Blackburn Rovers’ Innovative Set-Piece Routines Fuelling A Promotion Push Under John Eustace Tactics

Blackburn caught the attention of all set-piece enthusiasts in recent weeks with their unique and unusual corner kick routines.

With five goals in the league from set plays, they do not seem like an immediate set-piece threat, but their creativity in the design of their dead balls means that the club has to be investigated further in their set-piece tactics.

Currently in the playoff spots in the EFL Championship, Blackburn are looking for a return to the Premier League.

However, they could easily fall behind the chasing pack and be forced to remain in the division for another year.

This tactical analysis will delve into John Eustaces tactics to keep Blackburn Rovers creative and unpredictable during set plays.

We will also analyse the many different routines used from week to week and how there is a clear pattern of thinking between many of these routines, so it is not as random as it seems.

One constant in this set-piece analysis is their coordination and clarity in knowing which routine to use and when.

They also use screens to create space in targeted areas, creating an unopposed shooting situation, although it is clear that they must improve this aspect in the future.

We will examine what makes Blackburn so exciting to watch from set pieces and how they could become even stronger in the future.

Blackburn Rovers Unique Set-Piece Routines

To start with, Blackburn immediately stands out as a set-piece threat because of their clarity and intention during each corner kick.

The principle is always to arrive in space, attempting to give the attacker an unopposed attempt on goal.

However, Blackburn goes about a different way of ensuring this is achieved.

They plant at least one attacker in the target zone, sometimes more, and the players inside the target zone are tasked with making decoy runs away from the zone to drag their markers with them.

From a secondary position, a different attacker then arrives in the target area, where the aim is for that area to be left unmarked after the defender follows the initial run of the first attacker.

In the clip below, we can see this come into action, with the players at the front and back post swapping positions, so both have open spaces to attack as defenders attempt to track their man:

Something else important to note with the clip above is the effectiveness of a run being made away from the ball.

The player highlighted in the clip above knows the back half of the penalty box will be free.

By arriving there a few seconds before the ball does, he gives himself the right amount of time to react to where the ball is about to land and adjust his feet and angle of approach to attack the ball optimally.

When he looks at the ball, the defender is still focused on the run instead of where the ball is, meaning that when the ball arrives, he is not in the right position to attack it.

This is something only possible through these types of runs, where the attacker moves away from the ball so that the defender must choose between tracking the run or the flight of the ball.

Through the counter movements made between the players at the front and back posts, two valuable areas open up, allowing two potentially free attackers to arrive and attack the ball unopposed.

This also gives the corner taker more room for error.

It seems like the aim is to arrive at the near side of the six-yard box for a flick-on, as seen in the image below, but if the ball is overhit, the player highlighted in the first clip is able to win the first contact, by adjusting his movement.

Had the ball arrived in the near side for a flick-on, the player arriving at the back post would have the possibility of attacking the ball at the back post for a tap-in.

Blackburn have used many different routines, and here is one that highlights the vulnerabilities of a man-marking defensive approach.

The defensive side is split into two groups of three, and its structure is separated.

This means that the defenders cannot cover for each other as quickly if someone loses track of a runner.

This leaves two isolated 3v3 situations where the defenders have to cover the entire box as a unit of three, with only two zonal defenders.

Blackburn attempts to immobilise the zonal defender through the use of a screen by the player highlighted in red in the clip below.

However, it fails due to a combination of poor timing, good tracking by the defender, and poor technique by the screener.

Had the screener used a wider stance, it would have been harder to move him out of the way, and he could have been able to stop the zonal defender.

Nevertheless, the routine does work due to how separated the defenders are.

At the back post, there is a 1v1 situation in a big space, and it shows how difficult it is to cover so much space when 1v1.

The attacker is able to stay in the blindside and make the attacking move towards the ball, where the defender cant react in time to track the run.

Watching Blackburns recent 100+ corners, it is clear that they love to change the angle of delivery and then cross the ball in from the areas shown below.

The cross is headed goalwards, and the header only needs a delicate touch to redirect the ball into the goal.

Crossing the ball following a short corner makes it easier for attackers to lose track of their marker, and the goalkeeper has to move position to protect the goal in case of a shot.

As the goalkeeper moves to cover the near post, it becomes harder for him to claim crosses headed towards the back post.

He also has to move position while the ball is crossed, so there is a chance he wont be set when the header on goal is made.

The clip below shows the routine in motion, but a poor delivery and wrong timing again mean that the corner is not executed properly.

An inswinging delivery against a deep defensive unit would also make it easier for one of the attackers to win the first contact.

This next routine has caught the eye of many people in recent weeks.

As mentioned before, Blackburn positions players to start in a target area before vacating the area to drag players away from it.

As a result, players move away from the target area and cannot see behind them that someone else has arrived to enter the space.

