How Chelsea’s New Tactic Stopped Arsenal Scoring From Corners – For Now

Chelsea were unable to stop Arsenal from reaching the Carabao Cup final, but at least Liam Rosenior and his team found a way to stop them scoring from a set-piece — on this occasion.

Arsenal have scored 13 Premier League goals from corners, free-kicks and throw-ins this season — more than any other team.

The Gunners also topped the division’s set-piece goals chart in 2024/25, with 20 goals.

In addition to their set-piece prowess, Arsenal have been the Premier League’s dominant team in terms of xG in recent months.

Teams with the Most Premier League Goals From Set-Pieces in 2025/26

Team	Set-Piece Goals
1. Arsenal	13
=2. Chelsea	12
=2. Tottenham	12
=2. Leeds United	12
=5. Newcastle	11
=5. Bournemouth	11
=5. Man United	11
8. Aston Villa	10

Chelsea nullify Arsenal’s set-piece threat but still lose

Arsenal netted from two set-piece situations during Saturday’s 4-0 thrashing of Leeds, but they had no such joy against Chelsea on Tuesday night.

Arteta’s side eventually prevailed 1-0 at the Emirates Stadium to win their semi-final 4-2 on aggregate.

Chelsea were the better side for much of the second leg, although they were largely kept at arm’s length by a solid Arsenal team.

Having lost the first leg 3-2 at home, Chelsea remained in the contest until the 97th minute of the second leg, when they overcommitted in attack and were punished by Kai Havertz on the break.

Former Arsenal midfielder Paul Merson criticised Chelsea for going out “with a whimper”, accusing them of playing in “second gear” and claiming “they didn’t have a go”.

Rosenior hit back in his post-match press conference, saying: “I’ve been a pundit. It’s easy. It’s easy in hindsight.

“If I go and attack the game, press really high and we concede two goals early, everyone says ‘what’s he doing?’ That’s the reality of my job.

“The reality of my job is that if you lose games you’ll be criticised and if you win you’re a genius. It’s normally somewhere in between that.”

Chelsea use new tactic to defend Arsenal corners

While Chelsea did not impress Merson with their overall play, Rosenior’s side did earn widespread credit for the way they attempted to neutralise Arsenal’s biggest weapon.

Rather than loading the penalty area and allowing Arteta’s side to crowd the six-yard box, Chelsea repeatedly sent three players sprinting forward the moment Arsenal prepared to take a corner.

The idea was simple but bold: force Arsenal to abandon their usual numbers in the box and pull players back towards the halfway line, reducing congestion and limiting the chaos that has become a hallmark of their set-piece routines.

It was a late movement too, making it difficult for Arsenal to reset their structure before the ball was delivered.

On each occasion, the hosts were forced to react rather than dictate — something they are rarely made to do from dead-ball situations.

Chelsea were not the first side to experiment with leaving players high against Arsenal’s corners this season, with both Monaco and Crystal Palace attempting variations of the approach.

However, Rosenior’s side took it a step further by delaying their break until the very last moment, maximising the disruption.

Was Liam Rosenior’s set-piece tactic against Arsenal inspired by Shay Given?

Chelsea’s approach to defending Arsenal’s corners closely mirrored a suggestion made by former Manchester City and Newcastle goalkeeper Shay Given just days earlier on BBC Match of the Day.

After watching Arsenal score twice from set-pieces in their emphatic win over Leeds, Given challenged opposition managers to “try something different”.

Given added: “Take nothing away from Arsenal, but I see the same set-up every week — Arsenal players loaded at the back and causing carnage. Every set-up is the same.

“Someone can try something different to stop this brilliant form of attack. What can teams do different to create more space? If they leave three up, Arsenal have to leave at least three, maybe four players back.

“Then, in the defending box, that leaves a lot more space for the defenders and the goalkeeper. Yes, it leaves more space for the forwards as well, but all those numbers cause so much confusion.”

Whether Rosenior took direct inspiration from Given’s comments is unclear, but the similarities were striking — and the results were hard to ignore.

Chelsea also kept the corner count low

It is also worth noting that Chelsea only conceded two corners in the whole of Tuesday’s game.

As a result, the sample size for judging their success at defending Arsenal’s set-pieces was relatively small.

By comparison, Arsenal had 12 corners against Leeds. They also won more than 10 corners in last week’s 3-2 win over Kairat — a result that saw Arsenal complete a perfect league phase campaign in the Champions League.

Although Chelsea’s innovative approach to defending Arsenal’s corners was impressive, their success at preventing them in the first place was perhaps equally important.

Not everyone was convinced by Chelsea’s approach, though.

Former Liverpool and Tottenham midfielder Jamie Redknapp questioned some of the individual match-ups created by the tactic.

Speaking on Sky Sports, Redknapp said: “I like the plan, but my problem is Enzo Fernandez was left marking Gabriel and he has 10 yards to attack the ball.

“Chelsea are trying to negate there being too much traffic in the area, which Arsenal try to cause chaos with. They obviously have a plan, but if Arsenal have the right delivery, Enzo Fernandez has no chance.”

Chelsea ultimately paid the price in open play rather than from a dead-ball situation, but their experiment may still offer Arsenal’s future opponents a blueprint worth studying.

Whether others follow suit — and whether Arsenal can adapt once again — now feels like the next tactical subplot to watch.