	1*
Oct 7, 2007	Premier League	Sunderland	3-2	2
Oct 2, 2007	Champions League	Steaua Bucharest	1-0	1
Sept 29, 2007	Premier League	West Ham United	1-0	1
Sept 19, 2007	Champions League	Sevilla	3-0	1
Aug 19, 2007	Premier League	Blackburn Rovers	1-1	1
Aug 12, 2007	Premier League	Fulham	2-1	1*
Season total				9

2006/07

Date	Competition	Team	Score	Goals
Jan 21, 2007	Premier League	Manchester United	2-1	1
Jan 2, 2007	Premier League	Charlton Athletic	4-0	2*
Dec 26, 2006	Premier League	Watford	2-1	1
Dec 23, 2006	Premier League	Blackburn Rovers	6-2	2
Nov 29, 2006	Premier League	Fulham	1-2	1
Nov 21, 2006	Champions League	Hamburg	3-1	1
Oct 28, 2006	Premier League	Everton	1-1	1
Oct 22, 2006	Premier League	Reading	4-0	1
Sept 30, 2006	Premier League	Charlton Athletic	2-1	2
Aug 8, 2006	Champions League	Dinamo Zagreb	3-0	1
Season total				13

2005/06

Date	Competition	Team	Score	Goals
Apr 1 2006	Premier League	Aston Villa	5-0	1
Jan 24 2006	Carling Cup	Wigan Athletic	2-1	1
Nov 29 2005	Carling Cup	Reading	3-0	1
Nov 26 2005	Premier League	Blackburn Rovers	3-0	1
Nov 19 2005	Premier League	Wigan Athletic	3-2	1
Nov 5 2005	Premier League	Sunderland	3-1	1
Nov 2 2005	Champions League	Sparta Prague	3-0	2
Oct 25 2005	Carling Cup	Sunderland	3-0	2*
Aug 14 2005	Premier League	Newcastle United	2-0	1
Season total				11

2004/05

Date	Competition	Team	Score	Goals
May 11 2005	Premier League	Everton	7-0	1
May 2 2005	Premier League	West Bromwich Albion	2-0	1
Apr 16 2005	FA Cup	Blackburn Rovers	3-0	2
Mar 19 2005	Premier League	Blackburn Rovers	1-0	1
Jan 9 2005	FA Cup	Stoke City	2-1	1
Jan 1 2005	Premier League	Charlton Athletic	3-1	1
Dec 7 2004	Champions League	Rosenborg	5-1	1
Oct 30 2004	Premier League	Southampton	2-2	1
Oct 27 2004	Carling Cup	Manchester City	2-1	1
Season total				10

Teams scored against

10	Blackburn Rovers
5	Charlton Athletic, Sunderland, Wigan Athletic, Newcastle United, Fulham
4	Stoke City, Everton, West Ham United, Bolton Wanderers, Tottenham Hotspur
3	Manchester United, Birmingham City
2	Sparta Prague, West Bromwich Albion, Manchester City, Reading, Aston Villa, Porto, Chelsea, Liverpool, Plymouth Argyle, Wolves
1	Rosenborg, Southampton, Watford, Dinamo Zagreb, Hamburg, Sevilla, Steaua Bucharest, Derby County, Cardiff City, AS Roma, Hull City, Villarreal, Olympiacos, Partizan Belgrade, Leeds United, Barcelona, Blackpool, Udinese, Borussia Dortmund

If Robin continues his current form, then he can move up the Club’s all-time scoring charts relatively quickly.

He is currently joint 16th highest scorer for Arsenal with Joe Baker, having overtaken the 17th highest scorer on Saturday – Paul Merson finished his Gunners career stuck on 99 goals. David Herd (107), Frank Stapleton (108) and Jack Lambert (109) are all within ten strikes of Robin now, while his compatriot Dennis Bergkamp could yet be surpassed by the end of the season – he finished with 120 goals for Arsenal.

As for the very top of the tree, Robin will have to more than double his current tally to reach Thierry Henry, who remains the Club’s record scorer with 226 – the only man to reach the double century.

Josh James also provides the stats for the Arsenal Analysis pages of the matchday programme. To subscribe, or buy online, click here.

[Monday, September 26, 2011]

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