League One has become quite a tactically diverse division in recent years. The third tier of English football is such a rich tapestry of contrasting styles, meaning there is no set blueprint for success unlike in the Championship and the Premier League where many of the leagues’ top teams look to play a similar way.
Stevenage have been a chief example of this throughout the 2023/24 campaign. Love Steve Evans or loathe him, the Scottish manager has done an outstanding job with the Hertfordshire outfit during his time at the Lamex Stadium, steering the club away from relegation to the National League and guiding them to an unprecedented promotion push, having never been in the Championship before.
With a low budget and unable to compete with bigger clubs like Portsmouth, Bolton Wanderers and Derby County from a financial and technical perspective, the former Leeds United boss has ensured that his side play a game of percentages, competing for second balls, sitting deep and hitting stronger teams on the counterattack while being physically disturbing to play against. One way Evans has achieved this is by making his team deadly at set-pieces, but Stevenage are not the only club who have proven themselves prolific from dead-ball situations.
Once an after-thought in football, used by plucky underdogs as a way to snatch a result against the big hitters, there has been somewhat of a set-piece revolution over the past few years. The likes of Thomas Gronnemark at Liverpool, credited with being the first throw-in specialist in the sport, Nicolas Jover at Arsenal and Aston Villa’s Austin MacPhee have all risen to prominence recently for their work on the training ground.
Set-piece perfection. 🤩@DGOficial 🤝 @JMcGinn7 pic.twitter.com/DmLYoJ3F1n
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) October 29, 2023
Now, the big clubs are realising that it’s just as important to be efficient from set-plays as it is to work on tactics in and out of possession, hence why Pep Guardiola transitioned Manchester City from being a group of technical, skilful geniuses to a physical powerhouse who could even go toe-to-toe in the air with Tony Pulis’ Stoke City.
In League One, the importance of set-pieces is being recognised by the best clubs in the division. In fact, five of the league’s current top six rank within the six most prolific teams from dead-ball situations, according to Opta Analyst.
Derby County lead the way in this metric, having scored 17 times in total. Evans’ Stevenage are just one goal behind in second place and have scored exactly 33.3% of their goals from set-pieces. In Opta’s terms, a set-play is defined as a chance that occurs “as a result of a corner, direct free kick, indirect free kick or throw-in,” so penalties are not included in these results.
Interestingly, teams lower down the table have struggled more from set-pieces. Port Vale Burton Albion, Cambridge United, Exeter City and Charlton Athletic have all only bagged a handful of goals from these scenarios which has played a part in their struggles this campaign. On the flip side, Carlisle United have found the net 11 times from set plays in League One, making up 39% of their total goals in the division.
The main outliers are Blackpool, Lincoln City and Barnsley in the bottom half of the set-piece table. These clubs have had relative success this season, relying solely on penalties and goals from open play, while Fleetwood Town, Carlisle, Wycombe Wanderers and Cheltenham Town have struggled to score from open play and a high volume of their total goals have come from dead-ball situations.
Finally, Wigan Athletic have created an xG of 8.18 from set plays this term, scoring 14 of them which is the largest overperformance in the league in the 2023/24 campaign. Bolton and Northampton Town follow closely behind, having recorded 9.05 and 6.07 xG in contrast to their 14 and 11 goals scored respectively.
This data only highlights why set-pieces are vital in modern football and in League One. To be successful in England’s third tier, these scenarios are just as important as any other component of the game considering how frequently they pop up during matches. Hence, if Stevenage do manage to earn promotion this season to the Championship, the side’s proficiency from set plays will be a major factor.
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