Just how does he do it?
On Saturday, Dax McCarty scored yet another goal with his head off a set piece, with this one proving to be a game-winner against the Philadelphia Union as the New York Red Bulls moved to the top of the Eastern Conference.
The thing is, the 5-foot-9 Red Bulls captain has been exceptional at scoring headed goals over the past five seasons. Since the start of that season, McCarty has scored eight of his 14 goals with his head, tied for the 12th most in MLS over that span.
He's been able to do that despite taking 38 headed shots. His 21.05 percent conversion rate is ahead of players such as Kendall Waston, Tim Cahill and Chad Marshall. You can check out the top ten in headed conversion rate among players who have scored at least seven goals since 2012 below:
Player |
Headed Goals |
Headed Shots |
Conversion Rate |
Height |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Robbie Keane |
7 |
25 |
28% |
5'9'' |
Cyle Larin |
8 |
33 |
24.24% |
6'2'' |
Eddie Johnson |
15 |
62 |
24.19% |
6'0'' |
Ricardo Clark |
7 |
30 |
23.33% |
5'10'' |
Alan Gordon |
15 |
67 |
22.39% |
6'3'' |
Dax McCarty |
8 |
38 |
21.05% |
5'9'' |
Drew Moor |
10 |
49 |
20.41% |
6'0'' |
Conor Casey |
10 |
49 |
20.41% |
6'1'' |
Blas Perez |
10 |
54 |
18.52% |
6'1'' |
Alvaro Saborio |
11 |
61 |
18.03% |
6'0'' |
