Where have all the set-piece goals gone? One of the talking points of a thrilling UEFA EURO 2008™ is the absence so far of goals scored from direct free-kicks.

Just one goal
Astonishing though it seems, there has been just one goal scored from a direct free-kick at this tournament – and even Daniele De Rossi's strike against France was deflected. The issue has been occupying the thoughts of UEFA technical director Andy Roxburgh and his team of coaches and technicians who are analysing UEFA EURO 2008™ for its tactical and technical trends.

Quite surprising
"People say how set plays can be decisive, but only one goal here so far out of 68 goals has been from a direct free-kick. This is quite surprising," says Roxburgh. "Michael Ballack's goal [against Austria] is classed as an indirect free-kick, because the ball was rolled sideways, then it was stopped and then he hit it. So it's not technically a direct free-kick. And overall we see less then 25 per cent of the goals coming from set plays – there is a similar situation in the UEFA Champions League."

Specialists not clicking
Roxburgh muses on how this state of affairs has come about. "It could be that the defensive organisation has improved, and I think teams are trying desperately to avoid giving away free-kicks in dangerous situations – or maybe the specialists haven't quite got it right. And today, because of the 'spying' that goes on, very few teams will play clever free-kicks – they don't try and do anything particularly imaginative," he concludes. Will tomorrow night's semi-finals see someone reverse this fascinating UEFA EURO 2008™ trend?