How set plays are ruining the Premier League: Helping Arsenal but killing the fun

Last Updated on 21 October 2025

The Premier League is changing and not necessarily for the better. Goals are still being scored, there is late match drama, too, but the spectacle that made English football so thrilling is quietly fading.

The reason? Set pieces.

Corners, free kicks, and even throw-ins have become the new frontier of tactical innovation. Coaches have realised that these frozen moments, where the chaos stops, are the easiest route to victory. The data agrees.

It’s smart football, but it’s also slowing the Premier League to a crawl. With the ball in play for barely half the match and creative open-play goals disappearing, fans are left watching more planning than playing.

Set plays, football’s new weapon slowing the game down

Set pieces have become the Premier League’s great equalizer, and its biggest problem. Corners, free kicks, and even long throw-ins now dominate tactical preparation.

What was once a brief pause in play is now a meticulously rehearsed scoring opportunity.

Clubs are pouring more time and data into dead-ball situations than ever before.

The results are clear: more goals from set pieces, but fewer from open play. The average number of passes, shots, and minutes the ball stays in play are all at their lowest levels in over a decade.

Unfortunately, the sport’s smartest evolution is also what’s making it duller. Teams are prioritizing fouls and throw-ins to draw these moments instead of taking risks in open play. The Premier League has become more efficient but far less electric.

Arsenal, under Mikel Arteta and Nicolas Jover, are the making the most of this new era

No team has benefited from this tactical shift more than Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal. Through eight league games this season, the Gunners have scored eight goals from set plays, more than any individual player in their squad and only behind Erling Haaland’s total output.

Arteta’s side treat corners like power plays in hockey: deliberate, rehearsed, and ruthlessly efficient. Their dominance in dead-ball scenarios allows them to play with patience elsewhere, recycling possession, defending deeper, and controlling tempo.

Under Arteta, Arsenal’s set-piece strategy has become the equivalent of signing an £80 million striker.

It’s a low-risk, high-reward system that’s turning tight games into title-winning results. While the rest of the league is still adjusting, Arsenal are already mastering football’s latest evolution.