Arsenal's rise to the summit of English football was heavily underpinned by their supremacy from dead-ball opportunities, but serious questions are now being raised over whether the reigning Premier League champions have surrendered their most lethal weapon. After previously being crowned the undisputed kings of dead-ball situations, scrutiny is mounting regarding whether the title-holders have astonishingly transformed into set-piece strugglers.
The benchmark for their reputation was firmly established during their championship-winning campaign last season. On their way to securing the Premier League title, Arsenal converted a league-leading 25 goals from non-penalty set pieces. That remarkable return represented a Premier League high, providing the team with a consistent, match-winning platform that elevated them above the rest of the division.
Their supreme execution from these dead-ball phases became such a defining hallmark of their play that it birthed the moniker 'Set-piece FC.' While it was a completely not-so-secret edge that opponents actively prepared for, rivals still routinely found it impossible to prevent Arsenal from capitalizing when the ball was delivered into the box from non-penalty situations.
However, the narrative surrounding the champions has taken an unexpected turn, leading observers to wonder whether that once-dependable superiority has vanished. As debates persist over their current output, the overarching issue is whether 'Set-piece FC' have truly lost the specialized sharpness that propelled them to title glory, and what losing such an edge could mean for their ongoing ambitions in the Premier League.