Championship 2026/27, matchday 3: every number from the 12 matches

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GoalSoon · built 05 September 2026, 10:48 UTC · every figure is our own count from our own database

40 goals in 12 matches — 3.33 a game, against 2.61 across all 545 matches of 2025/26. 6 home wins, 2 draws, 4 away wins. Results, goals by minute, cards, shots, possession, xG and player ratings — all of it on one page.

Results

Match	HT	xG	Shots	On target	Home poss.
Wrexham 1–2 Birmingham	0–1	1.42–1.85	9–10	4–4	61%
Wolves 4–1 Stoke	2–1	2.64–0.88	18–10	8–3	53%
Middlesbrough 3–1 West Brom	0–0	2.46–1.40	15–12	6–4	47%
Derby 0–3 Swansea	0–2	0.59–3.33	8–23	0–12	47%
Watford 1–1 West Ham	1–1	1.30–0.73	15–13	4–1	38%
Southampton 5–1 Millwall	2–1	3.21–1.09	21–14	7–5	52%
Norwich 4–1 Burnley	3–1	1.92–0.95	20–16	6–4	37%
Charlton 1–0 Preston	0–0	0.87–0.91	15–12	2–1	57%
Cardiff 2–2 Sheffield Utd	2–2	2.27–1.53	28–6	10–4	67%
Bristol City 2–1 Portsmouth	1–0	0.61–1.38	9–14	3–1	46%
Bolton 0–1 Lincoln	0–0	1.54–1.05	20–8	6–2	69%
Blackburn 1–2 QPR	0–0	1.02–1.30	12–19	2–6	55%

The heaviest match was Southampton 5–1 Millwall with 6 goals. 9 of 12 matches had both clubs scoring, 9 went over 2.5 goals, and 3 clubs failed to score. 20 goals came before half-time and 20 after it; 4 arrived inside the first 15 minutes and 0 after the 75th. The earliest goal of the round came in minute 2, the latest in minute 73. 1 of the 11 goals were penalties and 0 were own goals; the round produced 8 yellow cards and 0 red. The minute-by-minute feed carries 11 of the 40 goals, so every count in this paragraph is a floor, not a total; the scores and half-time scores above are complete.

Every match, in detail

Wrexham 1–2 Birmingham 2026-08-28 19:00 UTC · half-time 0–1 · 3-4-2-1 v 4-2-3-1

Racecourse Ground

Goals

13' Phil Neumann Birmingham assist Alex Cochrane

Cards

🟨 7' Alex Cochrane Birmingham

Best rated

8.9 Phil Neumann Birmingham · 2 goals, 2 shots, 7/10 duels
8.2 Callum Doyle Wrexham · 1 goal, 1 shots, 9/12 duels
7.6 Issa Kaboré Wrexham · 1/2 duels

Wrexham · Birmingham

1.42	xG	1.85
0.22	xG first half	1.24
9	Shots	10
4	On target	4
8	Shots in the box	8
1	Blocked	3
3	Corners	6
61%	Possession	39%
486	Passes	311
380	Passes completed	206
1	Saves	3
9	Fouls	14
2	Offsides	2
1	Yellow cards	2

source: full match archive

Wolves 4–1 Stoke 2026-08-29 11:30 UTC · half-time 2–1 · 4-2-3-1 v 4-2-3-1

Molineux Stadium

Goals

2' Sam Gallagher Stoke
19' Rodrigo Gomes Wolves
23' Rodrigo Gomes Wolves
55' Raúl Jiménez (pen) Wolves

Cards

🟨 15' Jun-Ho Bae Stoke
🟨 31' Bosun Lawal Stoke
🟨 39' Mateus Mané Wolves
🟨 45' Sam Gallagher Stoke

Best rated

8.6 Fer López Wolves · 1 assist, 10/12 duels
7.9 Raúl Jiménez Wolves · 1 goal, 2 shots, 10/18 duels
7.7 José Sá Wolves · 2 saves, 2/2 duels

