Southgate’s set-piece tactics could elevate England at EURO 2020 – tactical analysis

We are just two games into Englands EURO 2020 campaign, and already there is a vocal sense of discontentment with the sides performances so far. England were scrappy, dogged, resolute and all those adjectives which basically mean that they were not a good watch in both their matches so far, against Croatia and Scotland, and while they have not conceded a goal yet, the Three Lions have also scored just once. A win and a draw from two matches is nothing to be sniffed at, especially in international football where it is rare that the most entertaining or open sides win tournaments. Nevertheless, while Gareth Southgate ponders his team selection for the Czech Republic, there is one area of Englands play that has gone slightly under the radar, but it evokes memories of the 2018 World Cup semi-final run and has the potential to be similarly effective this time around. Yes, we are talking about Englands set-pieces.

One of Southgates key priorities with England has been to make them dangerous from set-pieces. This is an area that can bring a lot of benefits to sides during matches, given the number of set-piece situations that take place every game, and it is even more important at international level, since teams do not get anywhere near the time together that club sides enjoy. Thus, it is difficult to create structures in possession and patterns of play, but using set-pieces can be a big advantage towards creating chances and scoring goals. Englands set-piece prowess was one of the biggest reasons behind their World Cup run  they scored nine of their 12 goals at the tournament from set-piece situations (you can read Stuart Reids excellent analysis of Englands routines from that tournament here) and while it has not been as successful yet, we have seen some interesting set-piece tactics used by Southgate and his team this time around as well. Thus, this set-piece analysis will take a look at Englands tactics from set-pieces, including attacking throw-ins, so far at EURO 2020 and highlight the routines that could be extremely successful in the matches to come.

Throw-ins

It is slightly baffling that coaching throw-ins is still considered something beneath many coaches and players, and teams are regularly ridiculed for having dedicated throw-in coaches, with Thomas Gr??nnemark and Liverpool being the most high-profile example of this. However, throw-ins are the most frequent set-piece opportunities in matches, and therefore need to be coached so that teams can take advantage of them to retain possession or build attacks. England have had some interesting patterns from throw-ins in both their matches so far, which have already led to chances being created.

The first example we are looking at was in the immediate build-up for Phil Fodens early chance against Croatia, where he hit the post. England have a throw-in around midway in their own half, with Kieran Tripper, the left-back, taking it. Notice how Harry Kane moves away from the central space and out wide, with Raheem Sterling then poised to run into that very space that he vacated.

That is exactly what happens  Sterling gets away from his marker just as Trippier is