Is Arsenal's increased dependency on set-pieces a sign of weakness or could it change the Premier League forever?
- Anweshan Ghosh
- 1 day ago
- 4 min read
Updated: 1 day ago
Set-pieces have always been an important part of the game, providing an excellent goal-scoring opportunity during a game, but in recent years, Premier League sides have weaponised these set-piece situations to a great extent, which has led to criticism as well as appreciation from certain pundits and fans.
Teams have hired designated set-piece coaches to train the players in bringing out the best from these opportunities and turn them into goals. Teams have turned the corner kicks into complete chaos, where the players crowd the goalkeeper and wrestle with the opposition to get into an advantageous position.
Statistically, this season, 27% of the goals scored in the Premier League have come from set-pieces excluding penalties, which is the highest amongst Europe's top five leagues. This 'tactical revolution' in the Premier League has often received criticism for suspectedly reducing a team's focus on general creativity on the pitch and building up opportunities from open play.
However, this new approach has also managed to expose a few rules of the game. When a team's players crowd inside their oppositions' six-yard box during corner-kicks and free-kicks, it leads to huge scuffling and grappling amongst the players, making it incredibly difficult for the goalkeeper to get a clear sight of the ball. This also leads to lesser visibility for the referees to spot if any offence takes place during such situations.
The most controversial moments arises because of the goalkeepers, who majority of the times struggle to reach the ball because of constantly crowded, even preventing them from jumping and diving towards the ball floated in. However, due to absence any particular rule regarding this, the keepers doesn't get any help from the referees.
Due to this 'loophole', several teams in the league have adopted this crowding strategy during set-pieces to make the goalkeeper vulnerable, and therefore, successfully increasing their chances to score.
The football rulebook prevents players from holding, pushing and making dangerous tackles, which even leads to a booking, but the officials do not have any backing themselves in such scuffling situations and prevent the chaos in the box. As a result, the match officials are seen pausing the game during such moments to calm the players doen, but it also leads to time wasting during the game that doesn't even get added on later in the stoppage time.
As more and more teams have started adopt this set-pieces approach, several top pundits have openly demanded a change in the laws of the game to stop the increasing popularity of this approach.
However, despite several attempts, the rule-making body of the sport, IFAB, has refused appeals to bend the rules and add new regulations for set-pieces, especially corner kicks. In general the governing body tweaks the rules when the whole footballing world raises their voice, but in this particular issue has only seemed to have affected the Premier League till now.
Fans have proposed to the board to put a restriction to the number of opposition players that can be present inside the box during corner-kicks and free-kicks, but critics have also argued that it would make no sense as the players would charge into the box the moment the ball is played in.
Strict and simultaneous VAR checks to selectively check the fouls during such situations could be initiated, but it would cause a long delay and further increase in time wastage.
How are Arsenal responsible for this dark art of set-pieces in the Premier League?
The dark art of set-pieces was introduced to league by Mikel Arteta's Arsenal side last season, where the Gunners' illustrated how the use of physical force can convert the ordinary corner-kicks into genuine goal-scoring opportunities everytime. Mikel Arteta's set-piece coach Nicolas Jover, who is the primary source of this scuffling approach, has strategised by basing it on precise delivery and calculated movements from tall lads like William Saliba and Gabriel, heavily backed by players smartly obstructing the opposition goalkeepers players, which leaves the t in no man's land during the corners.
Arsenal's architects of these corners are Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice and sometimes Martin Ødegaard. Their job is to provide inswinging crosses inside the box with pinpoint accuracy, targeting the zone between the goalkeeper and the last line of defence. Since the ball swings inside, it crowds the area between the goalkeeper and the defensive line while the attackers push further forward, suffocating the six-yard box. This ends up giving the Gunners a clear advantage always during corner kicks, and they have gradually improved in this since the last two seasons.
Arsenal's sudden charge towards the goal during corner kicks not only clusters the box but also bamboozles the opposition defenders, confusing them. They are often left clueless as to whom to mark during such situations, due to which they've had so much success from set pieces. This strategic approach from Arsenal gives the opposition no chance to do zonal marking on them; it requires man marking, which is put to the Gunners' advantage again, as tall lads prefer man-to-man marking to get to the ball floated in the air.
The final play from Arsenal is to always free one of the centre-backs during the corners, either Saliba or Gabriel. Even Timber sneaks up during such attacks. One of these players starts their run from the edge of the penalty area before accelerating at the last moment, while the others smartly block the view of the run. This is the reason defenders often get stunned at the last moment by Gabriel or Saliba, who rise up.
This revolution in tactics during set pieces has been massive for Arsenal; they've scored many goals from corners, and teams actually prepare against them to not concede from corners. Such is the menace that they've created from set-piece situations in the Premier League. The Gunners have scored 59 goals in the Premier League so far; 19 of them have come from set pieces, which is the highest among all teams in the league. Successful coordination, strategy and exposing the loopholes in the modern game have turned this system of Arsenal into a genuine weapon they use to win games.
