The Premier League has long been labelled a comparatively physical and energetic league, with the over-reliance on set-pieces emerging as a talking point of late. And, Liverpool head coach Arne Slot is not a fan of the current style of soccer in England.
Liverpool Boss Rues Premier League’s New Obsession
Ahead of Liverpool’s Premier League game at Wolverhampton Wanderers this Tuesday, Mar. 3, Slot was asked to share his honest thoughts on the Premier League seeing a host of set-piece goals this campaign. He responded by asserting that the referees do their part in enabling the trend of players becoming increasingly physical in non-open-play situations.
“First of all, you have to accept it. I think it is mainly here in the Premier League. If I watch other leagues, I don’t think there is so much emphasis on set-pieces. Here, you can almost hit a goalkeeper in his face… the referee will say just go on,” Slot replied.
READ MORE: Chelsea Captain Opines on Arsenal Scoring 2 Set-Piece Goals
The Premier League-winning tactician added, “Do I like it? My football heart doesn’t like it. Now, most of the games I see in the Premier League are not, for me, a joy to watch. But it is always interesting because it is so competitive, and that’s what makes this league great because there is so much competitiveness. Everyone can win against everyone.”
Slot, whose team scored three set-piece goals in their recent 5-2 home league win against West Ham United, further said that the trend could be adopted at all age levels soon.
“Maybe in five or 10 years’ time, things will change again but I wouldn’t be surprised if you went to an under-16s game somewhere, Sunday League football (game), (and) see teams completely being focused on set-pieces. That’s the new reality,” Slot concluded.
The recent emphasis on set-pieces was on show during Arsenal’s latest 2-1 Premier League win over Chelsea. All three goals from the London derby came from set-piece situations. A host of players were also seen grabbing opponents during set-pieces.
So far this season, 215 of 783 goals in the Premier League have been from set-pieces. The 27.5% set-piece contribution is the second-highest percentage in the league’s history, with the 2009-10 term seeing 28.5% of its goals coming from non-penalty set-pieces.
On the other hand, Liverpool is on a four-match winning run across all competitions. They will be hoping to continue their excellent momentum on Tuesday as they sit in fifth place in the Premier League table with 48 points from 28 matches.
