Skip to content
Insporta Book
en
EnglishРусскийDeutschEspañolEestiSuomiItalianoFrançaisPolski日本語한국어中文
FootballCricketFutsalTriathlonTennisGolfFigure SkatingBasketballMethodologyWhy it worksTake a test

Football · Level 8: Expert · Sub-level 8.81

Expected Assists (xA)

10 tests · 100 facts · updated 12 October 2026 · markdown

Expected assists and the numbers around them: key passes, chances created, shot- and goal-creating actions, crosses and cut-backs, and the assist records they are measured against.

Each test below is ten questions on Insporta. The list under a test is what the questions check: one fact per question, with the source it was written from. Read it before the test, or come back from a wrong answer.

Test 1xA against assistsTake a test

  1. Expected assists value each chance a pass sets up, so the total reflects chance quality rather than whether team-mates scored.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  2. An assist needs a goal, so a creator with poor finishers around him looks worse than he is; xA credits the chance itself.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  3. Assists above xA usually mean the shots after his passes went in more often than their quality predicts, which tends not to last.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  4. A shot-based model hands the xG of the resulting shot to the passer, so the pass is worth exactly what the shot is worth.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  5. Assists swing on single finishes; xA moves with the chances he creates, which is steadier from one run of matches to the next.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  6. A 30-metre screamer is a low-xG shot, so the pass before it earns little xA even though it goes down as an assist.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  7. Expected goal involvement is the sum of a player's own expected goals and the expected assists of his passes.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  8. A pass in his own half rarely leads to a shot at all, crosses from deep produce poor headers, and cut-backs give shots facing goal.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  9. The pass itself is valued through the shot it leads to, which is why a pass that produces no shot earns no xA in such a model.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  10. No goal means no assist, but the chance was created, so the pass still adds its value to 8's xA.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

Test 2Key passes and chances createdTake a test

  1. Opta logs a key pass when the recipient shoots without scoring; if the shot goes in, the pass is an assist instead.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  2. Every final pass to a shot is a chance created: an assist if it is scored, a key pass if it is not.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  3. Key passes are final passes to shots that miss, are saved or are blocked, so none of them became an assist.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  4. A pass that sets up a 30-metre speculative shot and one that sets up a tap-in are one key pass each; xA tells them apart.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  5. Big chances are judged by the data collectors, typically one-on-ones or close-range shots with little pressure.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  6. A delivery that finds a head for an attempt at goal is a key pass, so a regular corner taker collects many of them.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  7. More key passes from far out may only mean more low-value shots; the location and quality of those shots show whether he is creating more.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  8. The closer the ball arrives to goal, the more often the move ends in an attempt.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  9. Chances created are key passes plus assists, and a creator's passes that lead to shots are only a small share of all his passes.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  10. The pass led directly to a shot that was not scored, which is exactly a key pass.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

Test 3Shot- and goal-creating actionsTake a test

  1. FBref credits the two offensive actions that directly lead to a shot, whoever makes them.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  2. Take-ons, fouls drawn, shots that lead to another shot and defensive actions that lead to a shot all count.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  3. The same two actions are counted, but only when the shot they lead to goes in.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  4. A successful take-on that leads to a shot is credited, so a player who beats defenders creates even when someone else makes the final pass.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  5. A shot that leads to another shot counts as a creating action, and here the second shot was scored.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  6. The two actions before the header are the foul drawn and the free-kick delivery, and only the first is the winger's.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  7. It captures the different ways a player sets up shots without needing the shot to be scored.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  8. The move runs forward in sequence: the left-back feeds midfield, the midfielder beats his man and then releases the striker, who scores. Read backwards from the goal, that pass and the take-on are the two goal-creating actions credited.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  9. Up to two actions are credited per shot, key passes are one per unscored shot, and goals are rarer than shots.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  10. The two offensive actions before 9's shot are the passes from 6 and 8; the shot itself is not one of them.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

