How Manchester City perfected the art of the set piece: ‘It’s like a chess game’

Diego Restrepo’s arms were full. Alex Greenwood had leapt into them, but so too had the Women’s Super League title, thanks to a late winner against Liverpool.

>It was a goal from a corner, whipped in by Greenwood and headed home by Rebecca Knaak, but whose roots were that of City’s head of women’s goalkeeping.

>The set-piece goal was Knaak’s second of the season, City’s 17th in all competitions, their 12th from a corner and, it would later transpire, the one that would crown them WSL champions for the first time in a decade.

>This is the year of the set piece. For some people, such as Chelsea captain Reece James and Liverpool manager Arne Slot, this has been an annoying season, with all its bruising and jostling and time-taking. Meanwhile, former England goalkeeper Paul Robinson believes set pieces might win England the World Cup. And why not?

>The Arsenal men’s team are lifting their first Premier League title in 22 years largely because of the (record) 25 set-piece goals they scored (a record 19 from corners) and seven conceded.

>City Women, too, have harnessed the power of the dead ball to lift silverware. Of their 62 goals scored, a league-high 17 resulted from set plays, nine more than their nearest opponent in Aston Villa. A league-high 14 came from corners, while City conceded just one goal from set plays (also a league high).

>In all, City ranked highest for attacking threat from corners (8.4 per cent conversion rate from an xG of 8.22) and opposition conversion rate from corners (1.2 per cent) while ranking third in the WSL for total corners (167), one behind Chelsea and Arsenal (both 168), yet having scored five more than both teams combined.

>The dominance is startling and formidable, a cornerstone of City’s triumph this season and one driven by Restrepo.

>It is also why Restrepo, a Venezuelan-born former USWNT youth international goalkeeper and ex-head of goalkeeping at Bay FC, laughs when critiques of set pieces are described as unsophisticated or even brutish.

>“Set pieces are a massive psychological battle, especially for goalkeepers,” he says.

>“Looking at data, when it comes to mental fatigue for a goalkeeper, the stress that set pieces cause is almost 70 per cent of their game load. If you put two players on the goalkeeper to block, then you start blocking zones, moving players, you have Bunny Shaw or Becks (Knaak) coming at you; psychologically, that does a lot.

>“It’s something we really pushed forward this year through data, looking at the structures of opponents, how we can create space, block and attract people to other areas to then isolate Bunny or Becks.

>“’Keepers don’t like to feel pressure. I felt that when I used to play — especially being a smaller goalkeeper, you don’t want to feel like you’re in a cage. It’s a little bit more complex than people see. It’s almost like a chess game.”

>The winner against Liverpool at the start of the month that ensured that the league title remained City’s to lose was case in point. They won 10 corners in total against Liverpool, eight of which were City’s preferred in-swinger method. (The first was a short-corner routine that didn’t come off.)

>However, as the game continued, Greenwood recognised that the visitors, particularly through goalkeeper Jennifer Falk and defender Jenna Clark, were effectively nullifying her delivery threat.

>This season, Greenwood has delivered 39 inswinging corners. However, City’s captain noticed pockets that could be exploited with an outswinger, a far less utilised tactic.

>Only Arsenal’s Katie McCabe (49) delivered more inswinging corners than Greenwood (39) this season, while City’s Yui Hasegawa delivered 26 from the right side.

>“Alex came over to the bench and said: ‘Hey, we should try an outswinger’,” Restrepo recalls. “I was like: ‘Alex, run with it. Just tell Becks and Bunny to isolate themselves’. They’re really good at understanding where the ball may end up landing. And that’s what Becks did.

>“But that’s that whole trust that we have in our department, listening to each other and coming together. That’s why we got the reaction from Alex because she felt really part of it and it was quite cool to see.”

>The buy-in from players this season into embracing set pieces has been paramount, says Restrepo, with players looking forward to the sessions and eager to be involved in analysis and ideas.

>The space and freedom with which Restrepo is permitted to focus on set pieces by head coach Andree Jeglertz has also been critical.

>Jeglertz dedicates 20 minutes twice a week for Restrepo to run through scenarios on the grass, while also giving him time to present to the players in video sessions, running through data and showcasing clips where teams have either found success against opposition or where City have been close to being exploited.

