Shot on target
Shot on target
Opta defines a shot on target as any goal attempt that:
- Goes into the net regardless of intent (goals only)
- Is a clear attempt to score that would have gone into the net but for being saved by the goalkeeper or is stopped by a player who is the last player with the goalkeeper having no chance of preventing the goal (last line block).
Shots blocked by another player, who is not the last player, are not counted as shots on target. Shots directly hitting the frame of the goal are not counted as shots on target, unless the ball goes in and is awarded as a goal.
We understand there are many other incidents where it isn’t easy to identify what is a shot on target. Below you can find numerous different types of shot, and whether they are a shot on target or not. Please note this list is just a guide and the final decision is confirmed by Opta, and we settle all of our markets based off their data:
| Shot Type | Shot on Target |
| Crosses that would be going into the goal, but the goalkeeper catches/tips around for a corner | No |
| Deflected Shot that would be going in, but for a save from the goalkeeper | Yes |
| Blocked shots that a goalkeeper doesn’t save, instead collects due to a lack of power | No |
| Blocked/deflected shots that hit the woodwork | No |
| Goals that hit the woodwork on the way in | Yes |
| Shots the goalkeeper saves that were going off target | No |
| A corner that would be going into the goal, but the goalkeeper stops the ball from going in | No |
| A goal scored directly from a corner | Yes |
| A shot cleared off the line by a defender, who is classified as the last line of defence | Yes |
| A shot that was going on target that is blocked by someone on the shooter’s same team | Yes - if stopping a certain goal – ‘goal line clearance’) |
| A defender’s clearance that hits an attacking player which goes towards goal and the keeper has to save | No |
| A shot that hits the post, then the keeper and bounces out | No |
| A shot that hits the post and trickles on the line before a defender clears the ball | No |
| A headed/non-headed flick on which runs through to the goalkeeper from a corner/free kick | No |