{"id":1394905,"date":"2025-08-13T16:35:41","date_gmt":"2025-08-13T15:35:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/?post_type=gaming&p=1394905"},"modified":"2025-08-13T16:50:49","modified_gmt":"2025-08-13T15:50:49","slug":"fpl-set-piece-preview-2025-26-season","status":"publish","type":"gaming","link":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/gaming\/fpl-set-piece-preview-2025-26-season\/","title":{"rendered":"FPL Set-Piece Preview 2025-26: Must Buys, Differentials and Hot Takes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It’s a new season, and that means for me, a fresh slate to deal with from a set-piece perspective which needs to be covered if I want to save face as a \u201cset piece sicko\u201d. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since I\u2019m generous with my time, I\u2019ve decided to convert this simple preview into an FPL recommendations set \u2013 all based on who\u2019s worth your time when the ball\u2019s dead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Must Buys<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Gabriel Magalhaes (6.0m)<\/strong> once again leads the way, but for me, the main Arsenal pick should be Bukayo Saka (10.0m).<\/strong> His set-piece delivery record is superb, and also occasionally takes penalties, even if the Gunners did only pick up 2 total last term. Arsenal are predominantly focusing on the far-post in preseason, which has been a speciality of Saka\u2019s over the years, and other players have made use of the space created by Gabriel\u2019s gravity, making him less guaranteed goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

James Tarkowski (5.5m)<\/strong> is an obvious pick, especially with the new defensive bonuses for clearances and blocks: Nikola Milenkovi\u0107 (5.5m) <\/strong>another pick for his dominance in aerial battles. Everton conceded 229 corners last season (only 13 fewer than Southampton) and 140 set-piece shots, giving Tarkowski ample opportunity to keep those numbers high, but with the addition of a lot of attacking talent, I would be shocked if Everton shipped quite<\/em> as many. He also made contact with a league-leading 15.8% of attacking corners as of December last season<\/a> \u2013 fair warning however that this success nose-dived without Sean Dyche at the helm, despite the best efforts of first-ever and now departed set-piece coach Charlie Adam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dan Burn (5.0m)<\/strong> is another easy shout, but with even more reason than ever. His 5.32 clearances p\/90 is a good start, his 3.95 aerial wins p\/90 is even better, and Newcastle\u2019s acquisition of set-piece mega-nerd Martin Mark from FC Midtyjlland<\/a> is the final piece. For context, he\u2019s the set-piece coach of a team that scored 42% of its goals from those situations in last seasons title winning campaign: a team with a mural to set-piece goal difference at its training ground. Mark\u2019s tactics rely on heavy blind-side blocking and sharp direction changes, which may<\/em> fail to manifest with the less-than-balletic Burn, but I doubt Mark will be able waste a 6ft7 powerhouse.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Potential Differentials and Hot Takes<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

without as much assurance. A side emblematic of the phrase \u201cwithout assurance\u201d is Manchester United who bring with them a load of questions, but a surprisingly deep set-piece outfit. They, admittedly, have lost Andreas Georgson as their dead-ball coach, but have gained Bryan Mbeumo (8.0m)<\/strong> and Matheus Cunha (8.0m)<\/strong> as deliverers, and Benjamin \u0160e\u0161ko (7.5m)<\/strong> as a deliveree: added to the collection of Leny Yoro (4.5m), Matthijs De Ligt (5.0m),<\/strong> and Harry Maguire (4.5m).<\/strong> Yoro represents best value for money at just 4.5m after his efforts in pre-season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the opposite side of the Georgson coin, Spurs finally have a set-piece coach: Hooray! Thomas Frank\u2019s brought his old Brentford buddy in, and the focus on bodies in the box and a sturdy front-post zonal structure looks to be working for them. CB choices like Christian Romero (5.0m)<\/strong> and Van de Ven (4.5m<\/strong>) naturally suit this, with Georgson also favouring a \u2018big guy turns up deep with a big head\u2019 approach to offensive routines. Noted flick-on artist Dominic Solanke (8.0m)<\/strong> could be also worth a shot. This approach should mean a drop in set-piece involvement for Pedro Porro, so I\u2019d advise avoiding him if those set-piece creation and shot numbers interested you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brighton and Brentford also provide alternatives. Brighton\u2019s hiring of Anderlecht and Belgium National Team set-piece coach Yannick Euvrard<\/a> should give their mostly-lifeless attacking routines some vim, making an aerial force like Jan Paul van Hecke (4.5m) <\/strong>interesting. Anderlecht typically focused back-post, with an emphasis on stretching the box out \u2013 so powerful runners from the edge are good shouts. Brentford are now, like in my dreams, run by their former set-piece coach, and so have a great basis to work from: they conceded just 0.07xG per set-piece shot last season, and only 2 goals \u2013 hinting at an elite structure, despite the volume of chances ceded. New captain Nathan Collins (5.0m)<\/strong> is ideal for defensive bonus points and potential offensive upside, but a word for Kevin Schade (7.0m)<\/strong> who boasts decent aerial prowess and now a core role in the Brentford frontline. Mikkel Damsgaard (6.0m)<\/strong> will also likely take over as taker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Weirdly, whilst Crystal Palace were the league leaders on the set-piece front last year, the spread of scorers and variety of plays (all good things!) mean I can\u2019t recommend any of them as individual picks. This is a problem Aston Villa suffer under the brilliant work of Austin MacPhee. Chelsea may<\/em> improve under Bernardo Cueva\u2019s tutelage but the constantly rotating line-ups makes planning for routines an unenviable job. Bournemouth have lost all vertical threat in one swoop, Fulham and Wolves are utterly limp from the dead-ball line, and everyone else is either unpredictable (promoted sides, West Ham) or at a huge premium without guarantees (Liverpool and Man City).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m very excited to be proved wrong almost immediately.<\/p>\n\n\n

Read more:<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n