Philadelphia Union; Attacking Corner Kicks Analysis

The 2024 season has been remarkable for Philadelphia Union, as the team's set pieces played a crucial role in their success. A closer look at the relevant data reveals that the Union's attacking corner kicks have been a game-changer, with significantly higher goal-scoring rate compared to the rest of the MLS teams.

This success is not just a result of luck, but a proof of the team's effective strategy, when we look at actual goals and expected goals (xG) from corner kicks almost doubling the league average.

Notably, Philadelphia Union ranked fourth globally in set play expected goals (xG) per 90 minutes, with an impressive 0.476 xG/90. This achievement puts them just behind FC Midtjylland (0.493 xG/90), renowned for their expertise in this aspect of the game. The impressive Unions even surpassed a few set pieces monsters, such as Arsenal and Inter, who finished in 7th and 8th places respectively.

In this article, we'll analyse Philadelphia Union's corner kicks strategy, focusing specifically on their most common tactics targeting the near post and middle of the box zones, and explore the trends that have driven their success.

Near post as a target zone:

The near post zone is renowned for its high success rate in winning first contact for the attacking team. Philadelphia Union applied two common strategies for targeting this area, with the effectiveness of each, hinged on the opponent's defensive structure, whether it was zonal or man-oriented.

Against FC Cincinnati, who defended corner kicks with a single zonal player in the six-yard box and six man-markers (surrounded by red and blue rings, respectively, in Figure 1.), the Unions aimed to target the area in front of the opponent's zonal defender with a flick. To achieve this, Danley Jean Jacques and Alejandro Bedoya made runs towards this area after losing their markers. Meanwhile, the remaining runners near the penalty spot (highlighted in black in Figure 2.) attempted to lose their markers and make runs to frame the goal mouth.

Figure 1

Figure 2

When facing a more zone-oriented defensive structure, Philadelphia Union employed an alternative plan. Against Orlando City SC, who deployed three zonal players in the six-yard box and five man-markers (surrounded by red and blue rings, respectively in Figure 3.), the Unions targeted a further zone, beyond the reach of the six-yard box zonal players, and the team exploited the out-swinging ball path by Jakob Glesnes run from the rebound zone (Within the width of the 18 yard box) down to the target area, having lost his marker, while Mikael Uhre's block and Alejandro Bedoya's run towards the near post aimed to prevent the nearest zonal players from clearing the ball. Additionally, three more players (highlighted in white in Figure 4.) framed the goal mouth, to maximise scoring probability.

Figure 3

Figure 4

Middle of the box as a target zone:

Again, versus Orlando City SC with the similar defensive structure, Philadelphia Union missed a prime scoring opportunity, when Nathan Harriel hit the post with a first-contact header, as the team targeted the middle zone at a height of six yards.

After losing his marker, Mikael Uhre made a run towards the near post, making a "fake flick" that drew the nearest opponent zonal duo away from the target area, allowing Harriel to attack the space overloaded by Dániel Gazdag (highlighted in black in Figure 5.) who positioned himself to make subtle body contact, effectively neutralizing the last opponent zonal defender.

Figure 5

Figure 6

Dagur Dan Thórhallsson capitalised on the opportunity to score against New York City FC, targeting the same zone once again. The opponent's defensive approach was predominantly zonal, with four zonal players in the six-yard box (highlighted in red in Figure 7.) and only two man-markers.

The Union's strategy focused on exploiting the space between the last two zonal players. A clever movement by the player highlighted in white towards the opponent's furthest defender drew his attention, creating a gap for Thórhallsson to attack who arrived unmarked to score with a precise first-contact header.

Figure 7

Figure 8

Philadelphia Union's impressive corner kick statistics are a testament to the team's strategic approach to set pieces; by combining effective strategy with precise execution, Philadelphia Union has turned corner kicks into a reliable source of scoring opportunities.

As the 2025 MLS season kicks off this month, all eyes will be on the Union to see if they can replicate this success. Will they continue exploiting opponents’ weaknesses, or will teams adapt and find ways to counter their strategy? The answer to this question may be revealed in a forthcoming article, where we'll track the Union's corner kick strategy throughout the upcoming season.