The NFL tactics influencing the Premier League

Arsenal defeated Newcastle 2-1 on Sunday. Even though Arsenal had some good chances, corner routines were used to score all three of the goals in the game was telling.

Fans have a tendency to feel like football has lost some of its magic because famous players have less space and freedom to express themselves in open play.

However, current professionals claim that the players, tactics, and coaching staff are of the highest caliber ever.

Both of these things are true, and looking at how football has evolved into a more organized, well-organized game that resembles American football can help explain this.

When asked to compare football and the NFL, Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay said, “The closest thing to what American football is is if every [football] play was a set-piece.” Every play serves as our set-piece.

Set pieces are gaining in importance, and if McVay’s theory is accepted, the Premier League is more similar to the NFL. More attention is being given to corners, free kicks, throw-ins, and even kick-off situations than in previous seasons.

This season, 28.4% of Premier League goals were scored through set-pieces, which is the highest total for any of the previous ten seasons.

And throw-ins account for 3.2% of goals, which is also the highest percentage in the last ten years.

Given that he and Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta were friends, it is intriguing that McVay was the one to make these observations. Both men have shared ideas and are young coaches who are at the forefront of tactically shaping what their sport looks like.

Arsenal have learned to score from set pieces in recent years.

They have scored 36 goals from corners in the Premier League since the start of the 2023-24 season, which is 15 more than any other team during that time.

What are teams doing in their routines that resemble the NFL and give priority to set-pieces and to good success?

Teams typically request their players to follow predetermined routes on set-pieces to make room for a free target. This is a change from the less well-executed routines, which frequently focused on crossing specific box boundaries and using your best players’ physicality and duelling to win headers.

The similarity in player movement between the two sports can be seen more clearly when you look at set-plays more closely.

Rub routes are plays in which an attacking player moves to inadvertently block another player’s path in the NFL. Running “routes” close to each other when attacking players hope one of their players blocks a defensive back, allowing space for their teammate, especially when under man-to-man pressure.

Gabriel put together a strong winner for Newcastle, but William Saliba’s off-the-ball exchange with goalkeeper Nick Pope assisted the team’s success.

In the Premier League, more deliberate blocking is also being used frequently. Players are positioned in front of goalkeepers who are tasked with halting their movement and ability to defend set-plays.

Chelsea won three corners earlier this year against West Ham, and Liam Delap’s blocking of Hammers keeper Mads Hermansen, in a way that resembles some of the off-ball blocking seen in the NFL, was crucial to their success.

The intentional blocking in Crystal Palace’s goal against West Ham was also exhibited in a way that resembled basketball, another more choreographed American sport.

Adam Wharton deliberately blocked the West Ham defender’s path at the far post, putting his body between Marc Guehi and his marker (unlike the indirect ways rub routes obstruct movement). The captain of Palace was freed unmarked because of this.

How many factors affect football, which makes it difficult to prepare for everything, sets it apart from other sports. Games are a series of “mini-games,” as in sports like football or tennis.

22 players can move freely across a large pitch during open play football. It’s challenging to prepare for all of these scenarios because the game’s perspective changes a lot. There is a requirement that players must decide what happens on the field and take appropriate action.

McVay acknowledges the distinction between control and sports, saying, “What I think Arteta does is translating a vision of how coaches [want to be able to see the game] and you’re giving players ownership and autonomy just based on the flow of the game.”

Both Maresca and Arteta prefer to dominate possessions, letting their respective teams to stay within striking distance of their own goal. Given the low risk taken in their attacking play despite having the ball, Arteta’s approach has been compared to pragmatic in previous seasons.

Teams can lessen the uncertainty by playing more safely in open play before maximizing the safer, more organized elements of the game, such as set-pieces.

Teams are able to predict these scenarios more accurately in the days leading up to a game, knowing both how likely they are to be set up and their weaknesses.

Managers across the league have to work with the challenge of balancing risk with control, but Arsenal have started to introduce more risky and incisive passing this year, especially in the middle of the pitch.