Stats: Toulouse too hot to handle!

One of the best defences in the league, Toulouse FC are currently enjoying one of the most attractive spells of form. we take a look at  the Violets' defensive solidity.

Having beaten RC Lens at Bollaert on Sunday (0-1), Toulouse FC took advantage of their numerical superiority in the final half-hour to make the difference. Carles Martínez Novell's men confirmed their momentum and climbed to 8th place in the table. They have now won 3 of their last 4 games. A tough nut to crack, the Violets boast the 5th-best defense in the league, having conceded just 17 goals in 16 games. Above all, they have compiled 5 clean sheets in the last 8 games.

Leading the way in clean sheets

Along with RC Lens, Téfécé are the team with the most clean sheets this season (7). This may be explained by the three-back system used this season. Djibril Sidibé, Charlie Cresswell and Mark McKenzie generally make up the line of three in front of goalkeeper Guillaume Restes. Not to mention the rest of the team, Vincent Sierro and Venezuelan Cristian Cásseres have been a real handful at the back, while Gabriel Suazo and Aron Dønnum have been a real force to be reckoned with.
The Violets conceded very few big chances (14). Over the first 17 days, they have established themselves as the league's benchmark. Compared with the European top 5, only Juventus (11), Napoli (13) and Real Sociedad (13) have done better. Le Téfécé also concedes the fewest Expected Goals (14.99) in the French league. In Europe's top five leagues, only Bayern Munich (9.57) and Juventus (14.34) are harder to break down.

The (almost) kings of the duel

The Téfécé shine in a number of defensive statistical categories, not least in its ability to win duels. Indeed, Le Téf' is the 2nd team to fight and win the most duels (860 out of 1,720). Only AS Monaco do better than the Violets.
And when we focus on aerial duels, we see that the Toulousans are also in 2nd place, this time behind Brest (238 aerial duels won out of 457 disputed). Note also that only PSG (143) and LOSC (150) conceded fewer shots than Toulouse (152).

Cásseres and Cresswell stand out

And on an individual level? Defensive midfielder Cristian Cásseres is one of the McDonald's Ligue 1 benchmarks for successful tackles. His tally of 32 is the 2nd highest of any player in the league, with only RC Strasbourg's Brazilian Andrey Santos doing better (39).
Behind him, England U-21 international Charlie Cresswell is one of the revelations of the first half of the season. The solid young defender has the 2nd-highest number of headed clearances (52, 2 fewer than Gautier Lloris). Charlie Cresswell is also the 3rd player to win the most aerial duels (46), an area in which he is second only to Ludovic Ajorque and Benjamin André.