Our set pieces

[Lentwood]

Rashford used to be OK at free kicks until he decided he was the second coming of Ronaldo and started trying the 'knuckle ball' technique

Mata can't kick the ball more than 20yrds so is redundant for all but free-kicks from the edge of the box

Our corners are Sunday league, it's just put your foot under it and loft it towards the back post. Even if you win the header, it's near impossible to generate enough power to score

 

[11101]

I get it at OT with that stupid hill but why are our corners still so useless at away grounds? I can generally put a corner on or around the penalty spot with decent pace, so why cant our highly paid professionals do it? They're either ballooned efforts to the back post and beyond or don't make it past the first man.

Free kicks is easier. Ban Rashford and let literally anybody else take them. De Gea if necessary. A fan from the crowd would be a better option.

 

[mad1max954]

Free kicks is easier. Ban Rashford and let literally anybody else take them. De Gea if necessary. A fan from the crowd would be a better option.

Haha, so true! The players, everyone in the stadium and anyone watching at home - literally everyone knows he going to feck it up as soon as he puts the ball down!

That should be in the criteria for our next signing- can they take set pieces.

Might not be pretty but it’s an important part of the game. Ask big Sam!Honestly, I’d genuinely consider playing perrera more often.

 

[Alemar]

Strange subject - it should have been called “Lack/absence of set pieces” instead.

 

[romufc]

It is shocking, we put anyone and everyone on set pieces. From Jones to Shaw. I see Rashford taking corners. Mata was absolutely brilliant set piece taker at Chelsea, no idea whats happened.

Perreira claims to have a Beckam esque delivery, I'd be happy if he can produce 1/3 or Beckham.

 

[Baneofthegame]

Our set pieces at the moment are garbage, our preferred method currently is to lift it towards Maguire when we could whip it in and potentially have Maguire/Pog/McT on it.

 

[sincher]

Pereira is really good from set pieces. Young is ok but obviously not really a first teamer now. Not many other candidates though. Shaw came over to take a corner against Wolves... and Mata put in a couple of poor ones. Free-kicks with chances to score are ok - Pogba/Rashford/Pereira can all hit them, it's corners and free-kicks to cross where we need better delivery. Would be interested if Gomes or someone can hit them...

 

[Red Indian Chief Torn Rubber]

We've been poor from corners since almost forever. Was there anyone after Becks who consistently produced good deliveries? 20 years ago...

And we've not had a consistent threat from free kicks since Ronnie, and before that Becks. Of course, those two are world class free kick takers.

When van Persie came in he took both corners and free kicks right away, both because he was class and because everyone else was pretty shit at it. But that was a short stint.

Now we've got Shaw running over to the right hand side to whip in a shite corner and Lindelof taking a deep free kick that he smashes out of play. Seems the only hint of danger is Rashford smashing free kicks in the hope we get the ricochet. But even when he took a free kick today, we had 2 players standing in an offside position.

There seems to be zero organising around our set pieces. Both in terms of delivery and in terms of how we set up to attack the ball. Maybe Ole needs to draft in someone who understands this.

We can't have Maguire, Pogba and McTominay all massive and all know beforehand that there's almost no chance we'll create danger.

The problem is ALL our set piece expertise resides in our back up players

 

[romufc]

I think Ole was so focused on fitness he forgot to practice set pieces.

The thing that worries me its not just attacking set pieces, it's defending them as well.

Against Wolves, they hit a post with a set piece and scored from a training ground set piece routine

 

[Infra-red]

Useless set piece takers and a squad full of players (with the exceptions of Maguire and McTominay) who can't head the ball. This doesn't make for good corners/free kicks.

I think if I was a football manager, I'd play the percentages a bit - always have a few top set piece takers and players with excellent aerial ability in the first team squad. Will probably gain you a few vital points every season. Alex Telles is probably worth a look at LB for his crossing/set pieces alone.

 

[RedStarUnited]

We've got a huge problem with the set pieces.

The biggest problem is that the best takers would either be

Pogba - who we need in there, as otherwise it's just Maguire and McTom.
Perreria - who won't be on the pitch much.

Rashford does take free kicks, but for shots generally.

We need some urgent training on this, but you fear it's simply one of those skills you either have or don't


It's not new, we didn't score that many even with the likes of Ibra and Fellaini in there.

Why do we 'need' Pogba in there if 8/10 times the ball never arrives. If he has the best deliveries (he should) then he needs to be on corner duties. IT should be that simple.

 

[romufc]

Why do we 'need' Pogba in there if 8/10 times the ball never arrives. If he has the best deliveries (he should) then he needs to be on corner duties. IT should be that simple.

I dont think Pogba is the best corner taker. We have Luke Shaw on them which is weird.

