Goals and Expected Goals For and Against France



In this bar chart, we show, for every game played by France in the 2022 World Cup, the goals and expected goals for and against France.


Expected goals is a metric designed to measure the probability of a shot resulting in a goal. Based on multiple informations such as ; historical data, position of shoter, distance from the goal, position of goal keeper and more, the expected goal is an estimation of the likelihood of a goal on a scale between 0 and 1.


For example, a player shoting 1 meter away from the goal while the goalkeeper is laying on the ground could have an expected goal of 0.9, meaning that there is a 90% chance of scoring a goal. On the other hand, a player shoting 30 meters away from the goal while the goalkeeper is up and facing the shot could have an expected goal of 0.1, meaning that there is a 10% chance of scoring a goal.


Expected Goals is a good measure to help determine how lucky or unlucky a team is. Indeed, if a team has a lot of goals scored but a low expected goals, it could mean that the team was lucky and they scored more than they should have. On the other hand, if a team has not a lot of goals scored but a high expected goals, it could mean that the team was unlucky or unable to finish.



Visualisation of some of France’s playstyle and performance against its opponents.


In these graphs, playstyle of France and their opponents is compared. For each game, we show a rectangle representing each team play style. On the X axis, information on passes are displayed while on the Y axis, information on shots are displayed. The darker rectangle represents the number of completed actions (shots and passes), while the dashed rectangle represents the total number of aptempted actions (shots and passes). On top of each graph, a donut chart is showwed, representing the possession of each team. With this vizualisation, one can understand if a team played an aggressive game (few passes, lot of shots) or a more passive game (lot of passes, few shots). It is also possible to see if a team was more efficient than its opponent (more completed actions) or if it was more wasteful (more attempted actions).

France(en bleu) vs Australia (rouge)

France(en bleu) vs Denmark (rouge)

France(en bleu) vs Tunisia (rouge)

France(en bleu) vs Poland (rouge)

France(en bleu) vs England (rouge)

France(en bleu) vs Morocco (rouge)

France(en bleu) vs Argentina (rouge)

Offensive: Goals and Shots


Goals, Shots on Target, and Shots Taken are key statistics in analyzing a team's performance in soccer. Goals represent the number of times a team successfully scores a goal during a match. Shots on Target indicate the number of shots taken by a team that are on target and pose a potential threat to the opponent's goal. Shots Taken represent the total number of shots attempted by a team during a match, including shots that missed the target. This helps to provide an overview of France's offensive performance in the World Cup.

Offensive: Kicks


In soccer, kicks are crucial in determining the outcome of a match. Field Kicks refer to any kick taken during the normal course of play that is not a penalty kick.
Penalty Kicks, on the other hand, are kicks awarded to a team when the opposing team commits a foul inside their own penalty area.
Penalty Kicks Attempted represent the total number of penalty kicks taken by a team during a tournament, including those that were successfully converted into goals and those that were missed.
This allows a comparision of the performance of France's players in these different types of kicks and provides an overview of the team's performance in the offensive kicks category.

Offensive: Expected Goals


Expected Goals (xG) is a statistical measure used to quantify the quality of chances created by a team during a soccer match. The xG value is calculated by analyzing various factors such as the location of the shot, the angle of the shot, the type of pass leading to the shot, and the number of defenders present in the box. A higher xG value indicates a higher likelihood of a goal being scored from a particular shot.

Non-Penalty Expected Goals (npxG) is a subset of xG that excludes penalty kicks from the calculations. It measures the likelihood of a goal being scored from open play situations and thus provides a more accurate assessment of a team's attacking performance.

Defensive: Tackles


Tackles are a key defensive action in soccer that involve a player dispossessing the opponent of the ball through a sliding or standing challenge. Tackles won refer to the percentage of successful tackles made by a player or team, while tackles in different thirds of the field refer to the number of tackles made in specific areas of the field.

Tackles in Defensive 1/3 refer to the number of tackles made in the defensive third of the field, which is the area closest to the team's own goal. Tackles in Middle 1/3 refer to the number of tackles made in the middle third of the field, which is the central area of the field where the game is often played. Tackles in Attacking 1/3 refer to the number of tackles made in the attacking third of the field, which is the area closest to the opponent's goal.

