To Score or Assist – Top 5 Leagues Players

How the ranking is calculated

Players are ranked using a combined score that estimates their likelihood of contributing to a goal, either by scoring or by assisting, in the upcoming match. The ranking is match-specific and adjusts each player’s profile according to the defensive tendencies of the opponent. To ensure fair comparisons, only players above a minimum playing-time threshold are included and every metric is converted into a percentile score within the dataset.

• Scoring contribution score evaluates how strong a player’s goal-scoring profile is. It combines non-penalty expected goals, expected goals per ninety minutes, total shots, shots on target and touches inside the opponent’s penalty area. This profile is then adjusted using the defensive behaviour of the opponent, including how many non-penalty expected goals and shots on target they typically concede and how often they allow dangerous attacking actions. A small finishing adjustment is applied using the difference between goals and expected goals while limiting extreme values.
• Assisting contribution score evaluates how strong a player’s chance creation profile is. It combines expected assists, key passes, passes into the penalty area, actual assists and goal-creating actions. This score is adjusted using the tendency of the opponent to concede creative actions, such as allowing passes into the penalty area, key passes, crosses into the box and touches inside their own penalty area.
• Final combination merges the scoring and assisting scores into a single value that rewards players who excel in either pathway and especially those whose opponent shows defensive vulnerability in both scoring and creative phases.

The final ranking combines two independent models — one for scoring and one for assisting — into a single goal-or-assist score. Players are ranked according to this combined score for the upcoming fixture and its specific opponent.