Why Cardiff City, Crawley, Chesterfield & Grimsby Town are in Liverpool & Chelsea company in 25/26 | OneFootball

The EFL clubs are amongst the Premier League's best in this stat

Possession is nine tenths of the law, but in the case of six sides in the 92, it's at least 60% of a football game.

According to Playmaker Stats, only six teams in the top four English leagues can say that they'd had an average possession of 60% or higher through the opening months of the campaign.

Premier League giants Liverpool and Chelsea occupy two of those spots, but alongside them are League One side Cardiff City and fourth-tier trio Crawley Town, Chesterfield and Grimsby Town.

It's a well-known cliché that you can have all the possession that you want, but it's what teams do with it that counts.

In Cardiff's case, they seem ready to take advantage of their dominance on the ball more often than not, but down in League Two, it's looking increasingly apparent that sides who are effective without the ball can profit as much as those who have it.

EFL sides are among Premier League stalwarts in possession stat, but does that translate to regular wins?

Cardiff's average possession of 62.1%, according to Fotmob, is the highest among the 92 currently, and for the most part, Brian Barry-Murphy's side have been able to make their dominance count. Barry-Murphy has implemented a strict possession-based philosophy after taking the reins over the summer, having previously hones his craft under no other than Pep Guardiola during his time in charge of Manchester City's Elite Development Squad (EDS).

The Bluebirds have been levels above their opposition at times, especially at the start of the season, when they went the first six games without conceding from open play.

They've had their wobbles, and have had instances against the likes of Burton Albion and Blackpool where they've had their fair share of the ball, but have been outdone by more clinical finishing, but they're currently in a position to head top of League One if they win their game in hand.

In League One, possession can lead to dominant performances, as seen as recently as last season with Birmingham City, who recorded a whopping 66.9% average across the campaign. However, in League Two, things can be different.

With the quality of squads not as high in the fourth tier as they are further up the divisions, having plenty of the ball doesn't always equate to positive results.

At the start of last season and so far this season, Walsall have established themselves as one of the best teams at the level, despite averaging towards the lowest, and in the case of this year the lowest, possession stats in the division.

Crawley, who average the most in League Two currently, sit 20th, just two points off the bottom two. Scott Lindsey's side won promotion with an average of 57% of the ball two years ago, but so far this term, it isn't working out.

As for the other two, Chesterfield and Grimsby, they currently sit sixth and 10th, respectively, and with both sides sitting second and third in terms of goals scored, having the majority of the ball looks like it pays off.

However, again, a lot of sides in League Two like to bide their time and look to strike hard when they do get the ball. Chesterfield knows that first hand, conceding six against Colchester United, for example, despite having the majority of the ball.

Possession is helpful, but goals matter more

So, whilst it can be fun as a fan of a side in League One or League Two to say that you're amongst the likes of Liverpool and Chelsea when it comes to keeping the ball, it's been shown that it doesn't matter how much of the ball you have if you can't take chances.

Even the Premier League duo have come to realise this recently too, amid Liverpool's current poor form and the fact that, when Chelsea were stunned at home against Sunderland, they had nearly 70% of possession.

For the quartet of EFL sides, they're able to use the ball well, and, barring Chesterfield, whose xG is actually one of the worst in League Two, they create chances at a decent clip, too.

It's about taking those chances when they come, however, which will help those four win games and climb up towards the right end of the table.