Liam Rosenior sends Arsenal warning over Chelsea's plan to stop major threat
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Liam Rosenior said he has already prepared his Chelsea side for Arsenal's dead-ball threats, despite not agreeing with the nickname "Set-Piece FC" given to the North London side.
Having led Chelsea to a convincing 5-1 FA Cup win over Charlton Athletic in his first game in charge, Rosenior will face his first big test against Arsenal in the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final tie on Wednesday.
Alongside Leeds United, Arsenal and Chelsea are currently leading the Premier League in terms of set-piece goals, with 12 each.
Interestingly, Arsenal are the ones taking the flak for reliance on set-pieces, likely due to the fact that they are getting more wins from their corner-kicks and free-kicks.
Rosenior was clearly not amused by Arsenal's new nickname presented by a journalist in his press conference on Monday.
"No, people can talk. I don't know who's calling them 'Set-Piece FC'. I'm definitely not," Rosenior responded.
"I think they're a team who are very good without the ball. I think they have a really, really clear idea in the way they want to play with the ball.
"On top of that, they're very, very well organised with good deliveries on set-pieces."
That said, there is no denying that Arsenal pose threats on set-pieces, and Rosenior has made sure that his team will be prepared for it.
"We've been working tactically on Arsenal from the moment I came into the club," he explained.
"We know what an important game it is. We've watched all of their games, analysed every aspect of their game, including set-plays, which they're very good at.
"Yes, there's a lot you can affect. We talk about systems and tactics."
While Chelsea have been just as effective as Arsenal in set-pieces offensively, the same cannot be said defensively.
The Blues have conceded nine set-piece goals this season, the sixth-highest in the league, while Arsenal have conceded just five.
This is clearly something that Rosenior will have to address ahead of the clash at Stamford Bridge.
Gerry Crisandy is a freelance writer who has covered Chelsea for many years. His work has been published on The Chelsea Chronicle and Pride of London. He grew up idolising Michael Ballack and is a firm believer in expected goals.