As 2024 approaches its end, David Segar from Opta Analyst takes a look at the following calendar-year records to see if any are likely to be broken in the next two weeks.
When we talk about year-long Premier League records, we invariably look season by season. It makes sense given that’s how the football calendar is laid out, and the general upheaval of a summer pre-season.
We so often hear about teams who have accrued more points in a calendar year than anyone else. As with those occasions, no trophies will be handed out for these records, but the kudos that come with them should arguably be just as high for players and teams who have remained consistent from the start of January to the end of December.
So, let’s get into it and see if anyone can break these selected records by the end of 2024:
- Goal involvements
- Goals
- Assists
- Clean sheets
- Yellow cards
- Red cards
- Cards shown to a team
- Losses
- Goals in 90th minute or later
Most goal involvements
It has been quite a year for Cole Palmer.
The Chelsea sensation continues to put in spectacular performances on a weekly basis and has ensured - whether Enzo Maresca wants to accept it or not - that the Blues are very much a part of the Premier League title race as we approach the halfway point of the 2024/25 season.
With 25 goals and 13 assists in 2024, Palmer’s 38 Premier League goal involvements in 33 matches is seven ahead of the next most (Mohamed Salah - 31 in 28 games) but leaves him with work to do to break the all-time competition record for a calendar year.
For years, no-one could break through the apparent ceiling of 44 goal involvements, achieved first by Matthew Le Tissier (1994), followed by Alan Shearer (1995), Thierry Henry twice (2003 and 2004) and Robin van Persie (2011).
Then, in 2017, Harry Kane did what he has done so often throughout his career and broke the record. The former Tottenham Hotspur striker’s 46 goal involvements were made up of 39 goals and seven assists.
Kane's goal involvements in 2017
Can Palmer find another eight goal involvements to catch Kane, or nine to beat him? Chelsea still have matches against Everton (A), Fulham (H) and Ipswich Town (A) before 2025 arrives, so it’ll be a race against time, but doubt the shivering celebration enthusiast at your peril.
Most PL goal involvements in a calendar year
| Player | Year | Matches | Goal involvements |
| Harry Kane | 2017 | 36 | 46 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thierry Henry | 2003 | 35 | 44 |
| Robin van Persie | 2011 | 36 | 44 |
| Thierry Henry | 2004 | 39 | 44 |
| Matt Le Tissier | 1994 | 40 | 44 |
| Alan Shearer | 1995 | 42 | 44 |
| Alan Shearer | 1994 | 41 | 42 |
| Mohamed Salah | 2018 | 35 | 40 |
Most goals
Kane’s phenomenal 2017 means he also holds the record for most goals in a calendar year, with 39.
That total came in just 36 Premier League matches, starting with two goals against Watford on New Year’s Day. He soon followed that up with a hat-trick in a 4-1 win over West Bromwich Albion, one of four hat-tricks Kane scored between January and the end of the 2016/17 season.
Another treble at Burnley in his penultimate match of 2017 saw Kane equal Shearer’s previous record from 1995 (36 goals in 42 games), before yet another hat-trick three days later against Southampton handed him top spot.
Most PL goals in a calendar year
| Player | Year | Matches | Goals |
| Harry Kane | 2017 | 36 | 39 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alan Shearer | 1995 | 42 | 36 |
| Robin van Persie | 2011 | 36 | 35 |
| Thierry Henry | 2004 | 39 | 34 |
| Ruud van Nistelrooy | 2003 | 34 | 30 |
| Les Ferdinand | 1995 | 37 | 30 |
| Alan Shearer | 1994 | 41 | 30 |
| Luis Suarez | 2013 | 28 | 29 |
| Erling Haaland | 2023 | 35 | 29 |
| Jamie Vardy | 2019 | 37 | 29 |
For a while, it looked like Manchester City’s Erling Haaland could break that record this year, though.
Due to injury, Haaland didn’t even play his first Premier League match of 2024 until 31 January, and didn’t score his first goals until a brace in a 2-0 home win over Everton on 10 February. In fact, entering April he had only managed four goals in nine games.
However, being Haaland meant that an inevitable surge in form was just on the horizon, and 19 further goals followed in his next 12 Premier League matches. That left him with 23 goals from 21 games in 2024 following his strike in the dramatic 2-2 draw with Arsenal in September.
