Thomas Gronnemark, who worked for Liverpool for five years under Jurgen Klopp, is critical of the long throw-in trends in the Premier League that appeared this season
A while ago there was a time when long throw-ins were considered SN and were seen as a tactic under the top team.
“I can’t say it’s football anymore,” Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger complained in 2010 about the era of Rory Dellup’s missiles at Stoke. “It’s more of a goalkeeper rugby than a soccer player.”
Well, Wenger protects his eyes. This is because long distance has become a trending tactic in the Premier League. No longer a niche, they have become weapons of choice throughout the league. OPTA statistics revealed that 172 long throws in the penalty area in 50 games this season, averaging 3.4 per game, more than doubled over the past decade.
West Ham is the only Premier League side that won’t attempt a long throw into the box, with Brentford, Burnley, Crystal Palace and Newcastle all scoring one point. Heartily embraced the set in recent seasons, Arsenal has joined the public and thrown 10 long throws so far into his opponent’s area.
read more: Bryan Mbeumo gives a one-word verdict on Ruben Amorim’s approach at Man Utdread more: Federico Chiesa handed over the new Liverpool role as Arne Slot reveals the green light given
National teams are often seen as a pioneer of trends, and Thomas Touchel has recently become clear. “The long throw-in is back.” Tuchel’s assistant Anthony Barry gave a college dissertation in a long throw in the Premier League. After 20 throw-in goals are recorded in the 2024/25 Premier League season, you need to know the direction of your trip.
Another man suitable to comment on is Thomas Glenmarck, the only professional throw-in coach in the world. Gronnemark is best known for traveling the world by spreading the gospel of throw-in and working with Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool from 2018-2023.
Surprisingly, he is not completely pleased with the rise of the long throw. Many topsides believe they are simply jumping on the bandwagon without properly training them.
“You can say there are longer pitches in the Premier League. You can say, ‘Isn’t that good?’ No, there are not necessarily too many teams.
“It’s also about fan entertainment. People might think that the guy coaching long throw-ins wants a lot of them. In fact, I don’t. I don’t want to see him do 10 long throw-ins in every game.
“People look at the best teams and say, ‘They’re really successful in terms of data, so we do the same thing.’ But they forget that there is a lot of work behind it, many years worth.
Gronnemark held the world record for the longest throw-in at 51.33m, but spent 21 years carving out the niche for himself. His niche is now firmly in mainstream. It offers Dane a new problem.
“To be honest, for most teams, throw-ins are a very ugly part because the quality is so low that the ball is thrown into high pressure situations where there is a duel,” he explains. “There are too many chaotic throw-ins in the Premier League. The levels from Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester United and Newcastle are very low. Ownership rates are around 25-33% for throw-ins under pressure. The standard is really low.
“When I was in Liverpool, the quality went up, but it started to go down again, and I think one reason is that we only train one or two routines in each zone.
Gronnemark is working with Brentford. Brentford stands out as a throw-in for the Kings in the Premier League, putting 23 this season in the opponent’s penalty area, bringing one goal, 11 shots and 1.29 xg. It’s a small fried food compared to Gronnemark’s biggest success story, Danish Side FC Midtjylland. He says he managed 35 goals between 2015 and 2018 before scoring 11 throw-in goals in coaching last season.
Like Liverpool, Gronnemark is working with Borussia Dortmund and Ajax to cite the session at St. George’s Park with the English woman who led directly to a goal from a throw-in in the 2023 World Cup semi-finals. Gronnemark helps players add 15 meters to the throw and turn it into a real weapon.
“If you’re a world-class throw intaker, it’s much easier to put the ball as needed with a throw-in than a corner kick,” he explains. “How many horns did you attack the first man? It’s hard to kick with your feet. With the right techniques, it’s much easier to throw with your hands.”
Gronnemark gets frustrated when he watches Premier League. There, mistakes are seen repeated due to lack of preparation for the training pitch. “We have a lot of set piece coaches right now, and many of them treat throw-ins like corners and free kicks,” he says.
“So they say, “You can have one or two routines in each zone.” However, the challenge is that your opponent’s defensive patterns mark this from the start, and players take on a big challenge.
Set pieces are more important than ever, with the Premier League this season making up 27.7% of the non-penalty target in the Premier League than any campaign in the last 15 years.
Arsenal’s success from the Corners under Nicholas’s manager Jover is well documented, with long throws capable of representing a new frontier. After all, as former Stoke manager Tony Paris told Athletic in May, “football becomes a cycle.”
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