Corners rarely lead to goals but they are always worth a gamble

Up and down the land it is one of the most common complaints and over time has become as ingrained in English football culture as Match of the Day - how can Premier League footballers paid millions of pounds not beat the first defender from a corner?

The air is turned blue during post-match phone-ins or at analysis sessions in the pub as fans bemoan tricky wingers who lack the ability to beat the very first obstacle from a set piece.

It’s criminal. It’s shocking. It’s a sackable offence.

But what if it is actually a good thing?

Corners very rarely result in goals. Over the past decade only about three per cent of them have led directly to the net bulging. Delivering a ball into the box that your teammate can get on the end of and score from is a difficult skill.

The most dangerous area for an attacking team at a corner is the space between the front post and the middle of the box, particularly from an in-swinging corner.

Paul Power at Stats Perform’s research found that shots from in-swinging corners lead to goals 10.8 per cent of the time, compared to 6.5 per cent for out-swingers.

Any professional footballer could float the ball to the back post from a corner but the chances of scoring from such an opportunity are slim.

As a result, hitting the first man should be thought of as a gamble that didn’t quite pay off. If a team are on the counter-attack and a player tries a risky through ball that is cut out rather than a safer but less threatening pass, they are often praised for their attempt. Why don’t we extend that courtesy to corner kick-takers?

The perfect example of this phenomenon came in Rangers’ shock 4-2 win over Dortmund in the Europa League a few weeks ago.

In the 11th minute James Tavernier took the first Gers corner, firing it low and straight at first man Marco Reus, who cleared.

Then 30 minutes later, Tavernier fizzed an almost identical delivery about two feet higher than his previous attempt. Joe Aribo got the run on Reus and glanced a header from the corner of the six-yard box across the face of goal which Alfredo Morelos at the back post could tap into an empty net.

Power’s research discovered that flick-ons from a corner lead to goals 4.8 per cent of the time, compared to just two per cent for a shot directly from the set piece.

It is a set-piece routine that Rangers often employ and Aribo is a flick-on specialist. The midfielder has three assists and one goal from such situations this season alone.

A game the day before that again proved the danger of the front post area from set pieces.

With Liverpool looking to break the deadlock in their Champions League tie with Inter, Andy Robertson whipped an in-swinging corner that Roberto Firmino met in almost exactly the same spot as Aribo, glancing the header all the way into the far corner.

In such a low-scoring sport, persistence can be key.

David Beckham’s injury-time free kick against Greece to send England to the 2002 World Cup is one of the national team’s most iconic goals.

A less well remembered aspect of that game is that Becks had missed with five previous free kicks before his final one nestled in the top corner.

All of football is a balance of risk and reward, and maybe it’s time to think of corners that hit the first man as a risk worth taking.

Train prices a massive impediment to fans

Newcastle United have three away games in the space of a week later this month, with visits to Southampton, Chelsea and Everton in a seven-day span. Three open return tickets on the train for those games currently clocks in at an eye-watering £487.50.

That figure is without the cost of a hotel for the night in Southampton that would be required for the untelevised Thursday night kick-off.

Train prices are a persistent barrier to those looking to attend away games and matches are often moved for TV at short notice, leaving fans unable to change their tickets.

A survey by the Campaign for Better Transport found that the train is now the most expensive method of getting to a football match.

Supporters are being priced out of travelling to watch their team away from home while TV companies who move games for broadcast purposes pay little attention to the fanbase.

Football is becoming increasingly aware of its impact on the climate and making efforts to become more green, so surely authorities should be doing more to make rail travel the most viable way to get to games.

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