Seven expected goals a game. Read that again.
Benevento have put together a run of four Club Friendlies that reads like a typo. Twenty-eight goals scored, an average expected goals figure of 7.00 per match, numbers that sit far outside anything normally seen even in the most attack-minded corners of the professional game.
The numbers
- 7.00 xG per game across the sample
- 28 goals scored in the last four matches
- An average of 7 goals per game to match the underlying expected goals figure almost exactly
What stands out is not just the goal tally but how closely it tracks the expected goals model. A team can score heavily through a purple patch of finishing, but when the goals and the xG line up this tightly, it points to a side that is simply generating an avalanche of clear-cut chances rather than riding a hot streak of shooting.
Context matters
These figures come from Club Friendlies fixtures, not a domestic league campaign, and friendly matches often carry different stakes, different squad rotations and, at times, mismatched opposition. That context does not erase the scale of the output, but it does mean the numbers should be read as a snapshot of pre-season or off-cycle fixtures rather than a competitive league form guide.
Even with that caveat attached, a 7.00 xG average across four matches is the kind of figure that gets flagged the moment it appears in the raw data. Whether it is a sign of a squad building serious attacking cohesion or simply a run of matches against opposition that could not cope, the sheer volume of created chances is hard to ignore.