Ivan Toney returns in style: Decoding his Premier League stats
What's the story
Brentford's talisman Ivan Toney announced his return to action with a stunning free-kick against Nottingham Forest. The Englishman was out of football for eight months and he scored a blinder 19 minutes into his return to the Premier League.
Eventually, Brentford won the five-goal thriller 3-2 against Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
Toney will look to keep up his goal-scoring form in the upcoming matches.
Context
Why does this story matter?
Toney was handed an eight-month ban for breaching betting rules. So on his return against Nottingham Forest, Toney, who wore the Brentford captain's armband scored a brilliant free-kick goal in the 19th minute to restore parity after Danilo handed Forest an early lead.
The Englishman showed that he hasn't lost his goal-scoring touch, ending Brentford's five-match losing streak in the Premier League.
Information
Three direct free-kick goals in the PL since last season
As per Opta, Toney has netted three direct free-kicks in the Premier League since the start of last season. He has scored the joint-most direct free-kick goals in the competition in that period in only 10 attempts. James Ward-Prowse has also scored three free-kick goals.
Record
Toney's unique Premier League record against Nottingham Forest
As per Squawka, the Englishman has registered his name in the Premier League scoresheet for the first time since 266 days.
The last time he scored in the league was also surprisingly against Nottingham Forest on April 29, 2023. He has also scored against them on his Premier League return.
Toney has netted in all three of his league appearances against Nottingham Forest.
Premier League
A look at Toney's exceptional Premier League record
Toney has netted 33 goals in 69 Premier League appearances and all his goals in the competition have come for Brentford.
He scored 12 goals in 2021-22 before hammering 20 in the following season. He will want to showcase his credentials this season.
Toney has provided nine assists while creating 23 big chances. Out of his 183 shots, 73 have been on target.
Brentford
69 goals for Brentford
The Englishman netted his 69th career goal for Brentford from 125 appearances across competitions. He scored 31 goals in the Championship while hammering 33 strikes in the Premier League. He scored twice in the Championship play-offs.
Toney scored once in two FA Cup matches and two goals in four Carabao Cup clashes.
He returned with 21 goals last season across all competitions.
Record
Toney scripted history in his first 50 Premier League matches
As per Opta, Toney was involved in 30 goals in his first 50 Premier League appearances (23 goals and seven assists).
He achieved the feat in December 2022. Back then, he had the most goal involvement among English players after his first 50 Premier League appearances matching Jamie Vardy, who also registered 30 goal involvements after 50 games in the competition.