HNK Hajduk Split has become a more dangerous team from set pieces this season, with the key factor being the specialized work of assistant coach Ibon Labaien Soto. After 15 official matches, Hajduk has scored five goals from 83 corners taken, a conversion rate of just over six percent.

That figure is roughly double the average of the English Premier League in recent years, which ranges between three and four percent. While the sample of 83 corners is relatively small, the trend is clear and is the result of a change in approach agreed upon between coach Gonzalo Garcia and sporting director Robert Graf during the summer break.

Ibon Labaien Soto is Garcia's assistant who has taken responsibility for set pieces. The Spaniard worked with Garcia at Arouca and Istra 1961, arriving at Poljud last summer. His career began in the analytical side of football, with experience at the Guangzhou Evergrande academy and UD Logroñés. He was also a video analyst at Atlético Madrid during Diego Simeone's tenure before transitioning to a traditional assistant coach role.

"Graf had a series of proposals regarding training methodology and the organization of the coaching staff," it is stated, with Garcia accepting some of those suggestions. The result is a clear division of responsibilities within the staff, with Labaien Soto as the main man for set pieces.

Hajduk did not invent anything new. Set-piece specialization has become increasingly visible in European football over the last decade. Pioneers include clubs associated with the ownership of Matthew Benham, such as Midtjylland and Brentford. Midtjylland had a 'set-piece lounge' in the middle of the last decade for analyzing video, data, and opponent setups.

Brentford hired Giannis Vias as a specialist in 2015, and he is now a member of Croatia national team coach Slaven Bilić's staff. After Vias, Nicolas Jover worked in that position at Brentford and is now best known for the same role at Arsenal. Before Vias arrived, Brentford scored from 1.7% of their corners, and in his first season that rate increased to 4.1%.

Labaien Soto participated in an educational block called 'Entrenamiento del balón parado' at Real Sociedad's training center in 2019, led by Sergio Rodríguez, coach of Logroñés. At the time, the 29-year-old Spaniard was working as an analyst for Logroñés, showing his early focus on this specific tactical component.

The success is visible in the results. Hajduk is currently second in the HNL table with 13 points from six games played, just two points behind leaders Osijek. The team is in excellent form with five consecutive wins, and in the latest, against Vardarac, goals were scored by D. Hadzikadunic and P. Ugwuodo. They have scored 15 goals in total while conceding only five.

This improved output from set plays could be key in the title race. The next test is an away match against fifth-placed Rijeka on September 19, and details of the upcoming schedule can be found on our fixtures page. This season's squad and individual statistics are also available on the squad and stats pages.

With a clear strategy and a specialist dedicated solely to set pieces, Hajduk has another weapon in its arsenal for the key matches ahead.