Test 4Assist recordsTake a test

  1. De Bruyne's 20 for Manchester City in 2019-20 matched Thierry Henry's 2002-03 total.

    Source: Premier League, Bundesliga and La Liga records (Opta) · recall

  2. Giggs made 162 Premier League assists for Manchester United between 1992 and 2014.

    Source: Premier League, Bundesliga and La Liga records (Opta) · recall

  3. De Bruyne had set 20 at Wolfsburg in 2014-15; Müller passed it on the last day of 2019-20.

    Source: Premier League, Bundesliga and La Liga records (Opta) · recall

  4. Assists are a statistic, not part of the Laws; systematic collection by data companies only came in the 1990s.

    Source: Premier League, Bundesliga and La Liga records (Opta) · applied

  5. Data providers credit the assist if the touch did not significantly alter the ball's direction or speed.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  6. The fantasy game credits the player who won the penalty; Opta's assist needs a pass, cross or similar touch to the scorer.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  7. Messi's assists for Barcelona between 2004 and 2021 are the most in La Liga history.

    Source: Premier League, Bundesliga and La Liga records (Opta) · recall

  8. Henry set his in 2002-03, De Bruyne his in 2014-15 and Müller his in 2019-20.

    Source: Premier League, Bundesliga and La Liga records (Opta) · recall

  9. Giggs made 162, Fàbregas 111, Rooney 103 and Lampard 102.

    Source: Premier League, Bundesliga and La Liga records (Opta) · recall

  10. Özil's 19 for Arsenal in 2015-16 fell one short of Henry's 20; De Bruyne equalled Henry in 2019-20.

    Source: Premier League, Bundesliga and La Liga records (Opta) · recall

Test 5Crosses and xATake a test

  1. Many crosses meet a defender first, and those that reach an attacker usually give a contested header rather than a clean shot.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  2. Every xG model rates a header below a shot with the foot from the same place, which is one reason crosses carry little xA.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  3. The defence is retreating while the shooter arrives on the ball with his whole body facing the goal.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  4. Volume is not quality: many crosses from deep produce few shots, and the shots they do produce are poor.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  5. Alexander-Arnold beat his own mark of 12 from the season before; much of his output came from crosses and set pieces.

    Source: Premier League, Bundesliga and La Liga records (Opta) · recall

  6. A corner or wide free kick arrives into a box both teams have organised, so its value behaves differently from a cross in open play.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  7. Teams that cannot get through the middle go round the outside, and the low-value crosses that follow show it.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  8. The closer the delivery is played from the goal line, and the lower it is, the better the shot it tends to produce.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  9. Getting to the line pulls the defence back, and the pull-back finds the space they have left in front of them.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  10. The cut-back finds a runner facing goal near the penalty spot; the cross from deep usually ends in a contested header.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

Test 6xA from set piecesTake a test

  1. A regular corner and free-kick taker collects xA from dead balls, which can flatter his creativity when the ball is moving.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  2. A direct free kick is a shot, not a pass, so there is no assisting pass for xA to value.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  3. Many corners are cleared first, and the headers that follow are contested, so the average chance per corner is small.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  4. Penalties are worth about three-quarters of a goal each and go to whoever takes them, so they are stripped out to compare open creativity.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  5. xA goes to the last pass before the shot, and here that is the cross after the short routine.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  6. Event data records throw-ins as a type of pass, so one that finds a head for an attempt carries xA like any other.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  7. Set-piece xA is the value of the shots dead-ball deliveries create, so a rise means those deliveries lead to better chances.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  8. A long-range free kick rarely goes in, a header from a corner more often, and a penalty is scored about three times in four.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  9. Dividing by the number of corners turns a total into a rate, which is fair between takers who get different numbers of corners.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  10. The corner is the pass that led to the shot, so its value as a chance goes to the taker.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

Test 7Through balls and passes behind the lineTake a test

  1. A pass that takes the receiver past the last line usually leaves him alone with the goalkeeper, one of the best chances in football.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  2. Data providers tag a through ball when the pass goes between or past the defenders into space behind them.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  3. They are aimed at small gaps behind a defence, so defenders and goalkeepers claim a large share of them.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  4. Offside stops play before any shot, so a shot-based xA model has nothing to credit.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  5. A line holding near halfway leaves forty metres behind it, which a well-timed pass and run can exploit.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  6. Messi's chipped passes to Alba's runs from left-back became one of the most repeated patterns of Barcelona's attack.