Wolves · Stoke

2.64	xG	0.88
1.24	xG first half	0.71
18	Shots	10
8	On target	3
13	Shots in the box	6
7	Blocked	2
7	Corners	1
53%	Possession	47%
408	Passes	362
345	Passes completed	310
2	Saves	4
13	Fouls	15
2	Offsides	3
1	Yellow cards	4

source: full match archive

Middlesbrough 3–1 West Brom 2026-08-29 11:30 UTC · half-time 0–0 · 4-2-3-1 v 4-4-1-1

Riverside Stadium

Goals

48' Will Lankshear Middlesbrough
65' Jimmy Morgan West Brom assist Isaac Price
73' Will Lankshear Middlesbrough

Cards

🟨 61' Ousmane Diakité West Brom

Best rated

7.6 Will Lankshear Middlesbrough · 2 goals, 2 shots, 1/5 duels
7.5 Neto Borges Middlesbrough · 8/11 duels
7.3 Luke Ayling Middlesbrough · 1 assist, 1 shots, 3/3 duels

Middlesbrough · West Brom

2.46	xG	1.40
0.19	xG first half	0.42
15	Shots	12
6	On target	4
14	Shots in the box	10
4	Blocked	6
7	Corners	6
47%	Possession	53%
516	Passes	584
455	Passes completed	522
2	Saves	4
15	Fouls	6
3	Offsides	0
0	Yellow cards	1

source: full match archive

Derby 0–3 Swansea 2026-08-29 11:30 UTC · half-time 0–2 · 4-2-3-1 v 4-3-3

Pride Park

Goals

2' Joseph Opoku Swansea assist Ji-sung Eom
44' Ji-sung Eom Swansea

Cards

🟨 69' Sondre Langås Derby
🟨 73' Marko Stamenić Swansea

Best rated

8.3 Stephen Welsh Swansea · 1 shots, 4/6 duels
8.2 Ji-sung Eom Swansea · 1 goal, 1 assist, 2 shots, 6/11 duels
7.9 Josh Key Swansea · 7/12 duels

Derby · Swansea

0.59	xG	3.33
0.06	xG first half	1.99
8	Shots	23
0	On target	12
5	Shots in the box	15
6	Blocked	6
5	Corners	6
47%	Possession	53%
406	Passes	475
309	Passes completed	395
9	Saves	0
16	Fouls	7
5	Offsides	4
3	Yellow cards	2

source: full match archive

Watford 1–1 West Ham 2026-08-29 14:00 UTC · half-time 1–1

Vicarage Road

Goals

none

Watford · West Ham

1.30	xG	0.73
0.58	xG first half	0.40
15	Shots	13
4	On target	1
13	Shots in the box	6
7	Blocked	7
3	Corners	11
38%	Possession	62%
302	Passes	498
235	Passes completed	420
1	Saves	3
9	Fouls	7
2	Offsides	3
3	Yellow cards	1

source: full match archive

Southampton 5–1 Millwall 2026-08-29 14:00 UTC · half-time 2–1

Goals

none

Best rated

9.2 Finn Azaz Southampton · 1 goal, 1 assist, 1 shots, 3/6 duels
8.9 Cyle Larin Southampton · 2 goals, 4 shots, 3/12 duels
8.7 Leo Scienza Southampton · 1 goal, 1 assist, 2 shots, 5/6 duels

Southampton · Millwall

3.21	xG	1.09
1.59	xG first half	0.76
21	Shots	14
7	On target	5
16	Shots in the box	11
7	Blocked	4
8	Corners	11
52%	Possession	48%
418	Passes	377
367	Passes completed	303
4	Saves	2
6	Fouls	10
1	Offsides	2
2	Yellow cards	1

source: full match archive

Norwich 4–1 Burnley 2026-08-29 14:00 UTC · half-time 3–1

Carrow Road

Goals

none

Best rated

9.5 Andre Brooks Norwich · 2 goals, 2 shots, 2/8 duels
8.5 Mohamed Touré Norwich · 2 goals, 3 shots, 1/3 duels
7.5 Ben Chrisene Norwich · 1 shots, 5/6 duels

