Arsenal are dominating all phases of play in every competition this season.
The Gunners are leading the way in the Premier League and Champions League, are one step away from the final of the Carabao Cup, and have also made it into the next round of the FA Cup.
There is a serious chance that Arsenal will win more than one trophy this season – perhaps even three or four. But that isn’t stopping their pursuit of marginal gains.
Arsenal recently hired throw-in coach Thomas Gronnemark as a consultant, and he has now demanded a rule change just days after he started working with the Gunners.
Predict how many goals Arsenal will score from throw-ins after hiring Thomas Gronnemark?
Can the Kings of Set-pieces become the Kings of Throw-ins?
Throw-in coach Thomas Gronnemark wants a rule changed in the Premier League
There were a few eyebrows raised when Arsenal brought in Nicolas Jover as their set-piece coach years ago, but that proved to be one of their best decisions ever.
In search of even more marginal gains, Mikel Arteta seems to have brought in Gronnemark to make the Gunners dangerous in throw-ins as well.
It’s not just long throws that the coach helps with; his focus also lies on quick throw-ins to help his side get the better of the opposition.
In order to achieve that, Gronnemark has demanded a rule change.
A part of his lengthy post on X reads: “A very simple hack/change to get FASTER Throw-ins in the Premier League, and it´s all about simple mathematics.
“Right now, there are 15 balls in or around the pitch: One in play. One by the fourth official. Two balls (each) behind the goal lines. This leaves nine balls for the two sidelines = four + five.
“One of the reasons that fast throw-ins can – sometimes – be dangerous and entertaining is that the opponents don´t have time to be organised. This will often lead to open spaces inside the pitch, or maybe space behind the defence that the attacking team can use to create chances or score goals after throw-in situations.
“One of the key elements of fast throw-ins is how fast you can get the ball. If you can have it in your hands after one-and-a-half seconds, then the opponents have very little time to organise. If you have the ball in your hands after four seconds, the opponents have much more time to organise, and the fast option might be closed down.”
Gronnemark then demanded more balls on the sidelines. He wants the Premier League to change their rule of having four or five balls on one side to 10.
However, Gronnemark has revealed that he discussed this with the lawmakers in the past, but his suggestion was either not heard or ignored.
Which Arsenal player do you think Thomas Gronnemark will choose as his throw-in specialist?
Rule change could benefit and hurt Arsenal
From a throw-in coach’s point of view, having more balls on the sidelines to enable faster throw-ins makes a lot of sense.
Arsenal could definitely use the pace of their attackers to exploit throw-ins and be even more dangerous in the final third.
However, on the flip side, this could hurt the Gunners for the same reason as well.
Furthermore, Arsenal are one of many clubs that use throw-ins to slow the game down when they are under pressure. Having faster access to the balls will reduce the time they can waste.
There are definite pros and cons to this suggestion, which is perhaps why the rulemakers have not implemented it just yet.
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