The stats behind Cunha’s Premier League prowess

The stats behind Cunha’s Premier League prowess

Opta have analysed Matheus Cunha’s fabulous season at Wolves in some depth, showcasing just how impressive his Premier League output was in 2024/25.

The Brazil forward, set to complete a move to Manchester United after an agreement was reached with the Black Country club, signed off his time at Molineux in fine style, by registering 15 goals in the division.

The tally left him in joint-eighth spot in the overall scorers chart, level with Chelsea’s Cole Palmer. None of those Cunha’s strikes were penalties, though, unlike a number of the other leading marksmen, and, of course, he does not play as an out-and-out striker.

NON-PENALTY GOALS IN 2024/25 PREMIER LEAGUE

1. Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) – 20
2. Erling Haaland (Man City) – 19
2. Alexander Isak (Newcastle) – 19
2. Yoane Wissa (Brentford) -19
4. Chris Wood (Nottingham Forest) – 17
5. MATHEUS CUNHA (WOLVES) – 15
5. Bryan Mbuemo (Brentford) – 15

Cunha in action against United Video

Cunha in action against United

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Only eight players logged more goal involvements, when also taking assists into account, with the 26-year-old’s 21 the same as West Ham United’s Jarrod Bowen.

And Reds fans can expect plenty of strikes from the South American, who is not shy when it comes to taking a pop at goal.

He ranked highly in both the shots and shots-on-target categories tracked by Opta over the course of the campaign.

TOTAL SHOTS

1. Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) – 130
2. Cole Palmer (Chelsea) – 126
3. Antoine Semenyo (Bournemouth) – 125
4. MATHEUS CUNHA (WOLVES) – 110
5. Erling Haaland (Man City) – 108

SHOTS ON TARGET

1. Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) – 61
2. Erling Haaland (Man City) – 60
3. Cole Palmer (Chelsea) – 51
4. Alexander Isak (Newcastle) – 46
5. MATHEUS CUNHA (WOLVES) – 44

Only one man bagged as many goals from outside the area as Cunha, United skipper Bruno Fernandes, and it is worth flagging that our new boy also hit a sensational long-ranger at Bournemouth in one of his two Emirates FA Cup outings in 2024/25.

And watch out for his venomous right foot, as the stats show only Alexander Isak of Newcastle United claimed more with his than the former Atletico Madrid ace.

GOALS FROM OUTSIDE THE BOX

1. MATHEUS CUNHA (WOLVES) – 5
1. BRUNO FERNANDES (UNITED) – 5
3. Mateo Kovacic (Man City) – 4
3. Callum Hudson-Odoi (Man City) – 4
3. Cole Palmer (Chelsea) – 4

RIGHT-FOOTED GOALS

1. Alexander Isak (Newcastle) – 17
2. MATHEUS CUNHA (WOLVES) – 13
3. Justin Kluivert (Bournemouth) – 11
4. Yoane Wissa (Brentford) – 10
5. Chris Wood (Nottingham Forest) – 9

Only Newcastle’s Bruno Guimaraes was fouled more often than Cunha in the top flight and his 15 goals were the joint-most by a Brazilian in the division in a single season, matching the record set by Liverpool’s Roberto Firmino in 2017/18 and Gabriel Martinelli’s 2022/23 tally.

Another point of note is how well Cunha outperformed his expected-goals figure. Only Bryan Mbuemo of Brentford and Nottingham Forest centre-forward Chris Wood did better in this respect, when their xG has been calculated.

EXPECTED-GOALS DIFFERENTIAL

1. Bryan Mbuemo (Brentford) – 20 goals | 12.3 xG | +7.7
2. Chris Wood (Nottingham Forest) – 20 goals | 13.4 xG | +6.7
3. MATHEUS CUNHA (WOLVES) – 15 goals | 8.6 xG | +6.4
4. Jarrod Bowen – 13 goals | 8.7 xG | +4.4
5. Alex Iwobi (Fulham) – 9 goals | 4.7 xG | +4.3

Recommended:

• Cunha’s career to date

   Gallery

  These pictures take you through Matheus’s days so far, including spells in Switzerland, Germany, Spain.

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