Norwich · Burnley

1.92	xG	0.95
1.00	xG first half	0.61
20	Shots	16
6	On target	4
12	Shots in the box	10
8	Blocked	5
3	Corners	5
37%	Possession	63%
319	Passes	554
259	Passes completed	481
3	Saves	2
14	Fouls	5
3	Offsides	1
4	Yellow cards	3
0	Red cards	1

source: full match archive

Charlton 1–0 Preston 2026-08-29 14:00 UTC · half-time 0–0

The Valley

Goals

none

Best rated

8.0 Lloyd Jones Charlton · 11/12 duels
8.0 Alfie Devine Preston · 5/8 duels
7.5 Tyreece Campbell Charlton · 1/5 duels

Charlton · Preston

0.87	xG	0.91
0.22	xG first half	0.36
15	Shots	12
2	On target	1
4	Shots in the box	5
10	Blocked	6
7	Corners	4
57%	Possession	43%
427	Passes	311
354	Passes completed	225
1	Saves	1
10	Fouls	21
6	Offsides	0
1	Yellow cards	1

source: full match archive

Cardiff 2–2 Sheffield Utd 2026-08-29 14:00 UTC · half-time 2–2

Cardiff City Stadium

Goals

2' Jack Moylan Cardiff

Best rated

7.9 Callum O'Hare Sheffield Utd · 1 goal, 1 shots, 9/15 duels
7.9 Joel Bagan Cardiff · 1 shots, 7/9 duels
7.6 Cian Ashford Cardiff · 1 goal, 1 assist, 2 shots, 4/5 duels

Cardiff · Sheffield Utd

2.27	xG	1.53
0.97	xG first half	1.40
28	Shots	6
10	On target	4
21	Shots in the box	4
9	Blocked	1
12	Corners	2
67%	Possession	33%
513	Passes	259
428	Passes completed	174
2	Saves	8
12	Fouls	12
2	Offsides	1
2	Yellow cards	2

source: full match archive

Bristol City 2–1 Portsmouth 2026-08-29 14:00 UTC · half-time 1–0

Ashton Gate Stadium

Goals

none

Best rated

7.9 Jason Knight Bristol City · 1 goal, 1 shots, 4/9 duels
7.7 Marko Milovanović Portsmouth · 1 goal, 1 shots, 2/7 duels
7.2 Lorent Tolaj Bristol City · 1 goal, 1 shots, 2/10 duels

Bristol City · Portsmouth

0.61	xG	1.38
0.36	xG first half	0.11
9	Shots	14
3	On target	1
6	Shots in the box	8
3	Blocked	4
3	Corners	10
46%	Possession	54%
321	Passes	370
237	Passes completed	281
1	Saves	1
15	Fouls	5
1	Offsides	0
3	Yellow cards	0

source: full match archive

Bolton 0–1 Lincoln 2026-08-29 14:00 UTC · half-time 0–0

Toughsheet Community Stadium

Goals

none

Best rated

8.9 George Wickens Lincoln · 7 saves
8.2 Josh Sheehan Bolton · 1 shots, 4/10 duels
8.2 Ben House Lincoln · 1 goal, 1 shots, 10/16 duels

Bolton · Lincoln

1.54	xG	1.05
1.09	xG first half	0.18
20	Shots	8
6	On target	2
12	Shots in the box	5
7	Blocked	3
14	Corners	2
69%	Possession	31%
541	Passes	250
465	Passes completed	179
1	Saves	7
6	Fouls	15
0	Offsides	4
0	Yellow cards	3

source: full match archive

Blackburn 1–2 QPR 2026-08-29 14:00 UTC · half-time 0–0

Ewood Park

Goals

none

Best rated

8.2 Paul Smyth QPR · 1 goal, 1 shots, 6/7 duels
7.9 Jimmy Dunne QPR · 1 goal, 1 shots, 3/4 duels
7.9 Ryoya Morishita Blackburn · 1 goal, 1 shots, 4/7 duels

