Underlying Numbers
Goalscoring
Seike’s 7 goals is the 5th most in the BWSL this season, but that’s not the extent of her contribution. According to Opta Analyst, she has accumulated 5.20 xG, meaning that she has scored 1.80 goals more than an average player would, given the chances she has had. This is a 35% over-performance, which is very high. It’s perhaps unsurprising that her shot conversion (the percentage of shots that are scored) is also very high at 18.9%. Kirsty Hanson (21.4%) is the only player to have taken 35+ shots and have a better conversion rate.
Chance Creation
Although she’s currently Brighton’s primary great scorer, she’s also a fantastic chance creator, especially from open play. So far this season, Seike has created 22 chances from open play, the 8th most in the league and the 2nd most among players outside the top four teams.
The Japanese forward has also registered 3.35 xA (Expected Assists) from open play, according to Opta Analyst. This is the 5th most in the league and can only be topped by players from Arsenal & Manchester City (Hemp, Shaw, Mead, Caldentey), which is certainly good company to be in. Although Seike is over-performing against her xG by 35%, she has only registered 2 assists compared to her xA of 3.35. This demonstrates that the players she is creating chances for are struggling to convert their shots. Excluding Seike, Brighton have scored 14 goals from 17.19 xG, the -3.19 difference is a 19% under-performance. This further shows the reliance Brighton has on Seike.