Ezri Konsa says England are ready to follow in the footsteps of Arsenal and become set-piece specialists at next year’s World Cup. Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has turned the Gunners into the most dangerous team in the Premier League from dead-ball situations, including free-kicks, corners and even long throws. Konsa was already training set-pieces with Aston Villa’s specialist coach Austin McPhee and scored his first England goal in a 5-0 win over Serbia in September.
The Villa centre-back believes it will become increasingly important in international football and believes England can capitalize on it at next summer’s World Cup. Konsa said: “We’ve been taking more long throw-ins this season, but Brentford are a team that’s very good at them and they’re difficult to defend. I think we’re more physical now, we have to be strong and we certainly have to be physical in the team because if we don’t we’re going to struggle.”
“Look, the Premier League is changing everything this year. It’s getting more and more difficult and I think you’re seeing teams scoring more from set-pieces this season and an emphasis in and around set-pieces when defending.”
“For me as a defender, I think it’s important to have that physicality when it comes to set-pieces and to make sure the players around you are ready because they know what’s going to happen, especially on throw-ins and corner kicks.
“If you look at Arsenal, you can see how many goals they’ve scored and how many points they’ve won from them. That certainly plays a big role and plays an important role in the game.”
Konsa revealed that his goal in Serbia came directly from the club’s training sessions and that his set-piece work at Villa was crucial to his development. He admitted it would be difficult to replicate such detailed preparation with England due to limited time together.
He explained: “That set-piece in Serbia is obviously something we did for England, but in my head it’s something that Austin has drilled into my head because I’ve been with him for so many seasons. When you’re in the opposition box, you think like a striker, you think like a centre-half. We have a lot of set-pieces.
“If you have the opportunity to play, you have to think as a striker. For me, since Austin came in, that’s what he instilled in my head. It’s going to stay there for a long time.”
“My set-piece coach at Aston Villa always tells me to think like a striker when attacking corners and free-kicks. In that situation, I wanted to think like a striker, just run into the box.”
“I wish I had gotten the rebound. It just came down and I hit it with my left foot. I don’t think I even needed to hit it!”
“When you come in for England you don’t get much time to practice because sometimes you’re not feeling well from the game two days before. There are games coming up one after the other and we’re working on that as much as we can. But this is definitely a big point.”
The 28-year-old has established himself as a key figure in Thomas Tuchel’s England set-up, proving his versatility across the back four while showing the pace, composure and tactical awareness that marks him as a genuine candidate to start next summer.
Konsa added: “As a player, it’s always a special feeling to have a manager who shows faith and believes in you, and it gives you a lot of confidence going into the game. I owe a lot to the manager for letting me play in every game.”
“It’s been my dream since I was a child to represent my country, and being able to play so many games under him is special, so I can only thank him for his achievements so far. He’s a great coach and I’m really happy to be working under him.”