 

[Sylar]

Why do we 'need' Pogba in there if 8/10 times the ball never arrives. If he has the best deliveries (he should) then he needs to be on corner duties. IT should be that simple.

Agree with this. I remember RVP took a few of our corners in our last season cos his delivery was great (nani took the others).

PK = Rashford followed by Martial
Free kicks = Pogba
Corners = Pogba and Pereira (if hes on the pitch).

There must be a reason that isnt happening, right? Cos it seems the obvious and simple choice.

 

[sincher]

The reason is probably that Pogba could in theory be a threat in the box.

But yeah, if the ball never makes it in that's a moot point.

Mind you, a corner is not a great opportunity anyway. About 3-4% result in a goal. Most of the time when a side gets a corner it just means they didn't make the best of an attack. Free-kicks are more important.

 

[MrBrightside1989]

Our deliveries in recent times are often embarrassingly poor. This season with maguire, Pogba, mctominay etc we have a few players who are a real threat in the box. Watching Mata and Young chipping it on to the head of the first defender is very frustrating.

When it comes to shooting from free kicks I don't think there is a player in our squad who offers a genuine threat. When watching the likes of Beckham, Ronaldo or Rooney you genuinely thought there was a decent chance of a goal. With our current players I am more worried about them hurting a child in row Z.

 

[Art Vandelay]

Our deliveries in recent times are often embarrassingly poor. This season with maguire, Pogba, mctominay etc we have a few players who are a real threat in the box. Watching Mata and Young chipping it on to the head of the first defender is very frustrating.

When it comes to shooting from free kicks I don't think there is a player in our squad who offers a genuine threat. When watching the likes of Beckham, Ronaldo or Rooney you genuinely thought there was a decent chance of a goal. With our current players I am more worried about them hurting a child in row Z.

Mata has one of the best conversation rates from direct freekicks in Europe. He used to anyway. He's just never on the pitch much to take them.

I think delivery was one of the reasons Pereira started the first match, but we are crying out for some quality.

 

[Bastian]

The problem is ALL our set piece expertise resides in our back up players

Apart from pens, yes. I should really have added the pens to the list of complaints given the deference Ole/Marcus show to Pogba who has missed far too many to be considered as a regular taker.

Close range free kicks: Mata, Young. But like you say, they're back ups. I'd be in favour of getting Pogba on free kicks generally. But we need to see some evidence of actual coaching in terms of how the whole side lines up during free kicks and corners. It doesn't seem trained.
And I'd definitely give the pen duties to Rashford, and if not him, Martial. It's a huge season for them in terms of stepping up and shouldering the goal scoring so it will only improve their confidence.

Repeating myself here, but if Ole and his staff can't figure out the set pieces, they'll need to hire a coach who can.

 

[Art Vandelay]

Apart from pens, yes. I should really have added the pens to the list of complaints given the deference Ole/Marcus show to Pogba who has missed far too many to be considered as a regular taker.

Close range free kicks: Mata, Young. But like you say, they're back ups. I'd be in favour of getting Pogba on free kicks generally. But we need to see some evidence of actual coaching in terms of how the whole side lines up during free kicks and corners. It doesn't seem trained.
And I'd definitely give the pen duties to Rashford, and if not him, Martial. It's a huge season for them in terms of stepping up and shouldering the goal scoring so it will only improve their confidence.

Repeating myself here, but if Ole and his staff can't figure out the set pieces, they'll need to hire a coach who can.

You're making far too much sense. Unfortunately we will most likely stick with causing undue drama with the penalties and letting Rashford waste all our freekicks. It's a problem that's gone on for too long.

 

[Okey]

Few things drive me as mad as our set piece 'routines'. It's one of the things that makes our coaching deficiencies show through. The less said about Rashford's wild hacks and no one telling him off about it, the better. The goal Wolverhampton scored against us was made on the training ground. When last did United score such a goal? Citeh, for a side supposed to be thin in aerial threat tend to 'win' most of their corners. They have it all worked out what to do to maximise their advantage. Liverpool of course don't have to worry. They have some of the best ball deliveries in the world. We just seem to wing it. In the Premier league. In 2019. The mind boggles...

 

[UNITED ACADEMY]

The reason is probably that Pogba could in theory be a threat in the box.

But yeah, if the ball never makes it in that's a moot point.

Mind you, a corner is not a great opportunity anyway. About 3-4% result in a goal. Most of the time when a side gets a corner it just means they didn't make the best of an attack. Free-kicks are more important.

With Maguire on the pitch, I see corner as important or more important than free kick. Too bad no one can deliver.

 

[Rafaeldagold]

I don’t understand why Rashford hasn’t been taken off freekicks yet? Weak management from Ole or he insanely thinks he’s good at them?

