Chelsea Pursue Set-Piece Specialist Austin MacPhee

Chelsea have opened talks to bring Aston Villa’s highly rated set-piece coach Austin MacPhee to Stamford Bridge, but they are far from alone in the chase.

Premier League rivals and clubs from the Saudi Pro League are also pushing to land the 46-year-old, whose work has turned dead balls into a weapon of ruthless efficiency at Villa Park.

Chelsea’s backroom rebuild

New Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso is reshaping his staff and has a clear vacancy in one of the most prized specialist roles in the modern game. Bernardo Cueva, recruited from Brentford in 2024 for around £750,000, is stepping away from the touchline and moving into a more analytical, behind-the-scenes position. That shift opens the door for a fresh voice to take charge of set-pieces.

Alonso wants marginal gains. MacPhee has built a reputation on delivering them.

Villa’s set-piece machine

Aston Villa would be entitled to compensation, with MacPhee’s contract understood to contain a specific release clause. Any club wanting him will have to pay to unlock it, and his recent record explains why the queue is forming.

Under Unai Emery, Villa became one of Europe’s most dangerous sides from dead-ball situations. In the 2023-24 campaign, they scored more set-piece goals than any other team across Europe’s top five leagues. The following season, they stayed among the continent’s elite in that department and finished joint-top with Arsenal for set-piece goals in the Premier League.

Those numbers are not an accident. They are the product of hours of detail, rehearsed routines and a coach whose influence is felt every time the ball is placed on a quadrant or a free-kick spot.

Dual roles and rising stock

MacPhee’s rise has not been confined to club football. For the past five years, the Scottish coach has combined his Villa duties with a similar role for the Portugal national team under Roberto Martinez, who stepped down after the World Cup.

Balancing those responsibilities has only sharpened his profile. Working with elite international players, then returning to the grind of club football, has given him a breadth of experience that appeals to ambitious owners and managers looking for every edge.

At Villa, his work has underpinned a period of genuine progress. The club lifted the Europa Conference League and secured Champions League qualification under Emery, with set-pieces a constant thread in that success story. MacPhee is now poised to be one of several staff members to move on this summer as Villa’s backroom team evolves after a landmark spell.

A tug-of-war for the details man

Chelsea’s interest comes at a time when specialist coaches are coveted almost as much as star players. Corners and free-kicks win titles; clubs know it, and MacPhee’s track record is attracting attention from every direction.

Saudi Pro League teams, armed with significant financial power, are in the mix. Other Premier League clubs, having seen Villa’s dead-ball dominance up close, are also circling. The battle is not just about money, but about project, prestige and the chance to shape a new phase at a major club.

For Alonso, landing MacPhee would send a clear message: Chelsea intend to squeeze every drop out of the fine margins. For Villa, it would mark the end of a hugely productive chapter in their modern rebuild.

The question now is simple: whose corner flag will Austin MacPhee be standing beside when the new season kicks off?