Sky Sports columnist Laura Hunter tackles the latest Premier League matchweek talking points, including this season’s set-piece revolution, Man City’s troubles and Manchester’s red half’s surprising turnaround.
It’s time to ditch the set piece snobbery
Before Super Sunday, Everton were the only team in the Premier League yet to concede from a set piece. This fact is impressive considering the number of set-piece goals he has scored this season. However, after losing 3-0 to Thomas Frank’s Tottenham, Micky van de Ven twice escaped from corner kicks.
It seems like no team is immune to the set-piece phenomenon that is prevalent throughout the league.
This is not a fundamentally new idea. And whether this development has a positive or negative impact on entertainment value is a matter of personal preference. Fashion doesn’t necessarily mean aesthetics. Sometimes it’s about practicality. Even the most comfortable jeans won’t do you any good if they just look good when you leave them on a hanger.
Nineteen per cent (45/241) of all England international goals this season have come from corners, the highest percentage in the history of a Premier League campaign. Arsenal are masters of this art. Gabriel is so talented, in fact, that Jamie Carragher calls him the “most influential player in the league” at the moment.
It’s true that Mikel Arteta brings machine-like efficiency to the team. Arsenal have scored 11 goals from set pieces this season, two more than any other team (Chelsea are second with nine). In fact, 69% of goals scored in 2025/26 will come from set pieces (11/16). Arteta’s team has been deliberately assembled with physicality and power to operate in such a way. But they’re not alone.
Brentford have made long throws a piece of their team, having scored in this way eight times since the season began. Michael Kayode threw the ball into the mixer and asked his teammates to make first contact. That’s basic. And it’s about who reacts the quickest. It was Dango Ouattara who secured a 3-2 win against reigning champions Liverpool at the weekend. Any team can be exposed to this type of threat if planned well enough.
I wish Tony Pulis’ Stoke team were still alive and enjoying this era.
Romantics may call this evolution boring, but in reality, the league is beginning to level out. Bournemouth have used the set-piece threat effectively five times this season and are second in the table. The Spurs are third with the same success rate from dead ball situations.
Frank has been a long-time advocate of the benefits of set-piece ability, as it provides a small, realistic benefit. This is the result of practicing at a dedicated practice field. When pass-oriented soccer was all the rage, there were far fewer players with the specialized talent to play that way, and transfers were less likely as they often cost huge sums of money. They were ring-fenced for top clubs.
This formula applies equally to both ends of the table. The teams who concede most frequently from set pieces, Nottingham Forest and West Ham (both with 10), are 18th and 19th respectively. There is little point in resisting or ignoring this change. “If you’re not doing that, you’re a bit of a dinosaur as a coach,” Jamie Redknapp said on Super Sunday.
This new or merely improved manuscript will remain here. And if you can’t beat them, you might as well join them.
Where has Man City’s identity gone?
In the early 2010s, before Josep Guardiola, when Manchester City were the Premier League’s most powerful upstart, top managers criticized City’s lack of a clear identity. Manager Carlo Ancelotti once said during his time at Chelsea that City had “skills and ability” but “we are not a team”.
Never before had such a thing been said about a team under Guardiola in any part of Europe. Not at Barcelona, not at Bayern Munich, and never at Manchester City – until now. The scars from last year’s well-documented meltdown are having a lasting impact on Pep’s newly formed squad. And it’s unclear exactly what they represent.
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Premier League highlights of Aston Villa vs Manchester City
City’s recent defeat to Aston Villa (their third of the season) showed the team caught between a change in style that glorified set-pieces over clean passing patterns. Pep has publicly stated that he wants to embrace what he calls ‘modern football’, but many of the ideas run counter to the essence of what has led to his famous success at every club he has managed. He was the ultimate philosophy coach.
Gary Neville has criticized this recent erosion. “Man City aren’t even good to watch anymore,” he said on this week’s podcast. “They feel like they’re going to lose any game of football. In terms of passing, the play is like a hybrid of direct and old Pep, but a bit dirty. I’m not really sure what that is.”
For perfectionist managers, this period of flux is clearly difficult to control. Guardiola has no intention of using long throwers anytime soon. In fact, City are the only team in the Premier League yet to score from a set-piece this season, which shows how seriously Pep welcomes these new rules of the game.
Manchester City currently average fewer possessions than in any other season since records began
Their latest downfall was orchestrated by a Matty Cash strike that worked beautifully, and it came from a corner.
It was City’s first defeat since August and only the second time all season they failed to score, but repeated predictions mean they fail far more times than they need to seriously challenge for Premier League honors.
Guardiola blamed the “last action” and “should have shot better or crossed better”, but in reality it was the lack of ideas that paid the price. And if City aren’t squeezing possession the way they used to, holding onto the ball so methodically that opponents are tired of chasing it, then what are they doing?
Being more direct against fast wingers would be fine if he has the physicality to deal with breakdowns in play, but City probably won’t be able to do that without Rodri, who has been under the radar. They won just 42 per cent of their ground games at Villa Park. This is not the first time Unai Emery has gotten his tactical setup right.
So Pep is back to square one. The city needs a new Plan B.
Manchester United’s show promise – but it comes with a caveat
In case you didn’t hear from us over the weekend, and if we didn’t, you’d be in trouble, Manchester United have won three consecutive Premier League games in the same season for the first time since February 2024. Ruben Amorim persisted, and his will was finally rewarded.
However, there appears to be a sense of “suffering” at Man United before a positive result, as he himself put it in the Old Trafford press room after making a comfortable win against Brighton seem unlikely.
Manchester United are showing steady improvement under Amorim.
Only they can defeat their team comprehensively and at the same time make it look like they survived a great horror. How can a performance so assured match one so fraught with tension? Perhaps we will never know. This seems to be Amorim’s brand and has worked so far.
What is clear and admirable about this version of Man United, watching from the terraces of Old Trafford, is how committed the players are to their manager’s cause. “The players really like Amorim,” Neville said at the weekend. “He’s genuine and honest. The players want to do well for him.”
Bruno Fernandes playing a sacrificial role in midfield, Amad at wing-back and Luke Shaw’s desire to move into the back three are all signs of support. But the stars of this latest victory are undoubtedly Matheus Cunha and Brian Mbeumo, recruited to suit a style that is starting to show promise.
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Brian Mbeumo scores Manchester United’s third goal in a 4-2 win over Brighton
Pep’s memo may have disappeared in the post, but Amorim has acquired the memo of modern football. This team is not one to dazzle with complex build-ups, but they can sustain a clear threat with fast, direct play that puts Cunha and Mbeumo at the heart of each attacking phase.
Cunha’s opening goal also proves his maverick qualities, which is also helpful. Since the start of last season, no player has scored more goals from outside the box (7 times).
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Matheus Cunha curls the ball into the far post for his first Man United goal.
“I feel like we can solve anything,” Amorim said with a smile on Saturday, before revealing he had enjoyed his performance against Brighton more than the one against Liverpool last week. “It was more complete,” he added. There are certainly signs of consistency, but Amorim was right to be pragmatic and caution against excitement. He cannot afford to be complacent.
Visits to Nottingham Forest and Tottenham over consecutive weeks will test how much progress has actually been made.
