Here are number of goals conceded for the same managers. Again, feel free to correct if you spotted a major error.
Santini: 11 goals in 12 matches. 0.91
Jol:143 goals in 112 matches. 1.27
Ramos: 52 goals in 36 matches. 1.44
Redknapp: 161 goals in 144 matches. 1.11
AVB: 67 goals in 54 matches. 1.24
Pochettino: 206 goals in 202 matches. 1.01
Mourinho: 68 goals in 58 matches. 1.17
Nuno: 16 goals in 10 matches. 1.6
Conte: 64 goals in 56 matches. 1.14
Ange: 86 goals in 55 matches. 1.56
That looks way worse than PPM I'm afraid. Other than Ramos and Nuno (small sample) it's not even close. Three managers with nearly identical samples to Ange (AVB, Mourinho, Conte) all did significantly better.
Considering most of these managers did not have much success here, the fact that Ange is so behind them in this category is very concerning. I'm stating the obvious here, but I can't see how he can turn things around without any massive improvement on the defensive side. Simply trying to outscore the opposition won't cut it.
Here are numbers of goals scored. Ange is looking even better than I expected.
Santini: 8 goals in 12 matches. 0.66
Jol: 166 goals in 112 matches. 1.48
Ramos:54 goals in 36 matches. 1.5
Redknapp: 228 goals in 144 matches. 1.58
AVB: 81 goals in 54 matches. 1.5
Pochettino: 372 goals in 202 matches. 1.84
Mourinho: 95 goals in 58 matches. 1.63
Nuno: 9 goals in 10 matches. 0.9
Conte: 112 goals in 56 matches. 2
Ange: 113 goals in 55 matches. 2.05
The only two that may have a case over him are Conte (almost identical record, which surprised me), and Pochettino (due to huge difference in sample size in favour of him). Nobody else is close. And that’s despite the fact that Ange has not really been given a group of high quality frontline players. This looks really encouraging at first glance.
Now, what does that number of Ange’s exactly mean? To give you a perspective (not a comparison between these two managers in general), a mere 3 goal improvement over the course of a 38 match season would allow Ange to catch Klopp. Except they spent almost the entirety of Klopp's tenure inside top 4, while we’ve been spending most of Ange’s tenure in mid-table form. What's the deal?
Again, it’s not necessarily a Klopp vs Ange comparison. Replace Klopp with whoever you want. The point is that numbers just don’t add up with Ange. Looks like we’re scoring in vain.
What I see is this: We’re extremely close to fully exhausting our goal scoring potential. We're already suffering from diminishing returns, where trying to score even more, at the expense of loosening up our defense, is not only fruitless but counterproductive. In other words, with or without higher quality attackers that we in fact need, we can’t sustain a level of scoring necessary to turn us into a consistent top 4-5 team under Ange (I know, we indeed finished 5th last season). No team can. It’s simply because we’re giving up way too much on the other end. So as long as he keeps conceiving the issue as lack of scoring, rather than awful defending, we’ll never go anywhere with him. How can you find a cure when your diagnosis is so wrong?
I guess he deserves significant credit for creating a team that scores this much with the players he has. Unfortunately, unlike what he seems to think, scoring is not an end in itself. The sooner he realizes this the better. But I highly doubt he will.