Impenetrable from Dead Balls – How Liverpool’s Defence Sets the Standard in 2025/26

Liverpool have shut the door on corners, free-kicks and penalties. Going into the 2025/26 Premier League season, the Reds’ defending at set-pieces is stronger than ever. No other team in England – and few in Europe -have conceded fewer goals from dead balls.

What’s behind Arne Slot’s “set-piece fortress”? A data-driven deep dive reveals stunning numbers, tactical tweaks, smart personnel moves – and clear contrasts to the Jurgen Klopp era.

Numbers Game: Liverpool Top the Charts

First up, the stats: No Premier League side conceded fewer set-piece goals than Liverpool last season. In 2023/24, the Reds were already among the best, shipping just nine goals from corners and free-kicks (Arsenal conceded 12, Man Utd 15, Man City six). Only Brentford managed a lower tally of three, and LFC have since pushed even further ahead.

Across Europe, only a handful of clubs can match their miserly nature. Barcelona let in just three set-piece goals in La Liga last season, and their discipline inside the penalty box is remarkable. They conceded only two penalties in all of 2024/25, and both were comfortably kept out by Alisson. All this makes shipping goals from set-plays a genuine rarity at Anfield.

Tactics: Zones, Aerial Dominance & Keeper Mastery

Tactically, Liverpool are a well-oiled machine at dead balls. Slot employs a hybrid of zonal and man-marking: five to six players guard key zones around the six-yard box, while one or two step out to track the opposition’s biggest aerial threats. Another cover player patrols the edge of the box for second balls, and a short-corner sentinel lurks just outside. This layered setup frustrates rehearsed routines, and Slot tweaks man-marking numbers on the fly.

Aerial superiority is central. With giants like Virgil van Dijk (1.93m) and Ibrahima Konaté (1.94m), Liverpool boast some of Europe’s best defenders in the air. Add in midfielders and attackers such as Dominik Szoboszlai (1.86m) and Hugo Ekitike (1.93m), and sometimes their line-up contains six players more than 1.9 metres tall Defending high balls has become almost routine, and it also boosts their threat at attacking set-pieces.

Equally vital is Alisson’s command of the penalty box. The Brazilian goalkeeper gobbles up deliveries from corners and free-kicks or punches them clear before a rival can attack. His presence alone deters even the bravest dead-ball takers. Compare that to teams with smaller, less confident ‘keepers -Arsenal’s 1.83m David Raya struggled in similar scenarios, which partly explains the Gunners’ set-piece woes last season.

Lastly, discipline and cohesion are non-negotiable. Liverpool spring the offside trap together, push as a line and guard “zone 14” (the danger corridor at the edge of the box) religiously. “We’ve drilled set-pieces to death,” admitted Slot. Those rehearsals now pay off weekly on the pitch.

From Klopp’s Weak Spot to Slot’s Strength

Under Klopp, Liverpool had mixed fortunes defending set-pieces. In 2016/17, the German himself conceded that it “wasn’t our strongest suit” when the Reds conceded the most goals from corner kicks among the top six teams in the division. Subsequent tweaks – most notably signing Van Dijk in 2018 and hiring a specialist coach – yielded stability. By 2022/23, Liverpool conceded zero goals from corners, but inconsistency crept back in as seven goals were let in from corners in Klopp’s final season (2023/24).

Slot tackled this head-on. Renowned for his set-piece prowess at Feyenoord – where his teams enjoyed a +7 goal differential from dead balls each year – he imported the mindset.

Despite a rocky start (his intended specialist coach was delayed by paperwork), internal analysts stepped up, and the addition of Aaron Briggs to his backroom team has been hailed as a transformative appointment.

Gradually, new drills, personnel tweaks and a sharper mentality flipped the script. The Dutchman even cites Arsenal’s gradual build-up under Arteta as inspiration, but has executed the plan faster – an approach vindicated by clutch late goals from corner kicks last term.

‘Big 6’ Comparison: Reds Clear Of Rivals

Contrast Liverpool’s set-piece fortress with the other members of the ‘big 6’ last season: Man City conceded six goals from dead-ball situations, Arsenal and Tottenham 12 each, Man Utd 14, and Chelsea eight. Liverpool stand alone at the summit.

Then-Brentford manager Thomas Frank – whose side led the league with just three set-piece goals conceded last season – admired Liverpool’s transformation, saying: “They’ve worked relentlessly on dead balls. They concede virtually nothing”, and even the Bees succumbed to the Reds’ aerial and positional mastery.

Side note: The figures above come from our partner MyWettanbieter.de, the leading comparison portal for bookmakers in Germany, where football pros and stat geeks continually evaluate the odds markets.

Conclusion: Liverpool Raise the Bar on Set-Pieces

In a few short months, Liverpool have gone from occasional set-piece stumblers to undisputed standard-play champions.

Slot understands that title races can turn on a corner in the 90th minute or a free-kick on the edge of the box – think back to Van Dijk’s last-gasp winner against West Ham at a critical juncture in April. His team is now razor-sharp, tactically airtight and physically equipped for these crucial moments.

For fans, the old nerves at each dead ball have been replaced by confidence and even relief, knowing that Van Dijk will head it clear or Alisson will claim it. Liverpool in 2025 have redefined the standard for standards, and that edge could prove decisive in the race for silverware as a new season begins.

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