Chelsea Pursue Set-Piece Coach Austin MacPhee from Aston Villa
Chelsea have opened talks to bring in Aston Villa’s renowned set-piece coach Austin MacPhee, targeting one of the most influential backroom figures in the Premier League as Xabi Alonso quietly rebuilds his support team at Cobham.
They are not alone in the chase. Other Premier League clubs and sides from the Saudi Pro League are also in the hunt, turning MacPhee’s future into one of the more intriguing staff moves of the summer.
The architect behind Villa’s dead-ball edge
MacPhee, 46, has been a key pillar of Aston Villa’s rise under Unai Emery. His work at Villa Park has been ruthless, detailed and, crucially, measurable.
During the 2023-24 season, Villa scored more goals from set-pieces than any other team across Europe’s top five leagues. That is not a quirk of one campaign. They backed it up the following year by again sitting among the continent’s top performers from dead-ball situations and finishing joint-top with Arsenal for set-piece goals in the Premier League last season.
Those numbers explain the scramble for his signature. They also explain why Villa will not simply wave him out of the door.
MacPhee’s contract includes a specific release clause, meaning any club wanting to prise him away must pay compensation. For a coach who does not kick a ball, his value is being treated very much like that of a player.
Dual roles and a growing reputation
The Scottish coach has built his reputation on juggling elite jobs. For the past five years he has combined his work at Villa with a set-piece role for the Portugal national team, operating under Roberto Martinez until the manager’s resignation after the World Cup.
That dual responsibility has given MacPhee a broader canvas: club routines honed over months, international schemes sharpened in the pressure of tournament football. It is the kind of experience that appeals to clubs who want marginal gains on the biggest stages.
At Villa, his influence has coincided with tangible success. Emery’s side have not only become one of the Premier League’s most dangerous outfits from dead balls, they have also converted that threat into silverware and status — winning the Europa Conference League and securing Champions League qualification.
MacPhee is now expected to be one of several staff members to depart Villa Park this summer, a natural consequence of success that has put both players and coaches in the shop window.
Alonso’s puzzle at Chelsea
For Chelsea, the timing is deliberate. Xabi Alonso has space in his backroom team, and set-pieces are a clear area he wants to sharpen.
Previous set-piece specialist Bernardo Cueva, recruited from Brentford in 2024 for £750,000, is stepping away from a touchline role and moving into a more behind-the-scenes position. That shift creates a vacancy on the front line of Alonso’s staff, and Chelsea are looking at MacPhee as a ready-made, proven upgrade in a phase of the game that often decides tight matches.
Chelsea’s hierarchy have already shown this summer that they are prepared to invest heavily in fine margins. The club completed a £117m deal for Morgan Rogers from Aston Villa this week, with Alejandro Garnacho heading the other way on an initial loan that is expected to become permanent via an option to buy.
The potential arrival of MacPhee would extend that Villa-Chelsea corridor from the pitch to the technical area.
A battle for details
This is what modern elite football looks like: battles for analysts, specialists and set-piece savants as intense as those for forwards and playmakers.
Villa, armed with a release clause and proud of the edge they have carved out, will not want to lose the architect of their dead-ball dominance. Chelsea, chasing any advantage to accelerate Alonso’s project, see an opportunity to import a ready-made weapon.
Saudi Pro League clubs and domestic rivals are circling too, attracted by the same cold numbers that have defined MacPhee’s work.
In a market obsessed with goals, the question now is simple: who is willing to pay for the man who has been scripting so many of them from the training ground?
