On October 10 (CET), James Sharpe, a prominent Daily Mail journalist, published a column analyzing the significant decline in set-piece goals in the new Premier League season. He noted that strict enforcement by referees against pulling and blocking in the penalty area has fundamentally altered teams' set-piece tactics, presenting new challenges for Arsenal, which previously relied heavily on corner kicks for goals.

The Column

Remember when set pieces were considered "ruining football"? Remember when Arsenal scored so many goals from corners that a mural of set-piece coach Nicolas Jover was painted outside Emirates Stadium? Remember when set pieces were so crucial that Chelsea paid a release clause to recruit set-piece specialist Austin MacPhee from Aston Villa as if he were a superstar striker?

Can you blame them? Last season, despite often lacking creativity in open play, The Gunners scored a record 19 goals from corners and reclaimed the Premier League title after 22 years. Tottenham Hotspur, meanwhile, scored 18 goals from corners, helping them avoid relegation.

But has football really come to this? Packing players as tall as possible into the six-yard box, letting them wrestle like in a wrestling match, just to see who can reach the ball first?

At this summer's World Cup, FIFA analysis found that in more than 40% of corner attacks, attacking players attempted to block or obstruct opponents. Four years earlier, at the Qatar World Cup, this figure was less than 25%. This means that by 2026, more than half of World Cup corner goals will be aided by player blocking and screening.

Back in England. Two summers ago, head of match officials Howard Webb vowed to crack down on pulling and holding, but that initiative quickly seemed to be forgotten. "It just felt like referees didn't really want to get involved in that anymore," Everton manager David Moyes said last season. Now, enforcement has truly begun, with referees instructed to call fouls for every "pulling action that has a clear material impact." Just five weeks into the new season, this change is already clearly evident.

Last season, a record 18% of Premier League goals came from corners, the highest proportion in league history. For the eight seasons prior, goals from open play consistently accounted for approximately 70% to 73% of all goals, but last season this figure dropped to 65%. Following the implementation of the new rules, goals from open play have increased to nearly three-quarters of the 141 goals scored in the Premier League so far this season. Corner goals now account for just 9.9% of total goals, the second-lowest in Premier League history.

Currently, more than half the teams in the league have yet to score from a corner, including former set-piece masters Arsenal and Tottenham. Brighton, meanwhile, has benefited in two ways: not only have they scored three goals from corners, but their expected goals (xG) from open play also lead the Premier League.

How much of the decline in set-piece goals can be attributed to stricter refereeing? According to Opta data, the proportion of fouls called within 10 seconds after a corner has increased from 6% last season to 8.1% this season. Among these, fouls for pulling have also increased from 4.1% to 5.3%. Opta defines pulling as pushing an opponent or holding/tugging an opponent's shirt.

However, none of these fouls have resulted in penalties. Last season, referees awarded 21 penalties within 25 seconds after a corner. So far this season, the only penalty awarded for pulling during a set piece occurred when Arsenal defender Ezri Ngoyo was adjudged to have fouled Sunderland's Dan Ballard following a long throw-in into the box—a decision that was later even deemed an error. Attacking players' minor infractions during set pieces appear to have been curtailed.

However, deeper data analysis reveals that the impact of the new refereeing standards is not as significant as it appears on the surface. Expected goals from set pieces have declined from an average of 0.76 to 0.72 per match. Based on the first 50 matches of this season, this change equates to a reduction in expected value of roughly two goals. Expected goals from corners have dropped from an average of 0.46 to 0.38 per match, representing a reduction in expected value of about five goals.

In fact, the number of set-piece shots has actually increased slightly. This suggests that teams are forced to deliver the ball to less favorable positions for attempts, rather than sending it directly into the six-yard box for a scramble, as they did previously.

So what's wrong with Arsenal? Over the past three seasons, they've led the Premier League in set-piece goals. This Saturday afternoon, "corner king" Mikel Arteta will face Leeds United—one of the league's tallest teams on average—but Arsenal have yet to score from a set piece this season, aside from one penalty. Breaking their drought will not be straightforward.

Although the proportion of corner attacks that result in fouls has increased across the Premier League, Arsenal's proportion in this regard has actually decreased. The real issue is that The Gunners are creating fewer opportunities than before. Last season, their expected goals from set pieces ranked first, and their set-piece shot count ranked third. This season, these figures have dropped to ninth and fourteenth.

Even when opportunities are created, Arsenal fail to convert them into goals. Gabriel has always been adept at creating threats from set pieces, but he has taken three set-piece shots this season without scoring. Based on the quality of chances Arsenal have created from set pieces, they should have scored two or three goals. Perhaps this is simply luck returning to normal levels. Last season, Arsenal's actual set-piece goals were approximately five higher than their expected goals.

Previously, Arteta complained about the impact of another new Premier League rule: players are not allowed to use towels to dry the ball before taking throw-ins. Last season, Ben White and Declan Rice frequently executed long throw-ins into the box, and Arsenal scored several goals this way. "Not being able to use towels has a major impact," Arteta said before the season began.

Ahead of Saturday's visit from Leeds United, Arteta lamented: "You have to adapt to the rules and figure out what you can and can't do. This also opens up other spaces for us to try what we want to do. We want to score goals in different ways. Personally, I think our performance in the first five matches has been better than last year, but we haven't scored. That's the reality of set pieces."

"At this time last year, we had already scored three set-piece goals, two of which didn't require much effort, but the execution we should have done wasn't done. There's an element of luck involved. I think we should be scoring more goals this season, but it hasn't happened. If we can maintain this level of performance throughout the season, the final numbers will look very good."

William Saliba has missed the first five league matches of the season. Ezri Ngoyo, who replaced him, needs time to adjust to Jover's tactical patterns and coordination. Even so, he may not be available for the Leeds United match. Timber, like Gabriel, scored three set-piece goals last season, including two against Leeds United, but has missed three matches this season through injury. Arsenal losing both key "set-piece disruptors" simultaneously is clearly not good news.

Webb's initiative may push teams to change their approach. This season, teams are using tactical short corners more frequently than last season. After last season's anomaly, the proportion of goals from open play has returned to levels seen in previous seasons.

Perhaps beautiful football has finally returned. And this time, Arsenal can no longer rely solely on "winning ugly."

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