In numbers: How Real Madrid have improved from set plays under Jose Mourinho

In numbers: How Real Madrid have improved from set plays under Jose Mourinho Real Madrid’s adventure so far under new coach Jose Mourinho has been far from perfect and this fact shouldn’t be lost even after the team’s brilliant comeback win over AS Roma in midweek. However, there are areas where Los Blancos have shown a clear improvement under Mourinho, when compared to previous bosses such as Xabi Alonso and Alvaro Arbeloa. One of those areas has been set plays, with Real Madrid appearing far more potent from set pieces this season. A clear improvement from last season Mourinho has helped Real Madrid improve on set-pieces. (Photo by Tullio M. Puglia/Getty Images) As reported by Diario AS , the three goals in Rome, all from Arda Guler corners inside a seven-minute blitz, were the perfect advert for the work being done at Valdebebas. Those strikes took Real Madrid’s set-piece tally to seven goals in just ten matches this season. Four of them have come in La Liga, one from a corner and three from free kicks, with the trio in Rome completing the haul. It is a striking figure when set against last season’s return. Under Alonso and Arbeloa, Madrid managed 12 set-piece goals across the entire campaign, all in La Liga, split evenly between six from corners and six from free kicks. On current trends, this side looks well placed to surpass that number comfortably. The reason behind Real Madrid’s improvement Sami Khedira plays a key role in dictating Real Madrid’s set-piece strategy. (Photo by Sebastian Widmann/Getty Images) Attacking set pieces are led at Valdebebas by Pedro Machado, with the whole coaching staff involved and Mourinho himself giving the final green light on every routine. Defending them, meanwhile, falls to Sami Khedira, though it is treated as a collective effort. Mourinho’s appreciation of that teamwork was clear when Bellingham headed in a Guler free kick against Espanyol, prompting the manager to leap up and embrace his assistants. Machado, one of Mourinho’s most trusted lieutenants, has followed him from Fenerbahce to Benfica and now Madrid, part of a backroom team blending experience with young, ambitious talent. On the pitch, Guler is the undisputed master when available, his left foot the key weapon, with Bernardo Silva, Trent Alexander-Arnold and even Diomande also trusted to initiate attacks. Such meticulous strategy has helped Real Madrid turn into a potent side from set-pieces this season.