Lincoln's 21 shots turned a level game into a 4-1 win

Lincoln scored four times to Burnley's one after the interval, and by the chance numbers Burnley were the side that created the better openings.

Mikkel Ladefoged is where this one starts. He scored at 49 and again at 67, and Lincoln's 4-1 win over Burnley at Sincil Bank was largely settled in the 22 minutes after the interval. Ben House had levelled at 45, after Andréas Hountondji's goal in the 39th minute had put Burnley ahead, and Dom Jefferies added a third at 57. Five goals in all is more than the 2.9 a match this league usually produces, so this was a busier game than most.

Lincoln's attacking numbers were well away from their usual shape. They had 21 shots, where their home average this season is 10.4, and they held 51% of the ball against a home average of 36.1%. Expected goals, a rough measure of the quality of chances based on where the shots came from, was 2.05 for Lincoln, against a home average of 1.01. Those are the figures of a side that kept finding space in the penalty area, not one that merely kept the ball.

Burnley's account is the more unusual one. They had seven shots, far below their away average of 14.3, yet their expected goals reached 2.36 against an away average of 1.44. Fewer chances, then, but better ones, and Coudert made three saves to keep the score from moving sooner. Their share of possession, 49%, was almost exactly what they usually have away, so the ball was not the story for either club.

The chances Burnley did create were worth more than Lincoln usually allow at home, where the average sits at 1.71. Burnley also conceded four goals, when their away average is two a match, which tells us the defensive problem was real and not just a bad afternoon in front of goal. Lincoln had shots from all over the pitch and a steady stream of them, and the finish was theirs to make.

Marcus Edwards had a chance to change the look of the afternoon at 84, when Burnley were awarded a penalty, but he missed it. It did not alter the outcome, though it did mean that the only goal Burnley scored came from open play, from a move that Lucas Pires Silva started. Neither side had a player sent off, and there were only two yellow cards in the game, one for each team.

Lincoln now sit 19th in the table with 12 points from 11 matches, having won three, drawn three and lost five. Burnley are 22nd with eight points from the same number of games, and their only away win this season came at the expense of a side that had, until then, been winless on their own ground.

Player of the matchM. Ladefoged2 goals8.6

B. House1 goal · 1 assist8.2

D. Jefferies1 goal8.0

A. Hountondji1 goal7.5