Defensive: Blocks


Defensive Blocks are a key defensive action in soccer that involve a player intercepting or blocking an opponent's shot or pass.

Total Blocks refer to the total number of blocks made by a player or team, while Shots Blocked and Passes Blocked are subsets of Total Blocks that refer to the number of shots or passes blocked respectively.

Shots Blocked refer to the number of shots blocked by a player or team during the tournament. This includes any shot that is either on target or off target.

Passes Blocked refer to the number of passes blocked by a player or team during the tournament. This includes any pass that is intended to go to another player, either on the ground or in the air.

Defensive: Challenges


Defensive Challenges refer to the number of times a player or team attempts to win the ball back from an opponent who is dribbling with the ball. The category includes three subcategories: Number of Dribblers Tackled, Number of Dribblers Challenged, and Number of Unsuccessful Attempts to Challenge a Dribbling Player.

Number of Dribblers Tackled refers to the number of times a player or team successfully tackles an opponent who is dribbling with the ball. This means that the player dispossesses the opponent and gains control of the ball.

Number of Dribblers Challenged refers to the number of times a player or team attempts to tackle an opponent who is dribbling with the ball. This includes both successful and unsuccessful attempts.

Number of Unsuccessful Attempts to Challenge a Dribbling Player refers to the number of times a player or team attempts to tackle an opponent who is dribbling with the ball but fails to win the ball back.

Passing


Passes are an important aspect of soccer that involve a player kicking the ball to a teammate in order to maintain possession of the ball or advance it towards the opposing team's goal.

Total Passes Completed refer to the total number of passes successfully completed by a player or team during the tournament. A pass is considered completed when the intended teammate successfully receives the ball.

Total Passes Attempted refer to the total number of passes attempted by a player or team during the tournament. This includes both successful and unsuccessful passes.

Possessions


Possession is a crucial aspect of soccer that involves a team maintaining control of the ball and preventing the opposing team from gaining possession.

Number of Times a Player Touched a Ball includes all instances where a player comes into contact with the ball, such as passes, dribbles, and shots.

Number of Times a Player Controlled the Ball with Their Feet includes instances where a player receives a pass, dribbles the ball, or takes a shot.

Visualization of Top Player Performances: Comparing France's Best Players to Opposing Teams' Best Player



In order for a national football team like France to succeed, it is important that they function as a cohesive unit and work together towards a common goal. However, there are often only a few players who directly impact the overall performance of the team. Our graph highlights the top players from France and compares them to the top players from other national teams. We have selected two of the best offensive players and two of the best defensive players from France based on their goals and assists in the 2022 World Cup Tournament. These four players are then compared to the average performance of the top 20 players from other national teams, represented by the Baseline.

The radial line graph allows users to view various statistics. Each axis represents a specific statistic, and we evaluate performance using metrics such as minutes played, shots, shots on target, touches, passes, tackles, blocks, and interceptions. Each player is represented by a colored line, and hovering over a player's name makes their corresponding line bold while the other lines remain transparent but visible for player comparisons. Additionally, individual data points can be hovered over to reveal their corresponding values.



As shown in the graph, the 4 players from France have outstanding offensive and defensive statistics compared to other players. Specifically, Mbappe and Giroud have many more shots and shots on target than the average, while Griezmann and Hernandez have many more passes and tackles. Also, their ability to reach the finals despite having fewer touches than the baseline is a testament to their skill level.

France's performance compared to the other countries in the World Cup 2022

This visualization has per goal to display the performance of the France national team in comparison with the other participating teams. The graphs shown above will be replicated for a number of team stats (e.g., goals, yellow cards, red cards, etc.).

The x-axis will contain all the teams in the order of their stats. The light blue color represents the interval of values bigger than France. As for the dark blue color, it represents the interval of values lower than France.

To complement the visualization, a percentage of how they compare with the France national team. The range of graphs will be delimited by the teams with the lowest and highest stat for each category.