Jose Mourinho described Manchester United as the unluckiest team in the Premier League after their 1-1 draw with Arsenal, but do the stats back him up? Juan Matas second-half goal appeared to be sending United to a well-deserved victory at Old Trafford on Saturday, only for Olivier Giroud to pull Arsenal level with their only shot on target.It was a bitter blow for United, who dominated the game for long periods, and it prompted Mourinho to rue his sides misfortune. I am really happy with the team, but at the moment I consider us the unluckiest team in the Premier League because it is the reality, he told Sky Sports. If you analyse the last three matches. Against Stoke we have to win 5-0 or 6-0 and we draw. Against Burnley we have to win 5-0 or 6-0 and we draw and today we have to win 2-0 or 3-0 and we draw.So does Mourinho have a point? Or is he making excuses? From key decisions to hitting the woodwork, we examine the evidence…Refereeing decisionsMourinho rarely bites his tongue when it comes to decisions going against his side and this season there have been a number of flashpoints. The United boss was angered by two decisions during the Manchester derby defeat to City back in September. Claudio Bravo challenges Wayne Rooney during the Manchester derby First, there was Claudio Bravos lunge on Wayne Rooney, then an Antonio Valencia cross struck Nicolas Otamendi on the elbow. Mourinho criticised Mark Clattenburg for failing to award penalties in both cases. Former referee Dermot Gallagher agreed with Mourinho about the Bravo incident in his weekly column for Sky Sports, but he felt Clattenburg was right to overlook the Otamendi incident.In Uniteds following game against Watford, they conceded the opening goal after Anthony Martial was robustly dispossessed by Miguel Britos. Mourinho described the decision to let play continue as ridiculous, while Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville said the Watford defender had kicked through his left leg to get the ball. PL contenders highs and lows We examine each of the title contenders highs and lows so far this season. Clattenburg enraged Mourinho again when he didnt award United a penalty after Matteo Darmian went down following a clash with Jon Flanagan in their 0-0 draw with Burnley last month. Mourinho was handed a one-game ban for his furious reaction, but replays showed the contact was minimal. Nacho Monreal tangled with Antonio Valencia in Saturdays game There was another penalty incident against Arsenal, with Valencia going to ground after Nacho Monreal raised an arm across his body. Mourinho chose not to criticise Andre Marriner over the incident, but it was a decision which could have gone either way. Man Utd 1-1 Arsenal While Manchester City, Tottenham, Arsenal and Liverpool have all been awarded at least four penalties this season, United have only had one. But while there have been a number of decisions to irk Mourinho, they have not all been quite as clear-cut as he might tell you. And on the other hand, they have only had one penalty awarded against them. Penalties won and conceded - Premier League 2016/17 Team Penalties won Team Penalties conceded Manchester City 5 Hull 6 Arsenal 4 Southampton 4 Liverpool 4 West Ham 4 Tottenham 4 Arsenal 3 Crystal Palace 3 Bournemouth 3 Leicester 3 Everton 3 Sunderland 3 Swansea 3 - - - - Manchester Utd 1 Manchester Utd 1 Injury count?One area in which United have undoubtedly been unfortunate is injuries. Defensive issues forced Mourinho to field a makeshift back four against Arsenal on Saturday, and it was not the first time this season that his options have been depleted. Manchester United have lost Eric Bailly to injury this season In fact, according to PhysioRoom.com, United have racked up the second-highest total of injuries this season with 27. Only relegation battlers Sunderland have suffered more (30). Most injuries - Premier League 2016/17 Team Injuries Sunderland 30 Manchester United 27 Liverpool 24 Tottenham 22 Leicester 21 Manchester City 20 Arsenal 19 Crystal Palace 19 Southampton 19 Watford 19 West Ham 19 Goalkeeping heroics?Manchester Uniteds shot conversion rate of 11.6 per cent is the fifth-lowest in the Premier League. Its partly down to wasteful finishing, but they have also had the misfortune of facing goalkeepers in the form of their lives. Tom Heaton pulled off a string of impressive saves against Manchester United Stoke shot-stopper Lee Grant rescued the Potters with eight saves in their 1-1 draw at Old Trafford, while Tom Heatons performance in the 0-0 draw with Burnley was even better. The 30-year-old made 11 saves in total, including one described as one of the best in Premier League history by Peter Schmeichel. Bad luck or bad finishing? Manchester United have had 74 shots to their opponents 19 in the last three Premier League games at Old Trafford, yet the aggregate score is 2-2. In total, opposition goalkeepers have made 49 saves against Manchester United this season, a far higher total than the Premier League average of 34. Its not just a question of bad luck, but its certainly been a factor.Hitting the woodworkFootball is a game of fine margins and there are few things more frustrating than seeing your sides shots come back off the woodwork. United have rattled the frame of the goal five times in total - including twice each in their draws with Stoke and Burnley.You could call it bad luck, but its nothing compared to Bournemouth, who have been denied by the woodwork 13 times in total. In fact, six Premier League sides