The chant came loud and clear from the Aston Villa end at Besiktas Park.“Austin MacPhee, ole ole,” bellowed those in claret and blue in what surely is the first time in the history of a European final that a set-piece coach has been celebrated with such conviction, volume and affection.Unai Emery, the manager responsible for the era-defining transformation at Villa, is the key figure lauded as the club’s saviour, but supporters now also appreciate the role of MacPhee, an indispensable extra and leading figure in his field.That is no surprise when you consider the statistics: Villa scored the joint-most amount of goals from set pieces (29) across Europe alongside Arsenal this season and firmly established themselves as the most creative. Over three seasons, they have converted 74 goals from dead-ball situations, with their variety standing out.Yet five years ago, when MacPhee joined as the club’s first set-piece specialist, pundits on England’s flagship highlights programme, Match of The Day, debated whether Premier League clubs even needed to fill such a position. There was also a time when the Scot was singled out by supporters as a problem every time a goal was conceded via a corner or free kick.Now, on social media, his face is mocked up onto Christ the Redeemer as the same people who doubted him laud his every move.Austin MacPhee surveys the scene at Besiktas Park where Villa claimed the Europa League (Dan Mullan/Getty Images)Patience is virtually non-existent in football and time, particularly in this role, is precious. Emery recognised that when he first started working with MacPhee in October 2022, and effectively put him on trial to see whether he was up to scratch. It did not take long for the 46-year-old to prove his worth. Over the past few weeks his input has been crucial.MacPhee’s knack for exposing weaknesses in opposition defences saw Villa score from their first corner in the last three games of the season.Morgan Rogers finished a well-worked corner to score the opener in a 4-2 victory over Liverpool that sealed Villa’s Champions League return, and then Youri Tielemans volleyed in another to break the deadlock against Freiburg five days later in the Europa League final.On Sunday Ollie Watkins converted in Villa’s 2-1 win over Manchester City at the Etihad to secure a fourth-place finish. It might not have been as pretty as the other two, but the staggering level of detail that went into the goals shows how MacPhee has excelled as not only a clever coach but a mature man-manager.Next month he will transfer his qualities onto the international stage as, in his role as Roberto Martinez’s assistant, he helps Portugal in their bid to win a first World Cup. With Bruno Fernandes, Vitinha, Joao Neves and Cristiano Ronaldo to turn to, MacPhee should have plenty of fun working through his playbook of creative attacking routines.Austin MacPhee talks to Cristiano Ronaldo as Bruno Fernandes practises his dead-ball skills (Diogo Pinto FPF)A Nations League victory was secured last year. Solid progression has also been made on developing a set-piece “culture” within the group. “Austin is very creative and transmits passion for his work,” Martinez recently told The Athletic. “He’s got a real knack to connect with the player and that’s what makes him so good at his job.”Fernandes also told Sports Data Campus that MacPhee immediately captured the players’ attention when he joined and added: “When you see results, then you get the belief. But results are not only scoring goals. It’s about everything working out.”MacPhee’s body at work at Villa is now so detailed that a culture is set in stone, and explains why celebrations are often more passionate when a set-piece goal is scored.Villa worked on a short corner routine that exposed Liverpool’s defence in the fixture on May 15 and opened up space in the box for Rogers. The actual routine was simplified into three passes — first Lucas Digne passed it back to John McGinn to draw out the defence.McGinn then played it back to Digne who had two options: a low cross into the box, or to find Rogers in the space MacPhee had anticipated after hours of studying Liverpool’s defensive set up.He chose the latter and Villa scored.Other players had important roles like blocking, cutting off space and occupying key areas, which is part of the reason why there’s more enjoyment when it all goes to plan. It feels like a proper team goal.The really interesting aspect, however, is the game of cat and mouse between opponents and the ability to come out on top. So often have Villa found ways to trick opponents through their clever set-play routines that it has resulted in deep anger and frustration amongst those on the receiving end.Against Freiburg in the Europa League final, the plan was to approach the first corner in a similar way to the previous game with Liverpool, predicting that the German opponents would be looking for a repeat move. “We tried to deceive them,” McGinn