In this case, they use this principle to make space for the short corner to be taken for the benefits addressed above.

In this corner, they also use the benefits of the first corners analysed, where players attack the box while moving away from the ball, making it harder for defenders to track the runs properly.

In this particular scenario, Blackburn makes sure to use an overload in the attacking unit.

As all seven attackers attack the box, the one player who a defender does not track must recognise this and return to receive the short pass.

This is really intelligent, as the opposition team cannot predict who will deliver the ball.

Blackburn are fluid in the sense that they dont care who crosses; they just care that a free player can receive the ball in that position.

This could be negative if the defending side recognises their intention and leaves the poorest crosser of the ball free to receive the ball, but in most cases, this would result in leaving a central defender unmarked, and Blackburn could react to this by crossing the ball directly to that free central defender.

In most cases, the least threatening aerial player will be left unmarked.

This player will usually be an attacking or technical player with the ability to deliver the ball dangerously into the penalty area.

The problem Blackburn have had, like with the previous corners analysed, is the timing of their actions.

They must arrive in space as the ball does.

Still, they have been arriving too early, meaning that they wait in the target area before the ball is delivered, giving defenders time to recover their positions and defend the target area easily.

The space is available to attack, so if the players hold their runs, delaying them by a few seconds, they can arrive without the defender being able to recover.

By using these overloads in the attacking unit, when they can securely play the short corners without needing to do the above, they can attack the box with unmarked attackers without creating space for themselves.

Of course, it still requires precise delivery, which is inconsistent at this level, but from a preparation point of view, Blackburn has done all it can to make this routine as effective as possible.

If the delivery cannot be guaranteed, Blackburn could be better off getting the ball into a safer space, where the delivery is more likely to be successful.

Blackburn use a hive during their starting setups for corner kicks.

This means that groups of eight or nine players start close by before making their designated movements as the ball is about to be delivered.

Opponents cannot see how many players you actually want to attack the box with, so its difficult to properly set up your defensive structure.

It is unclear who attacks the box, who waits outside the penalty box, and who will set a screen, so defenders are unsure who to mark, and they might leave a player unmarked to attack the box.

In this particular example, we can see Blackburn using the screen on the last zonal marker to protect the space on the far side of the penalty box.

One other routine that Blackburn have used to get success from, scoring and creating dangerous chances is through the cross to the back post, where the overload is already created from the start.

The screen is made on the goalkeeper to allow the ball to enter and pass through the six-yard box.

Yet again, the overload gives at least one attacker the chance to attack the ball unopposed, with an aerial advantage over any zonal markers in that area.

Blackburns aim for continuing to impress is the number of bodies used to attack the box, dominate second-phase situations, and sustain pressure despite poor deliveries.

In the image below, Blackburn uses three players outside the penalty area to catch clearances and return the ball to the box, with one player roaming around the penalty spot to pick up loose balls.

Five players are scattered around inside the six-yard box, which allows Blackburn to have the advantage in winning the second contact following rebounds or headers made across the box, like in the example just above.

Originally used by a team in Japan, the idea behind the routine below is something seen in childrens rhymes and seems bizarre at first sight.

Players move in a circular motion while the ball is static, which can look quite strange.

However, this action gives the attacking players multiple benefits.

Firstly, we can see the players highlighted in red who appear to be the target players, but they are marked by defenders.

By moving towards the goal, they are able to drag their markers away from the target area at the six-yard box line.

The players in green are the actual targets.

By starting close to zonal defenders, they can move to the target area without being tracked.

The clockwise movement of the players also allows each attacker to move into the blindside of opposition defenders before attacking the ball from the opponents shadow.

These elements make this routine quite effective.

However, the attackers advantage could be greater if the starting positions were either further towards the edge of the penalty box or further towards the back post.

They could use the longer distance to really build momentum and dominate aerial duels.

The final routine that will be looked at is a variation of the train at the back post.

With the opposition using a deep zonal defence, combined with the man-marking of the train, a lot of space is created around the penalty spot.

Like in other routines, decoy runs are key to Blackburns success from set pieces.

The space the ball will pass through is highlighted below, and through the decoy run, the nearest zonal defender is distracted and unable to intercept the cross.

Blackburn attempt to immobilise the only other potential defender blocking the pass through a screen.

However, when watching the full clip, we can see that the screen fails due to improper technique.

A narrow stance combined with poor positioning allows the defender to easily evade the screen, quickly attack the path of the ball, and intercept it.

Conclusion

This set-piece analysis highlights the many ways Blackburn have brought innovation to the set-piece scene with their creative routines.

They are a team worth watching for their ingenuity, but without strong fundamentals, they struggle to be a consistent threat.

To maximise their effectiveness, Blackburn must refine their routines timing and improve the use of their screens.

Otherwise, they will continue to impress with their ideas but fall short in execution.