Koeman slams Arsenal and England: 'Champion thanks to corners'

In the run-up to the 2026 World Cup, national coach Ronald Koeman has made striking criticism of Arsenal and the England national team. During a press moment, prior to the Dutch training campaign, Koeman stated that Arsenal owed the championship mainly to goals from corners: "I think Arsenal became champions thanks to corners. Otherwise they would not have made it," Koeman noted.

According to the Dutch national coach, it is no secret that Arsenal under coach Mikel Arteta has focused a lot on standard situations. The club scored remarkably often from dead moments last season, partly thanks to the specialist input of Nicolas Jover, the regular set-piece coach of the Londoners.

Koeman, who in the past was active as a trainer in the English league, sees the same trend with the English national team. "You can see from England's selection that standard situations and long throw-ins will be important at the World Cup. That takes little energy, but yields a lot," said Koeman.


He therefore expects little sparkling football during the summer World Cup, partly due to the expected high temperatures. "The intensity will probably be less. I don't expect games like Paris Saint-Germain against Bayern Munich," said the national coach. He believes countries like England will benefit from the Premier League experience of players like Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice, who have excelled at set-pieces for Arsenal.

Koeman concludes with a critical look at football in the English competition and its influence on the World Cup: "The obsession with standard situations is increasing throughout the competition. We will soon see this again in the international tournament."

Koeman's statements are remarkable and add extra weight to the Dutch preparation for the 2026 World Cup.