From Control to Chaos: How the Premier League Is Redefining Its Playing Style in 2025
There has certainly been a change in playing style in the Premier League this style, as some teams are veering away from a possession and controlled style of play, in favour of chaos football, with long balls, set pieces and long throws becoming more evident. Last season and previous seasons saw many teams adopt a high pressing style of football and control in possession with last season's champions Liverpool focusing on controlling games.
While this style is still very much evident amongst some teams, there has certainly been a shift towards a more chaotic style of football that is designed to unnerve the opposition. We are going to take a look at which teams have benefited from this style of football so far this season, as well as an in-depth look into the changes brought about by this style of play.
The Changes
As mentioned, a key part of this chaotic style of play is set pieces and long throws, as well as long balls forward. There is certainly a desire to get the ball forward and into the box quicker this season than seasons gone by. Passing in the Premier League is at a 15 year low this season, with short passes even down with the top teams. Man City had the most short passes last season and so far this season. Last season Man City averaged 523.26 short passes per game while so far this season they average 477.22 short passes per game. With regards to successful long passes, the two best in the league are Wolves and Man Utd.
Wolves average successful long passes per game has increased from 21.5 per game last season to 25.7 per game this season. Man United averaged 22.4 successful long passes per game last season compared to 25.1 this season. Set pieces are an important part of this chaotic style of play, with more corners being taken on average per game. Arsenal have taken the most corners per game this season, with an average of 7.44 corners taken per match compared to 6.60 corners taken per game last season.
With regards to set piece goals, there have been 81 goals from set pieces this season, with Man City the only team to not score from a set piece this season, while Arsenal have the most with 11 goals in 9 games. Set piece goals account for 33.6% of all goals scored in the Premier League this season. Last season, there were an average of 1.52 long throws per match (long throws being those that travel at least 20 metres and end in the opposition's box), and that has more than doubled in 2025/26 with an average of 3.44 per match so far.
Arsenal have taken the most corners per game this season, with an average of 7.44 corners taken per match compared to 6.60 corners taken per game last season.
Who is Thriving
We have touched on the changing trends, now we must look at who is benefiting and thriving from these trends. League leaders Arsenal certainly seem to be benefitting the most, scoring the most goals from set pieces this season, with 11 of their 16 goals this season coming from set pieces, which is 69%. Brentford have benefitted from the increase in long throw-ins, as seen with their opening goal versus Liverpool last weekend. 4 of Brentford’s 13 goals have come from set pieces also, which is 31%.
Spurs have also benefited with a more direct style of play, with their manager Thomas Frank having success with Brentford with that style of play. Spurs had the least successful long passes per game last season with 15.4 per game, while this season they have the 11th most with 20.6 per game, an indication in their change of style with their new manager. Spurs also have the 7th most set piece goals this season with 5 of their 17 goals this season coming from set pieces which is 30%.
Conclusion
In conclusion, there has been a shift in style amongst some teams in the league this season and they are benefiting from them. Teams like Arsenal, Spurs and Brentford are making life difficult for opposing teams, while Man United’s fortunes have improved slightly when they adopt a more direct approach like seen in their win at Anfield. Champions Liverpool are struggling with the change in style, losing to Brentford and Man United with manager Arne Slot even saying they are struggling against teams who play long balls and have a more direct approach.
It remains to be seen if this style continues and if it results in success and trophies for teams, but it is interesting to see a drastic change in the statistics this season compared to last as teams are adopting a more old school approach.
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Jack Guing
Jack hails from County Offaly in Ireland and joins the team as a Content Writer and Performance Analyst. He holds a bachelor’s degree in English and History from Maynooth University and a master’s degree in Sports Performance from the University of Limerick. Jack is a keen sports fan with a love for performance analysis and wishes to use this data-driven style that is seen in performance analysis in his writing to deliver informative predictions.