That free kick against Wolves I knew he was shooting even though it was utterly ridiculous. The better chance of a goal was anything but what he did, yet he did it anyway. Either arrogant or stupid

 

[iHicksy]

In the last 10 years the only time we've ever been a consistent threat from set pieces was when Van Persie was taking them.

Err, Rooney?

 

[Bastian]

Shaw still on corners. Maybe it was naive but I expected Ole to have sorted this out a tad.

 

[MartyManc]

When are we going to take Rashford away from free kicks? Every single time it’s completely wasteful.

 

[arthurka]

Shaw still on corners. Maybe it was naive but I expected Ole to have sorted this out a tad.

Nothing to do with Ole, we have been terrible at it for years.

 

[Ekeke]

The balls in are okay, our headers have been poor

 

[The Firestarter]

Rashford on free kicks is truly bizarre.

 

[Bastian]

The balls in are okay, our headers have been poor

A fairly immobile left back running over to the right side to lump in a corner against a counter attacking side is just plain stupid. If it were Sinisa Mihajlovich it would make sense. But it’s not.

 

[Bastian]

Rashford on free kicks is truly bizarre.

I don’t get why Pogba isn’t taking those.

 

[The Firestarter]

I don’t get why Pogba isn’t taking those.

That'd be treachery.

 

[Bastian]

That'd be treachery.

Haha. Did Gary say that? Mind, he should be nowhere near taking pens.

 

[Fluctuation0161]

7 shots. 0 on target. Multiple wasted set pieces from Rashford. Then they score. Its ridiculous.

 

[izec]

You can just foul us, we wont score

 

[Gandalf Greyhame]

Ole has the better part of a year to improve our set piece routines now. To choose who will take his free kicks, corners and what kind of movement we'll have for corners. We haven't improved a bit under him, and there is very little to suggest that we will in the future.

We've seen nothing as an improvement since Mourinho. Nothing. Random people step up to take random set pieces, and all of them aim for Maguire and miss. Rashford goes for the freekicks closest to goal and misses almost all of them with his shooting technique. Pogba, who was brilliant on free kicks for Juve, was stripped of them for Zlatan and never got back on them. When he does take them, he looks short of confidence and is promptly replaced.

Our coaching staff isn't good enough. Ole isn't good enough. We need help for set pieces.

 

[Sandikan]

Our set pieces are pretty poor generally.

It's worrying that we can't even put penalties away this season either.

 

[Red Indian Chief Torn Rubber]

I repeat. Set piece routines can't be perfected when no one in the starting xi is able to take a decent set piece.

 

[Bastian]

I repeat. Set piece routines can't be perfected when no one in the starting xi is able to take a decent set piece.

If that's an exhaustive explanation, a manager would identify someone who can come into the first XI and deliver on these. It's that important. Not merely in terms of goals scored, but in terms of putting teams under pressure, swinging momentum when under the cosh. More lines of attack.

I don't think it is an exhaustive explanation though. Our overall routines do not seem threatening in the slightest, often sloppy (sometimes reckless fouling or lingering offside) so it is not just a question of deliveries.

Given how important the delivery is, if a player is not directly brought in who is capable, you pick the most capable attacking player and work on this until we can muster up some sort of threat. And the coaches do their jobs by coming up with efficient routines.

 

[Red Indian Chief Torn Rubber]

If that's an exhaustive explanation, a manager would identify someone who can come into the first XI and deliver on these. It's that important. Not merely in terms of goals scored, but in terms of putting teams under pressure, swinging momentum when under the cosh. More lines of attack.

I don't think it is an exhaustive explanation though. Our overall routines do not seem threatening in the slightest, often sloppy (sometimes reckless fouling or lingering offside) so it is not just a question of deliveries.

Given how important the delivery is, if a player is not directly brought in who is capable, you pick the most capable attacking player and work on this until we can muster up some sort of threat. And the coaches do their jobs by coming up with efficient routines.

That is true if you simply refuse to acknowledge just how bad at set pieces our first XI players are. Ive begun to doubt even practice would improve them at that aspect.

Remember Mourinho was a set piece coaching expert. Yet once even a young was benched They became horrendously bad... I hence refuse to blame the coaching any longer

 

[Bastian]

Still looks terrible. Tonight against Arsenal it was actually a bit amusing, as both teams were dreadful with all their set pieces. But we really look like we do not train to improve things, or come up with better strategies. We had one decent delivery when McTominay should have scored, other than that we kept going long from corners and free kicks further out, trying to have Maguire head it back across instead of just whipping things into the box and causing chaos for their defense. Totally blunt.

 

[SadlerMUFC]

I don't understand how these professionals can't take free kicks. Hell, I would score and assist more than these guys do from set plays. And I'm good at PK's too. Sign me up Ole...