Haaland and City have hit a rough patch of late though, and he has managed only three goals in his last 11 league outings. Had he maintained his previous ratio, the 24-year-old would be on course for 38 goals in 2024, which still would have left him one shy of the record. As it is, he sits on a still-respectable and year-leading 26, with three games remaining.
The Norwegian is capable of remarkable things, but scoring 14 goals in his final three matches of 2024 would be a big ask.
Most assists
Forgive us waxing lyrical even more about Palmer, but as well as overall goal involvements, he also jointly leads the way for assists in 2024 with 13.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka joins him on that total, with his devastating corner kicks so often finding the head of a team-mate as Mikel Arteta’s men have racked up the goals from set-pieces in recent times.
However, both are seven behind the record for most Premier League assists in a calendar year, which belongs to a former Arsenal man.
Mesut Ozil may have divided opinion at times, but in 2015 he was almost unstoppable when it came to setting team-mates up for goals. The Germany international racked up 20 assists that year in 34 matches, overtaking Gunners legend Henry’s 19 from 2003.
Most PL assists in a calendar year
| Player | Year | Matches | Assists |
| Mezut Ozil | 2015 | 34 | 20 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thierry Henry | 2003 | 35 | 19 |
| Kevin De Bruyne | 2017 | 39 | 18 |
| Trent Alexander-Arnold | 2019 | 33 | 17 |
| Eric Cantona | 1993 | 36 | 17 |
| Matt Le Tissier | 1994 | 40 | 17 |
| David Beckham | 2000 | 35 | 16 |
| Kevin De Bruyne | 2022 | 32 | 16 |
| Ruel Fox | 1994 | 38 | 16 |
What makes Ozil’s achievement more remarkable is that only four of his 20 assists came before the end of the 2014/15 campaign. The remaining 16 were achieved in the first half of the following season.
In fact, up to the 26 September 2015, he had just six assists that year, but a run of seven matches in a row where he recorded at least one assist helped boost his numbers, eventually providing 14 assists in his final 13 games of 2015.
Ozil's assists in 2015
Most clean sheets (goalkeepers only)
This record will not be broken in 2024; Arsenal’s David Raya has 17 clean sheets with two matches remaining before the turn of the year.
Four goalkeepers have kept at least 20 clean sheets in a calendar year in the Premier League, the first of which was Tim Flowers for Blackburn Rovers in 1994 (20 in 41 matches), equalled by Peter Schmeichel for Manchester United in 1996 (20 in 36 games).
Chelsea’s Petr Cech set a new record in 2005 when he recorded 21 clean sheets in just 33 matches, conceding a mere 14 goals.
That record remained in place for 16 years, until Man City’s Ederson kept 23 clean sheets in 41 matches in 2021.
Most yellow cards
We’re moving onto the less desired records now, starting with yellow cards.
Marcos Senesi will be relieved to know that this is another record that can’t be equalled in 2024. The AFC Bournemouth defender has 12 bookings to his name this year, but is still five shy of the record, which was only set 12 months ago.
Joao Palhinha was a key figure for Fulham before his move to Bayern Munich last summer, but he collected an eye-watering 17 yellow cards in 2023 in just 36 games, almost one every other match.
In no other calendar year since the launch of the Premier League has a player picked up more than 14 yellow cards, so the Portuguese midfielder broke the record by quite a margin.
Those who Palhinha pushed into second place were Mark Hughes (1998), Tomas Repka (2002), Michael Brown, Nigel Reo-Coker (both 2007), Lee Cattermole (2014), Jack Colback (2015), Etienne Capoue and Luka Milivojevic (both 2019).
Most red cards
With so few fixtures left in 2024, this one also can’t be beaten. But it could be equalled.
Five players have been sent off on three occasions in a single calendar year in the Premier League.
That list of (dis)honour is made up of Vinnie Jones (1995), Dion Dublin (1997), Franck Queudrue (2002), Cattermole (2010) and, perhaps surprisingly, Son Heung-min (2019).
Two players have been issued a red card twice in England’s top flight in 2024; Kalvin Phillips and Jack Stephens.