Blackburn · QPR

1.02	xG	1.30
0.60	xG first half	0.14
12	Shots	19
2	On target	6
7	Shots in the box	11
4	Blocked	5
3	Corners	3
55%	Possession	45%
521	Passes	439
450	Passes completed	372
4	Saves	1
12	Fouls	6
1	Offsides	0
3	Yellow cards	2

source: full match archive

Every club, one row each

Club		Opponent	Score	xG	Shots	OT	In box	Cor	Poss	Passes	Saves	Fouls	Yel
Southampton	H	Millwall	5–1	3.21	21	7	16	8	52%	418	4	6	2
Norwich	H	Burnley	4–1	1.92	20	6	12	3	37%	319	3	14	4
Wolves	H	Stoke	4–1	2.64	18	8	13	7	53%	408	2	13	1
Swansea	A	Derby	3–0	3.33	23	12	15	6	53%	475	0	7	2
Middlesbrough	H	West Brom	3–1	2.46	15	6	14	7	47%	516	2	15	0
Birmingham	A	Wrexham	2–1	1.85	10	4	8	6	39%	311	3	14	2
Bristol City	H	Portsmouth	2–1	0.61	9	3	6	3	46%	321	1	15	3
QPR	A	Blackburn	2–1	1.30	19	6	11	3	45%	439	1	6	2
Charlton	H	Preston	1–0	0.87	15	2	4	7	57%	427	1	10	1
Lincoln	A	Bolton	1–0	1.05	8	2	5	2	31%	250	7	15	3
Cardiff	H	Sheffield Utd	2–2	2.27	28	10	21	12	67%	513	2	12	2
Sheffield Utd	A	Cardiff	2–2	1.53	6	4	4	2	33%	259	8	12	2
Watford	H	West Ham	1–1	1.30	15	4	13	3	38%	302	1	9	3
West Ham	A	Watford	1–1	0.73	13	1	6	11	62%	498	3	7	1
Blackburn	H	QPR	1–2	1.02	12	2	7	3	55%	521	4	12	3
Portsmouth	A	Bristol City	1–2	1.38	14	1	8	10	54%	370	1	5	0
Wrexham	H	Birmingham	1–2	1.42	9	4	8	3	61%	486	1	9	1
Bolton	H	Lincoln	0–1	1.54	20	6	12	14	69%	541	1	6	0
Preston	A	Charlton	0–1	0.91	12	1	5	4	43%	311	1	21	1
West Brom	A	Middlesbrough	1–3	1.40	12	4	10	6	53%	584	4	6	1
Burnley	A	Norwich	1–4	0.95	16	4	10	5	63%	554	2	5	3
Stoke	A	Wolves	1–4	0.88	10	3	6	1	47%	362	4	15	4
Derby	H	Swansea	0–3	0.59	8	0	5	5	47%	406	9	16	3
Millwall	A	Southampton	1–5	1.09	14	5	11	11	48%	377	2	10	1

Bolton had the most of the ball (69 per cent); Cardiff took the most shots (28).

Goals against xG

xG is the provider's shot-quality model, not ours; we publish it because it is the same measure across every match here. One matchday is far too small to call anyone lucky — this is a record of what happened, not a verdict.

Club	Opponent	Goals	xG	Goals − xG	Conceded	xG faced	Saved against xG
Norwich	Burnley	4	1.92	+2.08	1	0.95	-0.05
Southampton	Millwall	5	3.21	+1.79	1	1.09	+0.09
Bristol City	Portsmouth	2	0.61	+1.39	1	1.38	+0.38
Wolves	Stoke	4	2.64	+1.36	1	0.88	-0.12
QPR	Blackburn	2	1.30	+0.70	1	1.02	+0.02
Middlesbrough	West Brom	3	2.46	+0.54	1	1.40	+0.40
Sheffield Utd	Cardiff	2	1.53	+0.47	2	2.27	+0.27
West Ham	Watford	1	0.73	+0.27	1	1.30	+0.30
Birmingham	Wrexham	2	1.85	+0.15	1	1.42	+0.42
Charlton	Preston	1	0.87	+0.13	0	0.91	+0.91
Stoke	Wolves	1	0.88	+0.12	4	2.64	-1.36
Burnley	Norwich	1	0.95	+0.05	4	1.92	-2.08
Blackburn	QPR	1	1.02	-0.02	2	1.30	-0.70
Lincoln	Bolton	1	1.05	-0.05	0	1.54	+1.54
Millwall	Southampton	1	1.09	-0.09	5	3.21	-1.79
Cardiff	Sheffield Utd	2	2.27	-0.27	2	1.53	-0.47
Watford	West Ham	1	1.30	-0.30	1	0.73	-0.27
Swansea	Derby	3	3.33	-0.33	0	0.59	+0.59
Portsmouth	Bristol City	1	1.38	-0.38	2	0.61	-1.39
West Brom	Middlesbrough	1	1.40	-0.40	3	2.46	-0.54
Wrexham	Birmingham	1	1.42	-0.42	2	1.85	-0.15
Derby	Swansea	0	0.59	-0.59	3	3.33	+0.33
Preston	Charlton	0	0.91	-0.91	1	0.87	-0.13
Bolton	Lincoln	0	1.54	-1.54	1	1.05	+0.05

