James Pearce has acknowledged the numerous influence that one comparatively unheralded summer season arrival at Liverpool has already made.
A interval of main behind-the-scenes change at Anfield witnessed Jurgen Klopp and the majority of his backroom workers departing, with Arne Slot bringing in his personal ‘staff behind the staff’.
Amongst that quantity was Aaron Briggs, who successfully changed Vitor Matos in his function as first-team improvement coach however, because the journalist famous in an article for The Athletic, has additionally been working intently with the membership’s analysts, significantly round set items.
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Two of Liverpool’s objectives within the 3-1 win over AC Milan on Tuesday evening got here from centre-backs heading to the web from nook kicks; and as Pearce famous in his piece, ‘perfecting set-piece routines on the coaching pitch is Briggs’ area and he’s proving to be a shrewd appointment’.
In sharing a hyperlink to that article by way of X, the reporter acknowledged that the 37-year-old is proving to be ‘an enormous asset’.
Liverpool marketed for a set-piece coach in the summertime however did not discover a compelling candidate.
Coach Aaron Briggs was provided that accountability and he’s proved an enormous asset.
How Briggs and #LFC’s analysts plotted Milan’s downfall at San Siro. https://t.co/dhhKmjVNdd— James Pearce (@JamesPearceLFC) September 18, 2024
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The irony behind Briggs’ success is that Liverpool had marketed for a first-team set piece coach shortly after the top of final season, however have but to formally fill that emptiness regardless of receiving ‘a stack of purposes’ (The Athletic).
Curiously, none of our seven objectives within the Premier League to date this season have come immediately from a dead-ball state of affairs (WhoScored), though the Reds’ analytical specialists clearly noticed a weak spot in Mike Maignan which could possibly be exploited and duly was by Ibrahima Konate and Virgil van Dijk.
As per Set off The Press, just below 35% of objectives within the English high flight in 2023/24 got here from set items (one out of each three, basically), a statistic which underlines the significance of a tactical masterplan from each a defensive and attacking perspective in the case of that side of the game.
Liverpool know that they’ve the gamers on the pitch and the brains belief off the sector to take full benefit of opponents with deficiencies in defending set performs, and getting Briggs on board already seems to be a really intelligent coup.
Maybe his official remit behind the scenes at Anfield could be altered if he continues to indicate an distinctive aptitude by way of making ready set-piece masterclasses!
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