#set-piece-defending

#set-piece-defending

I heard it. They're fans, they want to see their team win, and they're entitled to their opinion. Nothing surprises me in football any more. Just got to keep going. There is no hiding in the sport we're in. Got to keep your head up and recover. We have a tough game against Newcastle at the weekend.

First of all, for me, it was never a free-kick. Much too soft, the Leeds boss told BBC Radio Leeds. It's the first time this foul was given at Premier League level as a free-kick and in a most dangerous position. Yes, you could argue that it was unnecessary to give the referee a decision to make because the player was on the way away from the box.

Jarrod Bowen's fine angled drive gave West Ham a draw at Everton in Nuno Espirito Santo's first game in charge. The Hammers were subdued in the first half and Everton exploited their Achilles heel at defending set-pieces when Michael Keane headed in powerfully. West Ham have conceded eight goals from corners in the Premier League this season, as many as they did in the whole of 2024-25.

Many promises were made when West Ham moved to the London Stadium in 2016 but at no point did anyone say anything about constructing a team with an unrivalled inability to repel set pieces. There was, of course, that famous line from Karren Brady about delivering a a world-class stadium for a world-class team. That pledge has come to look a little overambitious, though, and at this point supporters would probably settle for some defenders who can head the ball away.

Things started well for the Hammers as Lucas Paqueta beat Robert Sanchez with a thunderous 25-yard strike in the sixth minute, after Chelsea's talisman Cole Palmer limped out of the visitors' warm-up and was replaced in their starting XI by Estevao. But the Blues responded emphatically, levelling when Joao Pedro evaded Aaron Wan-Bissaka to nod home in the 15th minute, after Marc Cucurella flicked Pedro Neto's corner on.