Former Premier League goalkeeper Shay Given has urged Sean Dyche to make a vital improvement in training ahead of Nottingham Forest’s game against Leeds United.
Leeds and Nottingham Forest are preparing to meet in a classic Premier League relegation battle, as they both look to climb away from danger.
Daniel Farke is beginning to feel the heat after the damaging 3-0 defeat against Brighton increased the scrutiny over his future at Leeds.
However, if Leeds can defy Opta’s pre-match prediction of a Forest win, it will put valuable breathing space between Farke’s side and the bottom three.
New manager Sean Dyche has coaxed some improvement from Forest, as evidenced by their 2-2 draw with Manchester United. However, Given believes Dyche needs to fix their weakness from set pieces before they face Leeds this weekend.
Sean Dyche during Nottingham Forest v Manchester United - Premier League
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Sean Dyche urged to make change ahead of Leeds United clash
Speaking on the Monday Night Club on BBC Radio Five, former Ireland international Shay Given highlighted Forest’s weakness against set-pieces as a key area of concern.
According to Given, Dyche needs to quickly improve his side’s resilience at dead-ball situations after they conceded another goal from a corner against Manchester United.
Given said: “Sean Dyche is renowned for set plays for and against. I mean, the first goal, it was a simple, yes, it shouldn’t have been a corner. I think we all agree on that.
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“But at that stage, then, you have to get your focus back, concentrate on what’s happening in the game. I think it felt like the Nottingham Forest players sort of switched off for that brief second because it was a decent ball in by Fernandes, and Casemiro seemed to just stand, jump and head it in.
“It was the most basic sort of goal you will see from an attacking point of view, probably all season. But from a defensive point of view, you wouldn’t see that in any league.
“It was so poor from a Nottingham Forest point of view to concede such an easy goal, really. So you would think Sean Dyche would get a handle on that, and maybe the set-up next week might be different.”
Leeds United v Bournemouth - Premier League
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Leeds United can target Nottingham Forest at set pieces
Although Leeds have struggled for goals at times this season, the fact that Joe Rodon is the club’s joint top scorer for the season shows Leeds can exploit Forest’s weakness.
According to Opta, Forest have conceded nine goals from set pieces so far this season, the joint-most in the competition with West Ham, which is 47.37% of their goals against.
Metric Leeds United Nottingham Forest
Goals Scored from Set Pieces 4 2
% of Goals Scored from Set Pieces 44.44% 28.57%
Goals Conceded from Set Pieces 5 9
% of Goals Against from Set Pieces 29.41% 47.37%
Shots Created from Set Pieces 37 28
Shots Against from Set Pieces 30 46
Leeds have scored the eighth-most goals from set-pieces in the competition, with four, thanks to the improved delivery which Sean Longstaff has added to the team.
Longstaff’s delivery was not up to its usual standard against Brighton, as Leeds struggled to carve out a chance against the Seagulls. If he can get it right at the City Ground, the Whites could enjoy some success.