Norwich scored 2.08 goals more than the model expected of their chances; Bolton scored 1.54 fewer. The last column is the same subtraction at the other end: how many goals a club conceded against the xG of the shots it faced.

One column we removed. The feed also carries a field called “goals prevented”, which looks like a goalkeeping measure. In all 12 matches of this round it is identical for both clubs (Wolves–Stoke -0.55, Middlesbrough–West Brom -0.46, Derby–Swansea +0.00, and so on), so it cannot be a per-club number and we do not publish it rather than guess at what it means.

Scorers and assists

24 of the 40 goals have an assist recorded against them. Assists come from the full match archive where it has arrived (11 matches) and from the live event feed otherwise, which records fewer of them — so this is a floor, not a count.

Player	Club	Goals	Assists
Andre Brooks	Norwich	2	0
Cyle Larin	Southampton	2	0
Mohamed Touré	Norwich	2	0
Phil Neumann	Birmingham	2	0
Rodrigo Gomes	Wolves	2	0
Will Lankshear	Middlesbrough	2	0
Cian Ashford	Cardiff	1	1
Finn Azaz	Southampton	1	1
Ji-sung Eom	Swansea	1	1
Leo Scienza	Southampton	1	1
Alfie Jones	Middlesbrough	1	0
Ben House	Lincoln	1	0
Callum Doyle	Wrexham	1	0
Callum O'Hare	Sheffield Utd	1	0
Jack Moylan	Cardiff	1	0
Jason Knight	Bristol City	1	0
Jimmy Dunne	QPR	1	0
Jimmy Morgan	West Brom	1	0
Jordan James	Wolves	1	0
Joseph Opoku	Swansea	1	0
Josh Laurent	Burnley	1	0
Karlan Grant	Charlton	1	0
Lorent Tolaj	Bristol City	1	0
Mark Sykes	Millwall	1	0
Marko Milovanović	Portsmouth	1	0
Paul Smyth	QPR	1	0
Raúl Jiménez	Wolves	1	0
Ronald	Swansea	1	0
Ryoya Morishita	Blackburn	1	0
Sam Gallagher	Stoke	1	0
Thomas Cannon	Sheffield Utd	1	0
Tom Fellows	Southampton	1	0
Alex Cochrane	Birmingham	0	1
Andri Guðjohnsen	Blackburn	0	1
Anthony Musaba	Norwich	0	1
August Priske	Birmingham	0	1
Callum Elder	Lincoln	0	1
Fer López	Wolves	0	1
Isaac Price	West Brom	0	1
Jack Stacey	Norwich	0	1
Jacob Bruun Larsen	Burnley	0	1
Jed Wallace	Bristol City	0	1
José Córdoba	Norwich	0	1
Lewis Oandapos;Brien	Wrexham	0	1
Luke Ayling	Middlesbrough	0	1
Millenic Alli	Charlton	0	1
Patrick Bamford	Sheffield Utd	0	1
Rio Cardines	Bristol City	0	1
Rumarn Burrell	QPR	0	1
Ryan Manning	Southampton	0	1
Stephen Eustaquio	Swansea	0	1
Tariq Lamptey	QPR	0	1

Player ratings, top 25

Ratings are the provider's, over the 11 matches whose player detail has arrived; 440 player appearances in total.

