Arsenal’s set-piece prowess became the source of criticism from many Premier League fans over the course of the 2025-26 season, but in the coming weeks, those scenarios could prove vital to England’s World Cup hopes.Manager Thomas Tuchel spoke of the desire for set-piece specialists before the tournament, and has three from the country’s most effective side from these situations in Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka and Noni Madueke.Reece James and Marcus Rashford are also adept from dead-ball situations, while players such as Harry Kane, Marc Guehi, Ezri Konsa and Dan Burn serve as dangerous targets.Attention narrowed in on Arsenal last season as they scored more league goals than any team from set pieces (29), but that attention ignored two critical factors.Last season, the 27.4 per cent of set-piece goals scored by all teams in the Premier League was six per cent higher than any of the previous five seasons going back to 2021.The 2021-22 season, when set-piece coach Nicolas Jover joined Arsenal from Manchester City, is also when Arsenal’s emphasis on set pieces started paying off as 26.2 per cent of their goals that year came from dead-ball situations. Some 35.2 per cent of Arsenal’s goals last season coming from set pieces is their highest share in that time.The collective criticism around Arsenal’s use of set pieces during the domestic season was not only baffling because England would be using their set-piece takers at the World Cup, but also when England’s recent history with set pieces is taken into consideration.Set-piece goals were a key part of the 2018 World Cup run (Owen Humphreys/PA Images via Getty Images)The 2018 World Cup run to the semi-finals is considered the revival of the England national team after their embarrassing Euro 2016 exit to Iceland, with set-piece goals playing a key role in that summer’s sense of euphoria.Those weeks saw the birth of ‘The Love Train’, as John Stones and Harry Maguire excelled at corners, seeing England end the tournament with 50 per cent of their 12 goals scored from set pieces.