told reporters after the game.This time, MacPhee had devised a plan to free up space much deeper into the box…… and Tielemans took advantage by converting a stunning volley after latching onto Rogers’ pass.HRH Prince William, a Villa supporter who was in Istanbul, told fans around him that club ambassador and former player, Ahmed Elmohamady, jumped up in advance of the strike as he had watched the routine in training and knew something special was about to unfold.Villa had actually used different players in practice as Emery does not like to name his team too far in advance — another reason why there were such jubilant scenes on the sidelines as some of the substitutes were involved in the original walkthrough.With such a short turnaround between games, MacPhee, who works alongside his data analyst Sergio Serron, quickly pulled together an attacking plan that proved inspirational.Nullifying the threat of Freiburg — who had the third-highest goalscoring tally from set pieces leading into the final — was also impressive. “Fair play to Austin for having the courage to leave four players up on a (defensive) corner,” said Watkins post-match.It was a bold move, designed to reduce the number of bodies in the box and weaken the Germans who had a height advantage. MacPhee had to convince Emery that it was the right approach, but he has steadily built a rock-solid foundation with the Spaniard as the only British member of his coaching team.“Austin is a really fantastic creator,” Emery told TNT Sports last week. “Everything we are working on makes sense.”Of course it hasn’t all been perfect. The trade-off that comes with creativity on a matchday is criticism and the occasional red-faced moment. Villa have tried routines that have gone wrong, like a short corner against Tottenham earlier this month when Jadon Sancho was caught offside. Tielemans and McGinn have both misplaced passes in other isolated moments, but such is the players’ trust in MacPhee that moments like that are viewed as minor setbacks rather than obstacles to future innovation.New routines are worked on all the time, but often the team return to previous patterns with additional details about the specific opponent. There’s a huge television mounted on the side of one of the practice pitches at Villa’s Bodymoor Heath training complex which is used to show the analysis before any run-through, yet it is the extensive work that goes on behind the scenes in preparation that simplifies the plan.It is not unusual for MacPhee and Serron to spend hours, sometimes days, sifting through old footage to find one example to use in a pre-match meeting. Then it’s down to the players to deliver and execute a plan accordingly.The tactical intelligence of those at Villa has been crucial to the success. Digne has worked tirelessly on tiny details to position his body in areas that make it difficult for defenders to predict his next action. Pau Torres has often played a crucial, unsung role as a blocker and, in training, both Sancho and the under-used Harvey Elliott have contributed more than expected.The set-piece routines do not always come off (Dan Istitene/Getty Images)Then there are the obvious highlights: Rogers’ and Emi Buendia’s wonder goals from direct set pieces and their new techniques, perfected through hours of extra practice with MacPhee and his clever use of technology — including Trackman, a launch monitor more commonly used in golf.Like at many other clubs, players use phone applications for extra individual work. MacPhee knows how to strike the right balance with those who are not as engaged as others.All of this requires significant buy-in and support from Emery, and it’s why patience and time are crucial. Processes need to be in place before proper results can be generated. It is why perhaps some coaches have not enjoyed such success because their work has been under-appreciated in different environments.When The Athletic first started looking into the role of a set-piece coach to understand more about the intricacies of the position, it became clear that many working in the role felt misunderstood.Although set pieces have always been important in football, the coaching and analysis has taken on greater significance in recent years, so much so that MacPhee is even a lecturer in a course at Murcia University that offers a Masters degree in the field. He and Nico Jover, of Arsenal, are now high-profile figures in the role. That pair could potentially confront each other at the UEFA Super Cup in Austria in August if the Premier League champions go on to claim the Champions League this weekend.In a field where every percentage matters, set-piece experts are now clearly making a big difference. MacPhee may not be in line for a street mural like the one of Jover near the Emirates Stadium, but the song from the stands says enough. He is the industry leader in an area that has been the trending topic of the season — and now the World Cup will be his oyster.