Player	Club	Rating	Min	G	A	Sh	Key p.	Duels	Tkl	Int	Saves
Andre Brooks	Norwich	9.5	71	2	0	2	3	2/8	1	1	0
Finn Azaz	Southampton	9.2	90	1	1	1	3	3/6	0	0	0
Cyle Larin	Southampton	8.9	70	2	0	4	0	3/12	1	0	0
George Wickens	Lincoln	8.9	96	0	0	0	0	0/0	0	0	7
Phil Neumann	Birmingham	8.9	95	2	0	2	0	7/10	2	2	0
Leo Scienza	Southampton	8.7	71	1	1	2	3	5/6	1	0	0
Fer López	Wolves	8.6	90	0	1	0	3	10/12	5	0	0
Mohamed Touré	Norwich	8.5	71	2	0	3	0	1/3	1	0	0
Stephen Welsh	Swansea	8.3	90	0	0	1	2	4/6	1	0	0
Ji-sung Eom	Swansea	8.2	85	1	1	2	2	6/11	1	0	0
Josh Sheehan	Bolton	8.2	96	0	0	1	4	4/10	1	1	0
Ben House	Lincoln	8.2	85	1	0	1	0	10/16	6	0	0
Paul Smyth	QPR	8.2	64	1	0	1	1	6/7	0	1	0
Callum Doyle	Wrexham	8.2	95	1	0	1	1	9/12	0	1	0
Lloyd Jones	Charlton	8.0	96	0	0	0	0	11/12	1	2	0
Alfie Devine	Preston	8.0	96	0	0	0	4	5/8	1	1	0
Raúl Jiménez	Wolves	7.9	73	1	0	2	1	10/18	3	0	0
Josh Key	Swansea	7.9	90	0	0	0	5	7/12	5	3	0
Jacob Widell Zetterström	Derby	7.9	90	0	0	0	0	0/0	0	0	9
Tom Fellows	Southampton	7.9	19	1	0	1	0	0/0	0	0	0
Callum O'Hare	Sheffield Utd	7.9	94	1	0	1	0	9/15	3	0	0
Joel Bagan	Cardiff	7.9	94	0	0	1	3	7/9	2	0	0
Jason Knight	Bristol City	7.9	97	1	0	1	0	4/9	2	1	0
Ryley Towler	Lincoln	7.9	96	0	0	0	1	6/6	2	1	0
Jimmy Dunne	QPR	7.9	95	1	0	1	0	3/4	0	4	0

Matchday 3 against the whole of 2025/26

One round is 12 matches and last season was 545. Every difference below is well inside what 12 matches can produce by chance; it is here as a record, not as a trend.

Measure	Matchday 3	2025/26 average	Difference
Goals per match	3.33	2.61	+0.73
Goals in the first half, per match	1.67	1.21	+0.45
Shots per club	14.5	12.6	+1.9
Shots on target per club	4.4	4.1	+0.3
xG per club	1.51	1.28	+0.23
Corners per club	5.9	5.2	+0.8
Passes per club	415	401	+14
Fouls per club	10.8	10.7	+0.1
Yellow cards per club	1.88	1.89	-0.01
Saves per club	2.8	2.8	+0.0
Home wins (share)	0.50	0.41	+0.09
Draws (share)	0.17	0.26	-0.10

Where these numbers come from

Our own database, built from the same feed every match here uses. Team figures for 12 of 12 matches, goals and cards by minute for all 12, player-level detail for 11. Crowds and referees are as published for the 0 matches that carry them . Nothing on this page is a projection.

What is missing, stated plainly. the event feed is missing 29 of the 40 goals, so goal minutes, penalties and the scorer table are floors; 1 of the 12 matches (Watford–West Ham) have team figures but no player-level detail yet — the archive feed delivers those a day later, so player ratings below cover 11 matches, not 12; attendance is published for 0 of 12 matches, so there is no average to give.

The rest of the season on the same data: all 24 clubs, their matches and their players · the free season packs.

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