>City’s head coach gives full control of the sessions to Restrepo, who says the faith placed in him to do so, while also testing out new ideas without restrictions, feeds into the positive squad culture.

>“That’s probably a reason why we’ve been successful because we actually spend time working on them where other coaches might not care about it,” Restrepo says.

>“If we can score 30 per cent of our goals from set pieces, then we should spend at least 30 per cent per cent of the week spending time on it.”

>The profile of players at City’s helps. Shaw is one of the best strikers in the world, with a profound aerial efficiency in both boxes. The Jamaica international has scored four of City’s 14 goals from corners, but Restrepo in particular praises her influence in defence.

>“Bunny has taken a lot of pride in defending this season,” says Restrepo. “Sometimes I have to tell her to slow down because she’ll step too far or too high, but it means she’s really hungry to be successful.”

>Defenders Knaak and Jade Rose, who also scored on the final day of the season from a corner, also pose aerial threats, while Restrepo praises forward Vivianne Miedema for her proficiency at the near post, having also scored four of City’s goals from corner kicks.

>Delivery is also key. Few can rival Greenwood’s dead-ball prowess in the WSL, with Greenwood recording six assists directly from a corner, while creating the highest number of set-piece chances among WSL defenders (17).

>

>City’s success from set pieces, coupled with the impressive form of goalkeeper Ayaka Yamashita, who finished the season with seven clean sheets and a league-best goal prevention of 4.1, has earned Restrepo a new contract with City as well as the title of head of women’s goalkeeping, a position that oversees not only the senior women’s team but the youth pathways as well.

>For Restrepo, having a top-down approach to goalkeeping and set pieces is crucial for City to build upon the successes of this season, particularly with the introduction of full-time academies in England.

>“Typically, what you get now, still in the women’s game, is just a goalkeeper coach that has no connection with the academy. To me, that makes zero sense,” he says.

>“There has to be direction. If there’s no direction, then you’re wasting time, wasting resources. If there’s no clear plan, it makes zero sense to do it blindly.”

>Specifically for young women’s goalkeepers, formative training is crucial to improving a position that has historically been a point of derision and neglect. But Restrepo also emphasises the importance of playing across positions in youth, even as a goalkeeper, to be better suited to read the game.

>Restrepo knows the importance firsthand. Born in Colombia, he played across the outfield until injury forced him into goal. The move proved prescient.

>Two years later, he was representing the USMNT at the under-17s level World Cup before eventually embarking on a standout collegiate career at the University of Virginia, earning All-American and MVP honours, and winning the 2009 NCAA National Championship before going on to have a successful professional career across South America and the USL in the U.S.

>Three years after being named the league’s goalkeeper of the year in 2017, Restrepo, then 32 years old, retired to pursue coaching.

>“I felt I’d done enough playing-wise, I felt like I could reach a higher roof by becoming a coach,” says Restrepo, who eventually landed a role with Austin FC to lead their goalkeeping department before eventually beginning a journey that has seen him work with Wayne Rooney at D.C. United and NWSL side Bay FC before joining City in 2024.

>Restrepo didn’t expect a WSL title to arrive so soon, and City’s dominance this season can belie the struggles of last.

>The final test of their season beckons Sunday with an FA Cup final against Brighton & Hove Albion, a team that finished 29 points shy of City in the table yet are one of only three clubs to defeat them this season, along with Chelsea and Arsenal. Brighton also represent a specifically exciting set-piece test as well, having yet to concede a goal from a corner this season.

>But Restrepo and City welcome the challenge. There is a sense of buoyancy in the squad, fresh off a celebratory club-wide parade and Shaw’s surprise signing announcement.

>“Keeping her is massive,” says Restrepo. “She’s an incredible human being; she helps me so much, but she’s also the best forward in the world. And in all honesty, we found out (that Shaw was extending her contract) right before we went on stage; the girls didn’t even know.

>“It’s also just a big statement from the club that they’re trying to invest, to make this the best women’s program in the world. And why not? We have the opportunity to make a dynasty.”

>This article originally appeared in The Athletic.

>Manchester City WFC, Women's Soccer, Women's Super League

>2026 The Athletic Media Company