Player Focus: Most Accurate Crossers

Before the new season begins we've decided to take a look at some of the stats leaders from the previous campaign again, with a run down of the top crossers across Europe's top 5 leagues last season. Players are rated on cross accuracy above any other factor here but must have completed at least 1 accurate cross per game initially, and made at least 20 appearances.

When looking at players to have completed at least 1 cross per game overall, including those who have set-piece responsibilities, it’s clear that the Premier League has a number of experts in the field. Of the top 10 here, 6 played in England's top flight last season, with 2 from the Bundesliga and one apiece from Italy and Spain.

On top of the pile, Norwich's David Fox completes the majority of his crosses from corners, averaging 1.36 accurate deliveries per game overall, and was certainly helped by the presence of target men such as Grant Holt and Steve Morison. Nevertheless, his accuracy of 41.3% is superb and the only figure above the 40% mark in all of Europe.

Fox's teammate Anthony Pilkington also makes the top 10, with a higher percentage of his crosses from open play than any other player here, playing from a wider role. Again, having players who are willing to challenge for every ball into the box helped his accuracy of 34.3%, but his quality should not be underestimated.

Interestingly, two more players who played most of their football from central positions last season, again owing much of their accurate deliveries due to set-piece responsibilities, follow the aforementioned Fox. West Brom's James Morrison ranks second for accuracy, with 39.3% from 1.1 overall accurate crosses per game, while Spurs wantaway Luka Modric is third, with a 37.7% accuracy.

Tamas Hajnal is the first non-Premier League player to make an appearance; with the Stuttgart playmaker averaging an impressive 2 accurate crosses per game. Although over 63% of said crosses came from corners, his 37.1% accuracy is still highly commendable. The second Bundesliga on the leaderboard is Jefferson Farfan, in sixth, whose 36% accuracy comes having taken a far lower percentage of his deliveries from corners (34.7%)

Swansea's Mark Gower (36.8%) and Villa's Barry Bannan (35%) round up our Premier League contingent, with both highly affected by corner taking responsibilities once again. In the case of the latter though, it appears odd that Villa have such a competent set-piece taker and haven't scored from a corner in over 18 months.

While Atletico Madrid's Gabi lies in 10th with a 34% overall accuracy from 1.71 deliveries per game, Andrea Pirlo is the only representative from Serie A and undoubtedly the biggest name in the top 10 here. He leads the list in terms of accurate crosses per game (2.51), though 55.5% of his attempts were from corners. However, having attempted a massive 272 crosses in total, his accuracy from open play also shines and leads us on to our next leaderboard.

As well as include those who may have completed the majority of their crosses from set-pieces, we've taken a look at the players with the best accuracy when discounting corners. In turn we dropped the accurate crosses per game minimum to 0.5, meaning our entire top 10 here found a man with at least ten deliveries over the course of last season.

The swing is quite remarkable when noticing that there are now no Premier League players in the list. This would suggest that while England's elite league has some impressive corner takers, crossing from open play at a similar accuracy is at a real premium. In contrast, Serie A is highly represented this time, with five players, while three Ligue 1 full-backs make an appearance.

At the top of the pile is Juventus midfielder Simone Padoin, signed from Atalanta midway through last season. The 28-year old had a superb 40.5% cross accuracy excluding corner kicks, from 0.6 accurate open play crosses per game. Up next is Toulouse left-back Cheik M'Bengue, with a 38.5% accuracy, followed by Gaetano D'Agostino (38%) and Giampiero Pinzi (37.5%).

However, the only player to make both top 10s here, proving that he is the real master of the art of crossing, is Juventus' Andrea Pirlo. Despite playing from a central position, Pirlo completed a list-high of 1.22 crosses per game excluding corners, with his accuracy of 37.2% actually increasing when corners are discounted.

Chievo right-back Gennaro Sardo (35.6%), Mallorca left-back Pablo Caceres (35.4%), and Ligue 1 full-backs Siaka Tiene (34.2%) and Anthony Reveillere (33.9%) sit either side of the only real winger in the top 10, in Jose Antonio Reyes. The Sevilla attacker completed 0.59 crosses per game excluding corners, with a 34.5% accuracy from his attempts, but it is Pirlo who stands out across the board, and his form shows no signs of abating after an excellent Euro 2012.

Chievo right-back Gennaro Sardo (35.6%), Mallorca left-back Pablo Caceres (35.4%), and Ligue 1 full-backs Siaka Tiene (34.2%) and Anthony Reveillere (33.9%) sit either side of the only real winger in the top 10, in Jose Antonio Reyes. The Sevilla attacker completed 0.59 crosses per game excluding corners, with a 34.5% accuracy from his attempts, but it is Pirlo who stands out across the board, and his form shows no signs of abating after an excellent Euro 2012.