have hit the woodwork more times than United. Most times hit woodwork - Premier League 2016/17 Team Hit woodwork Bournemouth 13 Arsenal 7 Manchester City 7 Tottenham 7 Liverpool 6 Stoke 6 Manchester United 5 Southampton 5 Late goals?Girouds equaliser on Saturday was the fourth time United have conceded in the 80th minute or later this season, putting them comfortably above the Premier League average of 2.5 late goals per side.It happened twice in Uniteds 3-1 defeat to Watford back in September and it also happened with Joe Allens late leveller for Stoke last month. Add Girouds equaliser and United would be five points better off had they managed to hold on in those games. But while Mourinho might call it bad luck, it also raises questions over complacency. Olivier Girouds equaliser was the fourth late goal Manchester United have conceded in the Premier League this season So while the evidence suggests United have indeed had their share of bad luck, particularly with injuries and goalkeeping heroics, there are clearly numerous other factors at play.Mourinho will be hoping things fall into place in the weeks ahead, but United are not the only side to have been hit by misfortune, and their prospects of turning things around are dependent on more than just a change of luck.Upgrade to Sky Sports now and get 12 months half price. Hurry, offer ends December 4th! Also See: PL contenders highs and lows Jose: Utds unluckiest team Virgil van Dijk Liverpool Jersey .FIFA says it is relaxing the rule which forced match officials to leave its international list at the end of the year they turned 45. Andrew Robertson Liverpool Jersey . Tensions rose in the first period when Penguins defenceman Brooks Orpik hit Bruins forward Loui Eriksson with what appeared to be a clean hit. http://www.soccerliverpoolproshop.com/c-30-sadio-mane-liverpool-fc-jersey.aspx . The deal will pay Hainsey $3 million for the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons and $2.5 million in 2016-17. Dominic Solanke Liverpool Jersey . The teams all-time leading scorer, DeRo has won everything there is to win in MLS. Andrew Robertson Jersey . The kind he has every so often. The kind he has when Dwyane Wade sits. James scored 43 points -- 25 in a bewildering first-quarter shooting display -- and Chris Bosh added 21, leading the Miami Heat to a 100-96 win Tuesday night over the Cleveland Cavaliers, who played their first game without injured All-Star guard Kyrie Irving.The 2014 NHL draft is many things to many people, but Year of the Defenceman it is not. The oddity, of course, is that its a blueliner who is the mid-season favorite to be taken No. 1 overall at the draft in Philadelphia, June 27-28. Barrie Colt defenceman Aaron Ekblad is No. 1 on TSNs Mid-Season Top 50 Prospects rankings. In a survey of 10 NHL team scouts, Ekblad garnered eight No. 1 votes and was No. 2 on the remaining two ballots. The only other players to get a No. 1 vote, one apiece, were Kootenay Ice centre Sam Reinhart and Kingston Frontenac centre Sam Bennett (who was ranked No. 1 by the NHL Central Scouting Bureau in its mid-term rankings). Ekblad and Reinhart both performed admirably for Canada at the 2014 World Junior Championship but the defenceman clearly made a bigger impact, reversing TSNs pre-season polling that had Reinhart at No. 1, by virtue of five first-place votes, compared to Ekblads three. The truth is, from the Ivan Hlinka Memorial under-18 tournament last August through to the Canadian Hockey League Top Prospects game in mid-January, the 6-foot-4, 216-pound defenceman has been on a strong, steady arc. "In the summer, a lot of the projections for (Ekblad) were he might not be anything more than a (No.) 4 (NHL defenceman), that he was neither a real offensive threat or a true shutdown defenceman," one scout told TSN. "But the way he played at the Hlinka, this season in Barrie, the World Juniors and the Prospect game, hes showing a lot more range in his game." While Ekblad will never be a power play quarterback, he can hammer the puck well enough to project as a power play shooter from the point and score goals. Both at the Hlinka and WJC, Ekblad was consistently used in a shutdown role and performed well. Many scouts believe now he has top-pairing NHL potential, a big body who can skate, move the puck, defend, contribute offensively and play both sides of special teams while munching a lot of minutes. After the WJC, Ekblad scored four goals (including a shorthanded marker) and one assist in one game. "Hes not a superstar by any means," another scout said, "but hes going to be a very good NHL defenceman." Some scouts have taken note of Victor Hedmans emergence, the second overall pick in the 2009 draft, as a top-minute defenceman for Tampa this season and see many similarities in Ekblad. Ekblad is far and away the top defenceman in this draft. Only one other blueliner - Red Deers Haydn Fleury, at No. 6 – cracked TSNs Top 10 prospects. In fact, only five defencemen - Ekblad, Fleury, Kingstons Roland McKeown at No. 17, Swift Currents Julius Honka at No. 18 and Sarnias Anthony DeAngelo at No. 26 – are in TSNs Top 30. The latter three are likely first-round picks, but not by any means guaranteed. Relative to recent years, the death of top-echelon defencemen is striking. Last year, eight of the top 18 picks were defenders. In 2012, eight of the top 10 picks were blueliners. Scouts do not believe this years draft class has the same high-end sizzle and overall depth as last years group that was headed by Nathan