One fantasy football tactic that’s always worth considering is picking a team’s penalty taker.
After all, if you’re undecided between two Bournemouth defenders it makes sense to go for the one who’ll have a chance of scoring when his team gets awarded a penalty.
GetWestLondon have taken a look to see which players from each Premier League team are most likely to be taking their team’s penalties next season, and which have the best records when they’re on the spot.
Arsenal
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
Olivier Giroud: 1 (1)
Santi Cazorla 1 (0)
The Gunners were only awarded two penalties in the league last season.
Olivier Giroud took one, which he scored, while Santi Cazorla took the other, which he didn’t score.
Two penalties isn’t much to go on though if you’re looking to pick someone based on their record, so what about the previous campaign?
Well, 2014-15 saw Arsenal being awarded seven penalties.
Cazorla was more clinical back then and scored all six of his, while Alexis Sanchez took one and missed it.
Bournemouth
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
Charlie Daniels: 2 (2)
The Cherries were awarded four penalties last season.
Charlie Daniels had the best success, scoring both of the two he took. Daniels is a defender, a rarity for a penalty taker, so his penalties will be worth more points each than those scored by midfielders or strikers.
Callum Wilson scored the one penalty he took, while Glenn Murray missed his.
Burnley
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
Andre Gray: 5 (4)
Burnley’s record signing, Andre Gray, took five penalties for the club last season, four of which he scored.
His strike partner and Euro 2016 star, Sam Vokes, took three and scored all of them.
Chelsea
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
Cesc Fabregas: 2 (2)
Oscar: 2 (1)
Cesc Fabregas took two and scored two penalties for the west London club last season.
Oscar also took two, though scored only one, while Alexandre Pato took and scored one.
It was a different story entirely for Chelsea the previous season though.
Eden Hazard took four of the club’s five that season, three of which he scored, while Diego Costa took and scored one.
Crystal Palace
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
Yohan Cabaye: 4 (3)
Yohan Cabaye is the main penalty taker for the Eagles. He took four of the five they were awarded last season, scoring three and missing one.
Connor Wickham took the other, which he duly scored.
Everton
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
Ross Barkley: 2 (2)
Romelu Lukaku: 2 (1)
Ross Barkley and Romelu Lukaku each took two of the Toffees’ five penalties last season.
The other was taken, and scored, by Leighton Baines in the last game of the season.
The left-back had been Everton’s main penalty taker in 2014-15 when he took three and scored two. That same season saw Lukaku take and score two as well.
Hull
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
Abel Hernandez: 3 (2)
Most of Hull’s five penalties that they were awarded in the Championship last season were taken by Abel Hernandez.
The Uruguayan took three and scored two.
Nikica Jelavic, who’s no longer with the club, took another as did Adama Diomande.
Leicester
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
Jamie Vardy: 6 (5)
Riyad Mahrez: 6 (4)
Leicester were awarded 13 penalties last season, more than any other club.
Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez shared them out evenly, six each, with Leonardo Ulloa taking the other one.
Vardy scored five to Mahrez’s four.
Liverpool
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
James Milner: 1 (1)
Christian Benteke 1(1)
James Milner and Christian Benteke were the takers and scorers of Liverpool’s only two penalties last season.
They had replaced Steven Gerrard as penalty takers for the club. The former England captain had scored four of the five he’d taken for his side in 2014-15. Jordan Henderson scored the only other one they got that season.
Manchester City
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
Sergio Aguero: 5 (4)
With four goals from five penalties in 2015-16 Sergio Aguero is definitely City’s main penalty taker.
Three other players took one each - Yaya Toure, Aleksandar Kolarov and Wilfried Bony.
Aguero also took six of City’s penalties in 2014-15, five of which he scored, while Toure took and scored two.
Manchester United
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
Wayne Rooney: 1 (1)
Juan Mata: 1 (1)
Ander Herrera: 1 (1)
Only three penalties were awarded to Manchester United last season.
They were taken, and scored, by Ander Herrera, Wayne Rooney and Juan Mata.
Rooney was on penalty duty twice the season before but only scored one of them. Juan Mata took one that year too and scored it.
Middlesbrough
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
Grant Leadbitter: 6 (4)
All of Boro’s Championship penalties were taken by Grant Leadbitter last season, four of which he scored. He also took most of the club’s penalties the season before, eight, and scored all of them.
Southampton
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
Dusan Tadic: 1 (1)
Ryan Bertrand: 1 (1)
James Ward-Prowse: 1 (1)
Sadio Mane: 1 (1)
Four penalties and four penalty takers.
Dusan Tadic, Ryan Bertrand, James Ward-Prowse and Sadio Mane all took one penalty for the Saints last season,
Tadic also took two the season before though, while Ward-Prowse took one.
Stoke
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
Marko Arnautovic: 3 (3)
Penalty duties were shared relatively evenly between Marko Arnautovic and Bojan Krkic last season.
Krkic took two while Arnautovic took three.
Both of them enjoyed 100% scoring records.
Sunderland
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
Jermain Defoe: 1(1)
Adam Johnson: 1 (1)
Fabio Borini: 1 (1)
Jordi Gomez was on penalty duty for Sunderland in 2014-15 and scored three from three. However, he spent much of last season on loan at Blackburn. Jermain Defoe and Fabio Borini stepped into his shoes and scored one penalty each.
Swansea
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
Gylfi Sigurdsson: 3 (3)
Gylfi Sigurdsson is Swansea’s main man when it comes to penalties. The Icelandic midfielder scored all three of the spot kicks he took for the Swans last season. The club’s other two were scored by Bafetimbi Gomis and Jonjo Shelvey - a striker on the verge of leaving and a midfielder who already has.
Tottenham
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
Harry Kane: 5 (5)
Spurs were awarded five penalties last season.
Harry Kane took all of them and scored every single one.
He had lots of success the previous season too, scoring two of the three he took.
Watford
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
Troy Deeney: 7 (6)
Watford won seven penalties last season, all of which were taken by Troy Deeney.
The former Walsall forward scored six of them.
West Brom
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
Saido Berahino: 2 (0)
The Baggies were awarded five penalties last season but scored only one of them.
Star striker Saido Berahino took two and missed both of them.
James Morrison and Craig Gardner took one each and both missed.
Only Rickie Lambert managed to score from the spot for West Brom, when he put the ball past Kasper Schmeichel.
West Ham
Main penalty taker 2015-16: Penalties taken (scored)
Mark Noble: 3 (3)
Mark Noble shouldered the Hammers’ penalty duty in both of the last two seasons.
In 2014-15 he took two and scored one, while last campaign saw him score all three that he stepped up for.
Andy Carroll did take one though last season, which he duly scored.
