Long Throws, Big Distances: The Quiet Revolution Reshaping the Premier League

The Long Throw Revolution in the Premier League

Long throws in English football were never a common sight across the Premier League, once mostly the preserve of a specific era under Tony Pulis and Stoke City. Today, they have become a trusted tactical weapon used by most clubs, producing goals and forcing defenses to shift their approach. The development isn’t just about a few memorable moments; it’s a league-wide shift in how teams attack from the touchline.

Last season, long-throw set pieces contributed 20 goals. In the first 11 rounds of the 2025-26 campaign, 12 goals have already been scored from similar play, underscoring a clear strategic embrace. The trend isn’t limited to goal tallies; the average distance of a long throw has also risen—from roughly 16.5 meters a couple of seasons ago to 18.6 meters this season, according to The Athletic.

The numbers reflect a broader change in how teams view the set-piece weapon. More teams now rely on throws as a sustained threat rather than a one-off gimmick, and the improvement in technique has translated into more varied attacking options in the final third.

The conversation around long throws is no longer just about distance; it’s about how to create scoring opportunities when play tightens in the opposition’s box. The question is not only who can throw far, but who can convert those throws into meaningful chances, and which stadiums or conditions favor a longer run-up.

Kaiyodi: Brentford’s New Long-Throw Sledgehammer

Brentford have long shown an interest in set pieces, and the addition of the Italian Kaiyodi in the winter window has sharpened their long-throw game. Their current coach, Keith Andrews, previously specialized in fixed balls, making the integration of Kaiyodi’s throw strength a natural extension of the team’s identity.

Kaiyodi first drew attention at Fiorentina, delivering 23 long throws in the 2023-24 season and 24 in the early portion of 2024-25. After moving to Brentford, he posted 21 long throws in half a season, despite playing only six league games. This season, his numbers have exploded: 54 long throws in 11 league matches, leading the Premier League ahead of Nordi Mokieli of Sunderland (46) and Chris Richards of Crystal Palace (29).

What sets Kaiyodi apart isn’t just volume but consistency of distance. His average throw length sits at around 33.2 meters, with teammate Lucas Bergvall (another top option) at 30.6 meters from 16 throws. The Brentford squad also features other high-volume throwers, such as Kyle Walker for Burnley and Antoine Seminio for Bournemouth, plus Ethan Ambado for Leeds and Vitaliy Mikolenko for Everton, among others who have been notable for their long-throw output.

Major clubs with a reputation for a possession-based game—Chelsea and Manchester City, for example—still don’t place heavy emphasis on long throws into the box, and even Liverpool and Brighton have fewer players attempting two throws or more in a single match. Kaiyodi, however, has become the standout, with Brentford’s longest throw this season recorded at 38.5 meters against Fulham, while teammate Matthias Jensen has even more striking distances: 45.4 meters against Nottingham Forest and 42.7 meters against Crystal Palace.

Beyond Kaiyodi, Brentford registered five long-throw goals in the 2024-25 season, and have already added three this term: Fabio Carvalho versus Chelsea, Dango Watara versus Liverpool, and Kevin Schade against Newcastle United. The numbers illustrate how a single weapon can influence multiple outcomes in a team’s attacking repertoire.

Which Grounds Are Best for Long Throws?

Despite Brentford’s dominance in several metrics, the season’s longest throw so far belongs to Wolves’ Rodrigo Gomes, who launched a 46.1-meter effort against Everton. Yet Wolves themselves do not rely primarily on long throws, with Gomes aside only a handful of such attempts across a few games. The stadiums in focus—Molineux, Anfield, Craven Cottage, Selhurst Park, and Stamford Bridge—do not consistently determine the success of these throws; rather, the individual technique and trait of the thrower carry more weight than the playing surface.

Even the length of the pitch is not a fixed barrier. Four non-standard venues in the league (Anfield, Craven Cottage, Selhurst Park, Stamford Bridge) show that when a player has a long-throw ability, the effect can still be significant even if dimensions diverge from the league norms. The conclusion is clear: the craft of each thrower matters more than the size of the stage.

Is Moving Advertising Boards a Legit Tactic?

Sunderland tried a familiar ploy: nudge the advertising boards toward the field to shorten the run-up for their opponent’s throw-ins during a matchup with Arsenal. This tactic has a history in the division, previously used by teams facing Stoke City under Tony Pulis. Sunderland has even tried similar ideas in the promotion playoff context against Coventry last season.

Yet even with Arsenal’s reputation for strong set pieces, the season’s stats show no goals from long throws in that particular game. The broader point is that such moves are technically permitted—boards must stay at least one meter from the touchline—placing this tactic in a gray area according to Thomas Grönemark, a recognized long-throw specialist who has worked with clubs like Liverpool and Brentford.

Grönemark notes that reducing the space for the run-up almost certainly weakens throw power, though exceptional throwers can still reach impressive distances with the right technique and physical gifts. Meanwhile, Midtjylland in Denmark has pursued the opposite route: they’ve refined their stadium’s concrete seating to provide an ideal throwing surface.

In the end, Sunderland’s attempt to blunt Arsenal’s threat produced the season’s highest average throw length in the attacking third—28.6 meters—but only five long throws were attempted in that game. The takeaway is not that boards win games, but that teams use psychological tactics to signal awareness of the opponent’s threat: “We know your menace, and we’ll meet it.”

Punchlines aside, the practical reality is that a professional long throw is a weapon that can bend a match trajectory in a moment. For players who can deliver both power and precision, the rest of the league may have to concede that the throw-in line is no longer a minor footnote but a frontline asset.

Punchline 1: In the Premier League, the ball has more miles on the clock than most players—distance is destiny, and destiny has a thrower’s arm.

Punchline 2: If football keeps giving us throws this long, defenders might start wearing helmets and the advertising boards will need airline-approved travel insurance.