The numbers behind Aaron Pressley's transformation at Walsall

It’s remarkable to see the transformation that Walsall striker Aaron Pressley has made during his second season at Bescot.

The Scotsman has suddenly become the Saddlers’ talisman and is relishing his new found status in the team, even if he humbly chooses to direct the credit towards his teammates rather than himself.

Pressley netted just seven goals in all competitions for Walsall last term, a tally which he has already surpassed after 13 games following his brace in the 3-0 win over Oldham Athletic on Tuesday night.

Seven of his eight goals have come in the league, at rate of a staggering 0.72 goals per 90, which is a far cry from the 0.27 he averaged last term.

There are a number of factors for his exciting explosion in form under Lee Grant.

First, Pressley is playing a very different role. He was expected to be a foil for former loan man Daniel Kanu, who shouldered the majority of the goal scoring burden under Mat Sadler with his 18 goals in all competitions last term.

His injuries severely reduced his physical capabilities, particularly when he broke his hand in January, while a crisis in confidence proved debilitating at times.

Pressley admitted himself midway through the season that he had not been meeting his own high standards and that humble and constructive mentality suggests that Grant has a character that he can work with.

The numbers also paint an intriguing picture in terms of his improvement. One of the biggest indicators is that Pressley is simply having more opportunities to score goals.

He has averaged 3.08 shots per game - just under twice as many as last season (1.6) - and the quality of those chances have increased.

His touches inside the opposition box are fairly similar. He has averaged 4.92 compared to 4.04 in the previous campaign, but his xG has leapt from 0.32 to 0.59 - according to FotMob.

Pressley has been more clinical with his chances too: outscoring his xG by 0.13, as opposed to underscoring his expected goals tally by 0.05 last term.

Then there are the factors that numbers cannot measure, which are confidence, and a manager who has made Pressley an instrumental part of his team.

With Tai Sodje now coming into form in recent weeks, Walsall have a mouth-watering strike partnership in prospect.