Plenty of drama but where have all the goals gone?

Carlos Corberan's West Brom have been involved in five goalless draws this season

The Championship is so often the home of thrills, spills and goals - and plenty of them. But not so much this season.

After 15 rounds there have been 435 goals in 180 matches, which is 57 fewer than we had at this stage last season.

It's a four-year low - so where have all the goals gone?

"We have to keep this in context because we're comparing it to last season which was absolutely bonkers, where at times it just seemed like all-out attack," former Leyton Orient and Reading winger Jobi McAnuff told the BBC's 72+ podcast.

"The teams who came down, like Burnley and Sheffield United, also weren't in the greatest of shape either."

Of the top 10 sides in the division, only four have scored more than 20 goals.

Last season, when we had had 492 goals by this stage, each of the top 10 sides had scored more than 20 times in their first 15 matches.

The top two of Leicester and Ipswich were sweeping through all before them and had mustered 62 goals in total. This campaign, Sunderland and Sheffield United have 44.

Former Derby County defender Curtis Davies believes it might partly be down to the type of players clubs have signed.

"It's also a symptom of the tactics now in that clubs are signing forwards, not centre-forwards," he told the podcast.

"People will say they want a number nine but they also want him to drop in and do other things, not just stay around the box and only get involved when he needs to."

The Championship has seen the fewest goals scored at this stage for four years

Nil-nil the new norm?

Eighteen goalless draws so far also tells a tale of just how hard teams have found it to break each other down.

For the record, there had only been 12 goalless draws after 15 games last term. We are already more than halfway to last season's total of 35.

West Bromwich Albion have been involved in five of those nil-nils, four at The Hawthorns, where supporters have seen just three goals in total in seven Championship games.

"I think part of the credit has to go to the teams who’ve come to The Hawthorns and made themselves hard to beat with a resolute backline that sits deep," said Steve Hermon, BBC Radio WM's Baggies commentator.

"Millwall were the masters of it while it was also an approach Cardiff adopted in the second half of another goalless draw, but Albion’s insistence on not switching up their style of play to combat this has contributed to the problem."

When you consider Albion's Josh Maja is the division's second top goalscorer, albeit only one of his nine goals has come at home, it becomes even more of a mystery as to why Carlos Corberan's side have been so blunt up front.

"It’s not like Albion aren’t creating chances," Hermon added.

"In the Cardiff game, they had 19 shots, although only four were on target. There were 13 shots and three on target against Millwall and 11 at home to Burnley but only one on target, so that’s 43 shots in three goalless games."

A quiet season for goalkeepers: Leeds United's Illan Meslier and Sheffield United's Michael Cooper have each kept nine clean sheets this season

'A lot of teams cancel each other out'

In an age where the minutest of details is analysed, there are few surprises for teams when they come to play each other.

Coaches and analysts will have prepared their players for all eventualities and McAnuff admits that has a big bearing on the lack of goals.

"The tactical side of things has advanced so much and the way teams set up a lot of the time is to negate what the opposition are doing and it doesn't always make for a great spectacle," he told the podcast.

Meanwhile, Davies believes teams are cancelling each other out more than before.

"They want to play a possession type game but you end up with two teams who almost allow each other to have the ball for 30 passes and then the other has it for 30 passes but no-one's actually going towards the goal," he said.

Scott Parker's Burnley have also struggled for goals this season

At one point this season Swansea City went 563 minutes without scoring while Burnley are another side who have struggled for goals, with 18 in total.

The Clarets have conceded just six times in their 15 matches.

"Undoubtedly, they're not scoring anywhere near the volume of goals they would want and not being as creative as Burnley fans would like them to be," BBC Radio Lancashire commentator Scott Read said.

"It's not been an easy watch at times but the Burnley supporters are hoping the groundwork is in place for them to be a little bit more open and attacking as the season progresses."

Davies also believes coaches are wary of going for a more direct style of play to try to change things.

"Too many managers want the pure football because reputation means a lot and it's about a brand now," he told the podcast.

"You look at Vincent Kompany at Burnley - stunk the place out in terms of points last season but got plaudits for style of football and statistics with passes and things like that and gets the Bayern (Munich) job."

The next round of games produced 34 goals on the corresponding weekend last season and McAnuff expects teams to start finding their shooting boots sooner rather than later.

"The Championship has always had a quality of player but also that intensity, the speed of games and people taking shots but I have noticed it being different this year," he said.

"But, apart from last year, we're not a million miles off where we were in previous years so I can't see it being a trend which will continue - but I do want to see more goals than we have so far, that's for sure!"

So do we, Jobi.