MacKinnon, Seth Jones, Jonathan Drouin and Aleksandr Barkov. And it would be fair to say theres more anticipation for the 2015 draft class, headed by highly-touted Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel, amongst others, than this year. But the scouts also cautioned that the top-end prospects this year are still excellent talents, just not necessarily potential stars. TSNs No. 2-ranked Reinhart didnt really do anything to "lose" No. 1 status from the pre-season as much as Ekblad simply elevated his game. Reinhart has played very well in the WHL and logged significant minutes for Canada at the WJC. A centre in junior, some scouts believe hell be best suited to wing in the NHL. Reinharts chief assets are an extremely high hockey I.Q. and skill level as both a goal-scorer and playmaker. Hes not physically overpowering and his skating is not dynamic but a seemingly innate ability to be in the right place at the right time to make plays is his trademark. Kingstons Bennett, the only player other than Ekblad and Reinhart to get a No. 1 vote, is No. 3 on the TSN list. The competitive centre who has some of the same qualities as his Kingston general manager Doug Gilmour can be both a productive offeensive force but also does quality work without puck, earning rave reviews for his complete approach to the game.dddddddddddd Oshawa General winger Michael Dal Colle checks in at No. 4 on TSNs list. The rangy forward has a pro shot and was a top five prospect on eight of 10 scouts ballots, including one vote as the second-best prospect available in this draft. No. 5 on TSNs list is Prince Albert Raider centre Leon Draisaitl, who is destined to be the highest-drafted German player and, for now, the top European prospect on the TSN list. But Draisaitl seems to be trending in the wrong direction. He played poorly at the WJC and didnt perform particularly well in the CHL Top Prospects game. But hes still a big-body, two-way centre. The second half of the season could mean more to Draisaitls ranking than any prospect in the draft. The balance of TSNs Top 10 is top heavy with wingers. Only two-way defenceman Fleury, at No. 6, interrupted a run on wingers: Peterborough Petes power forward Nick Ritchie is No. 7, followed at No. 8 by Niagara Ice Dog Brendan Perlini, whose assets are size, speed and an NHL shot. The No. 9 slot belongs to Finnish winger Kasperi Kapanen, the son of former NHL winger Sami Kapanen, and the Top 10 is rounded out by Calgary Hitmen power winger Jake Virtanen, a strong skater who drives the net and can play the physical game. There appears to be a lot of volatility in this years mid-season rankings. NHL scouts dont seem as fully sold on this years first-round prospects, especially those ranked from No. 11 through to 30. One of the issues is size. Many of the more skilled prospects - Swedish forward William Nylander at No. 11, the son of former NHLer Mikael Nylander, Denmarks Nikolaj Ehlers, a forward with the Halifax Mooseheads at No. 15, No. 22 Russian Nikolay Goldobin, a forward in Sarnia, No. 23 Czech winger Jakub Vrana , No. 24 Swiss forward Kevin Fiala, Sarnia offensive defenceman DeAngelo at No. 26, No. 29 Windsor winger Josh Ho-Sang and No. 30 forward Rob Fabbri of the Guelph Storm - are all listed as sub-6-footers by NHL Central Scouting. And while scouts dont dispute the individual skill level of prospects like Nylander, Goldobin, Vrana, DeAngelo, Ho-Sang and No. 25 ranked Nick Schmaltz of the USHLs Green Bay Gamblers (headed for University of North Dakota), multiple scouts expressed some reservation about those players trying to do too much with the puck or not showing enough consistency and commitment to the team game. "Nylander is the most skilled player in this draft, bar none," one scout told TSN. "But he likes to play the game on his own." Another scout said: "Some nights you watch Schmaltz and hes a dominant player, best on the ice, but then he doesnt even show up a lot of games." A third scout said: "Ho-Sang played a great game at Prospects and showed an ability to play with others but a lot of nights in Windsor, he wants to do it on his own. There seem to be a lot of guys like that this year." No goalie was ranked in TSNs Top 30, but American Thatcher Demko, who plays at Boston College, fell just outside, at No. 31, and should be considered a potential first-rounder. He was the overwhelming consensus top goalie in a year where theres never been so little consensus beyond the top guy. Demko appeared on eight of 10 ballots, but the next highest ranked goalie, Alex Nedeljkovic of the Plymouth Whalers at No. 42, was on only five of 10 ballots. Swedish goalie Jonas Johansson was the only other goalie to crack TSNs Top 50, filling the 50th and final spot. There were, however, three goaltenders getting honorable mention for the Top 50: Finlands Kaapo Kahkonen; Charlottetowns Mason McDonald; and Russian Ivan Nalimov. One note regarding TSNs rankings. The numbers assigned are a projection of when TSN believes a prospect is most likely to be drafted, if the draft were being held now. Its not a subjective analysis - not to be confused with the many scouting services who actually evaluate the prospects - as much as it is a numerical consensus obtained from surveying NHL scouts and where they rank specific players. TSNs next ranking - a revised Top 10 - will be done in April at the same time as the NHL draft lottery. TSNs final rankings come out the week prior to the NHL draft in late June. 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