Five Goals Missing

The ball keeps arriving; the goals do not. On 17 May, Álex’s Spanish First Division return for Getafe stands at four goals from 57 shots, with 22 on target and expected goals of 9.0. The arithmetic leaves him five goals short of that mark, and his conversion rate is 7 per cent.

His last league goal came on 4 November. Since then, 22 league games have passed without another. The gap has widened since By the Numbers last examined his figures on 26 April: expected goals have risen from 8.8 to 9.0, while his total remains four. The shots have risen from 56 to 57. The opportunities are not taking the hint.

For Getafe, the cost is plain enough: a striker’s chances have supplied the expectation of nine goals, but only four have gone on the board. Over 34 league games, that is a sizeable shortfall to carry. Álex is 33 and has spent his club career at Getafe, scoring 122 times in 343 games. This season’s figures are a less generous chapter.

Still, the useful part of the story is that the chances keep coming. Twenty-two shots have been on target; the problem is finishing, not a vanished supply. Álex is a Getafe supporter himself, and remains very happy at the club. His ambition has not been dulled by a run long enough to make every blank feel like a statistic.

Four goals from 9.0 expected is the present account. One well-timed finish would make the next column easier to write; until then, Getafe have 57 shots to show that the door has not closed.