Chelsea Pursue Set-Piece Specialist Austin MacPhee
Chelsea are pushing to bring in Aston Villa’s set-piece specialist Austin MacPhee, as the London club look to sharpen the fine details of Xabi Alonso’s new era at Stamford Bridge.
They are not alone in the chase. Other Premier League sides and clubs from the Saudi Pro League have also moved into position for the highly rated coach, turning a backroom appointment into a full-scale tug of war.
Chelsea eye marginal gains
Alonso has room to reshape his staff. Bernardo Cueva, hired from Brentford in 2024 for around £750,000 to lead set-piece work, is stepping away from the touchline and into a more behind-the-scenes role. That leaves a clear vacancy in a department that increasingly decides tight games.
MacPhee’s name sits at the top of that list for a reason.
The 46-year-old Scot has been one of the most influential dead-ball minds in Europe over the past two seasons. Under his guidance, Aston Villa scored more goals from set-pieces than any other side across Europe’s top five leagues in 2023-24. They backed that up a year later by staying among the continent’s elite from dead balls and finishing joint-top with Arsenal for set-piece goals in the Premier League last season.
This is not a trend. It is a body of work.
Villa’s loss, someone’s gain
Any move will not be straightforward. Villa are entitled to compensation, with MacPhee’s contract understood to include a specific release clause. That at least gives the Midlands club clarity over the numbers, if not over the outcome.
MacPhee has balanced his Villa duties with a role on the international stage for the past five years, working as set-piece coach with the Portugal national team under Roberto Martinez. Martinez resigned after the World Cup, but MacPhee’s reputation had already been firmly established in both club and international football.
His departure would form part of a wider reshaping at Villa Park this summer. After helping Unai Emery’s side win the Europa Conference League and secure Champions League qualification, several members of the backroom team are expected to move on. MacPhee is among the most coveted.
A new weapon for Alonso?
For Chelsea, the appeal is obvious. They are rebuilding under Alonso, and while signings on the pitch will dominate headlines, the margins off it often separate contenders from also-rans. Set-pieces have become a battleground of detail, planning and repetition. MacPhee has turned that niche into a decisive edge.
If Chelsea can win this race, Alonso will gain a coach whose work has repeatedly turned dead balls into points. If they lose out, someone else in England or Saudi Arabia will inherit one of the game’s sharpest specialists.
Either way, MacPhee’s next move looks set to reshape more than just a training-ground routine.
