Steve Cooper is moving quickly to fix the forgotten problem disguised as the Leicester City laughing stock

Leicester City have proved so bad at defending set pieces in recent seasons that their lack of attacking threat in the box has been all but forgotten.

The issue first came to the fore in 2021-2022. City conceded 19 Premier League goals from kicks that season, the most in the division, while it was their downfall in other competitions, not least the Europa Conference League with Tammy Abraham’s header from a corner, the killer blow in their semi-finals. final against Roma.

That campaign ended with successfully cleared corners that received wry cheers from City’s own fans. Around that time, there was a podcast for a car dealer that said, “You can buy your next quality car, one even Leicester can handle around the corners with…” They had become laughable.

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But with so much focus on the defensive end, it was perhaps lost on the fact that only three teams scored fewer goals from kicks. There were also big problems there.

City and Brendan Rodgers eventually worked to resolve the issue, bringing in Lars Knudsen for the next campaign. Just days after finally receiving his work permit, the Dane was pictured in despair on the City bench after several goals were conceded in the 6-2 defeat at Tottenham.

Under Knudsen’s guidance, City improved. They conceded six fewer goals from handballs and scored one more in the Premier League at 22-23, but still finished in the bottom six by each measure.

Even in the Championship, defending set-pieces was a problem. Despite City’s dominance of possession and territory giving opponents fewer opportunities to attack their box, they still weren’t great. Thirteen goals were conceded in front of the venue, only seven teams left more from dead balls. That’s despite City having to defend the second fewest corners in the division.

Again, it meant City’s inability to successfully attack set-pieces was overlooked. It didn’t matter that they didn’t score from corners and free kicks because for most of the season they scored plenty from open play.

That was until the defeat to Plymouth at the end of April. City had 13 corners, the most of any game last season, but only one led directly to a try. A closer look at the overall picture showed that, by the expected goals measure, only Birmingham and Plymouth created fewer from set pieces than City did last term.

Enzo Maresca was defensive about this statistic. He tasked assistant manager Willy Caballero with leading the club’s preparation and insisted the Argentine’s ideas were correct and delivery was lacking.

He said: “If we don’t create any chances, it’s probably because the receiver can be better or the players inside the box can be better. Are you saying the team doesn’t do what Willy says? You are wrong.

“If we get there and don’t score, we can’t put the ball in the net. If we have a corner and the taker doesn’t put in a great ball, it’s not about Willy. It’s just about the recipient or the quality. It’s not that the team doesn’t do what Willy says, it’s absolutely not right.”

However, there were reports that Maresca was looking to bring a specialist playmaker to City before moving to Chelsea. Indeed, Bernardo Cueva left his role as manager at Brentford to join Maresca at Stamford Bridge.

That brings us to the present day and another manager’s attempt to correct a three-year-old problem. Steve Cooper said he watched more or less every City game last season, so the shortcomings in the playing market did not escape his attention.

In fact, it looks like one of his first actions as City Manager will be to improve the area. Andrew Hughes, who led Norwich’s preparations last season, has left Carrow Road with a view to joining Cooper at the King Power Stadium.

On paper it looks like a smart move. Hughes, David Wagner’s long-term right-hand man, was his market coach at Huddersfield and took over those duties at Norwich too after Allan Russell left. In the spring of 2023, just after Hughes took over as manager at Norwich, the Canaries scored from two routine short corners, so it kept the game going.

Last season, Norwich ranked third in the Championship for goals from kicks, scoring 18 times from set pieces. This is a significant improvement on City’s 11, even if Norwich have fewer chances to get balls into the box.

Because, looking at the height of City’s squad, they have threats there. If they are in the squad, Jannik Vestergaard and Harry Souttar will be among the tallest players in the Premier League. Wout Faes and Wilfred Ndidi also have good physical profiles, while James Justin has a good jump on him. Add Jamie Vardy to the mix as a poacher inside the six-yard box and there are weapons Hughes can work with.

But back in the Premier League, his task will also be to work on his defensive form from corners and free-kicks, as City will have to defend a lot more in the top flight. However, Norwich conceded as many goals from set-plays as City last season.

It’s a big deal for Hughes. City have shown in the past that being poor in free-kicks can be the undoing of a team. If they can become a threat on one end and decisive on the other, it will significantly increase their chances of survival.

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