    Source: Match reports (BBC Sport, ESPN, club reports) · recall

  7. The further the run, the more time defenders and the goalkeeper have to recover, so the shot that follows is usually worse.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  8. The run has to be timed with the pass: moving too early is offside, too late and the space has closed.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  9. Short passes are completed most often; long switches less so, and passes into the space behind a defence least of all.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  10. The pass splits the away back four and sends 9 into the space behind them, which is a through ball.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

Test 8xA and the finishing of team-matesTake a test

  1. When his passes led to good chances that were not taken, the assists stay low while the xA shows the chances were there.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  2. One season holds few chances per creator; over hundreds of them, lucky and unlucky finishes cancel out more and more.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  3. The chances he creates are converted more often, so the same quality of passing produces more assists.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  4. The passer decides the pass; whether the chance becomes a goal depends on the team-mate's shot and the goalkeeper.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  5. The better side has better finishers and more of the ball, so assists reward the team around the creator as much as him.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  6. Every missed big chance is also a lost assist for the player who made the pass.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  7. A gap that lasts for years is less likely to be luck; the usual explanation is the finishing quality around him.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  8. The creator's gap is explained by the finishers' gap, which is where the check has to go.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  9. The passer controls his own pass fully, affects the first touch partly, and has almost no say in the finish.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  10. A made 12 assists from 7 xA; that kind of overperformance usually shrinks, while B is due more and C is level.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

Test 9xGChain and xGBuildupTake a test

  1. Every player who touches the ball in a possession that ends in a shot is credited with that shot's full xG.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  2. Removing the key pass and the shot leaves the credit for the players who built the move earlier.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  3. Lawrence proposed both measures to credit players whose passes start attacks rather than finish them.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  4. Players who make the passes before the final ball earn nothing in xA; xGBuildup gives them a number.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  5. Understat lists both measures for players in the big European leagues next to xG and xA.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · recall

  6. A ball-playing centre-back touches the ball in many possessions, but rarely makes the final pass.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  7. A simple sideways pass and the pass that broke the defence earn the same share, however different their value.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  8. The per-90 step makes players with different minutes comparable.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  9. xA credits the one final pass, shot-creating actions the last two actions, and xGChain everybody in the possession.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  10. xGBuildup leaves out the shot by 9 and the key pass by 10, so the credit goes to the three players before them.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

Test 10Reading an xA tableTake a test

  1. A regular who plays every minute will pile up more xA than a substitute; per 90 puts them on the same footing.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  2. A few good passes in a handful of matches can produce an extreme rate that longer spells rarely sustain.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  3. A winger or number 10 is expected to set up shots; a holding midfielder's job gives him far fewer chances to.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  4. Set pieces can dominate a taker's total, so an open-play figure shows how much he creates when the ball is moving.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  5. Penalties, direct free kicks, shots after a dribble or a loose ball have xG but no pass to credit.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  6. The same total from fewer passes means each of the second player's passes set up a better shot.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  7. Each provider trains its own model on its own data, so the same pass can be worth different amounts.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  8. Filtering and scaling come first; only then do positional comparisons and luck checks mean something.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  9. He completes dozens of passes a match, makes a couple of key passes, and those add up to a few tenths of an expected assist.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

  10. D's rate comes from little more than three full matches, far too few to separate skill from a lucky run.

    Source: Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions) · applied

Sources

IFAB Laws of the Game / FIFA & UEFA technical reports / Opta, StatsBomb and FBref definitions / club and analyst publications / peer-reviewed research

  • Football analytics literature (Opta, StatsBomb, FBref definitions)90
  • Premier League, Bundesliga and La Liga records (Opta)9
  • Match reports (BBC Sport, ESPN, club reports)1