Leipzig’s 2021 in numbers
RB Leipzig finished runners up in the Bundesliga and the DFB-Pokal this year | RBL were winners on 24 occasions | Nkunku shines individually
Let’s hear the numbers! Football is more than just statistics, but what’s the harm in looking at them anyway? How many matches did Leipzig play in 2021? Who scored the most goals, who provided the most assists?
Matches and wins
52
RBL played 52 matches, 38 in the league, six in the cup and eight in the Champions League.
24
The team managed 24 wins over the course of the year. 14 of those came between January and May, helping to achieve a second-place finish in the league and a place in the DFB-Pokal final.
49
Christopher Nkunku made the most appearances with 49, even ahead of regular goalkeeper Peter Gulacsi, who was one behind. Joining the two in reaching the 45-appearance mark were Nordi Mukiele (46) and Emil Forsberg (45). 33 players from 16 nations turned out for RBL in 2021.
Goals and assists
95
Leipzig scored 95 goals – an average of 1.83 per game. Their goal difference was 95-70.
19
Christopher Nkunku not only made the most appearances, but also scored the most goals. “Christo” found the net 19 times – eleven times in the Bundesliga, twice in the cup and seven times in the Champions League. Behind him in that particular list was Emil Forsberg with eleven goals, as well as Yussuf Poulsen and Andre Silva who both managed eight. There were 20 different goalscorers this year.
7
Nkunku scored each of his seven Champions League goals in the current season, meaning he did it in just six group-stage matches. He and Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah are joint third in Europe’s most prestigious competition’s list of top scorers, behind Ajax’s Sebastien Haller and FC Bayern München’s Robert Lewandowski.
12
Nkunku also assisted the most goals. The young 24-year-old Frenchman set up 12 goals – ten in the league and two in the DFB-Pokal. Here, his closest competitors were Angelino on ten and Dani Olmo on six.
Shots on goal, passes and more
The numbers for the following categories refer to the Bundesliga.
586
Leipzig had 586 shots for an average of 15.4 per game. Their highest number of attempts in one game was 26 on matchday two of this season in a 4-0 win at VfB Stuttgart.
546
RBL played 546 passes per match for a total of 20,733. The most in one match was on matchday 26 last season in a 1-0 win away at Arminia Bielefeld (890).
84.4
On average, 84.4 percent of those passes were successful. On matchday 26 of 2020/21, the team were also at their most accurate, with a success rate of 91.9 percent. They had their second most precise game in terms of passing (91.3%) on matchday 16 this season in Domenico Tedesco’s second match as head coach.
56.7
Leipzig had 56.7 percent possession per game. On matchday 26 last season, RBL had their highest share of the ball - 74.8 percent. They only saw less of the ball than their opponents on five occasions.