That is despite the duo not featuring all that much in league football this year, with Phillips making just 15 appearances in loan spells for West Ham United and Ipswich Town, while Stephens only has 10 league appearances to his name in 2024. Obviously, suspensions will account for some of that time missed.
Phillips was dismissed with West Ham against Nottingham Forest in February, and then again for Ipswich against Leicester City last month. Kieran McKenna might prevent the Man City loanee from becoming part of the three reds club though, as Phillips has been an unused substitute in the three matches since returning from his last suspension.
Stephens is still serving a suspension for his second red card of the year, and indeed the season. The defender was sent off against Man Utd in September, then again versus Chelsea earlier this month. He serves the last of his four-match ban against Fulham at the weekend, and so will potentially have two more games to avoid picking up an unwanted hat-trick.
Most cards (team)
While Chelsea may be flying high in the Premier League table, they are also collecting cards at a rate that would make you think it’s almost Christmas.
Chelsea broke the record for most cards in a calendar year in 2023 with 112 (108 yellow, four red), and with three matches to go in 2024, they are up to 96 (94 yellow, two red). Wolverhampton Wanderers aren’t too far behind, either, with 90 cards received (88 yellow, two red).
In a sign of the changing times when it comes to card distribution in the Premier League, the four occurrences of the most cards received in a calendar year all happened in 2023, with Chelsea followed closely by Spurs, Wolves (both 106) and Aston Villa (99).
Most team cards in PL calendar year
| Team | Year | Yellow cards | Red Cards | Total |
| Chelsea | 2023 | 108 | 4 | 112 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spurs | 2023 | 100 | 6 | 106 |
| Wolves | 2023 | 100 | 6 | 106 |
| Aston Villa | 2023 | 98 | 1 | 99 |
| Everton | 1998 | 94 | 4 | 98 |
| Derby | 1999 | 94 | 3 | 97 |
| Chelsea | 2024* | 94 | 2 | 96 |
| Sunderland | 2014 | 94 | 2 | 96 |
| Nottingham Forest | 2023 | 91 | 3 | 94 |
* three fixtures remaining in 2024
Most losses
Speaking of unwanted records, one that could be equalled in 2024 is for most losses experienced by a single player.
Cameron Archer has lost 22 of his 28 matches in spells with Sheffield United and Southampton this year, and with three more to go for out-of-form Saints, he could reach 25.
That would equal the record set by, among others, former Southampton midfielder Neil Maddison, who lost 25 of his 43 Premier League matches in 1993, as did Ipswich’s Geraint Williams (40 games) the following year.
Current Saints goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale also accumulated 25 defeats in just 33 matches across spells with Bournemouth and Sheff Utd in 2020.
As for most losses by a team, that won’t be beaten, but Wolves could join a select group of clubs to have lost at least 24 Premier League matches in a calendar year.
Their late defeat at home to Ipswich on Saturday was Wolves’ 21st loss of 2024, and with three matches remaining before the turn of the year, they could equal Huddersfield Town’s 24 losses in 2018. That would leave them only behind Ipswich (26 losses in 1994), Southampton (25 in 1993), Bolton Wanderers (25 in 2011) and Aston Villa (25 in 2015).
Wolves' final three fixtures of 2024
Most goals in the 90th minute or later
With matches generally lasting longer, late goals have never been more prevalent. Last year saw the most 90th-minute goals in the Premier League by some distance (97), but that has already been equalled in 2024, with three matchdays to go. Not only should it be beaten, but we could reach three figures for the first time.
More could well come from Bournemouth, who have scored eight goals in the 90th minute or later in 2024, needing only three more to tie the record of Arsenal and Chelsea (11 each in 2010). Conversely, Man Utd need to avoid conceding three more 90th-minute goals to equal Spurs' record of 12 from 2023.
Bournemouth's late show v Everton
As for 90th-minute winners, 2024 still needs to see one more to tie the record from 2022 (25). Bournemouth require two more to equal Arsenal’s record of five 90th-minute winners from 2023.
Man Utd have already equalled the record for most 90th-minute winners conceded in a calendar year with four, tied with Man City (2008) and Swansea City (2017).
What further drama does 2024 have in store for the Premier League? Who knows? But waiting to find out is like being a kid at Christmas.
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