How much is standard coach Nico Jover worth to Arsenal?

Maybe he’ll find out soon. Arsenal are in the final stages of extending the contract of Mikel Arteta’s backroom team. Jover and his colleagues, along with the manager, are expected to receive extensions until 2027 as well as a significant salary increase. Based on this 2-0 win over Manchester United, it will be richly deserved.

Arsenal’s two goals on Wednesday mean they have now scored 22 goals from corners since the start of last season – more than any other Premier League team in that period. Ten of these goals opened the scoring. Often it is set pieces that allow Arsenal to open the game.

How do you begin to quantify Jover’s contribution? If a player had directly contributed to that many crucial goals, what would his market value be? Even with a significant salary increase, Jover could be considered cheap at this price.

When Arsenal signed Petr Cech from Chelsea in 2015, John Terry said the goalkeeper would give them “12 to 15 points a season”. How many points could Jover win?

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Nicolas Jover is a master of deception and the man behind Arsenal’s set-piece success

Of course, the success in standard situations is not just due to one man. It was Arteta who took Jover to Manchester City and then Arsenal, giving him the platform on which to showcase his abilities and the confidence needed to carry out his job.

The players also had to buy in. Practicing set pieces is not always at the top of every footballer’s wish list. Arsenal run their drills several times a week – Jover has had to find ways to ensure the players stay engaged and invested. This work becomes easier when the work produces such tangible results.

But it’s not just Jover’s coordination of Arsenal’s movements in the penalty area that gives them such a menacing presence at set pieces, but also the quality of execution.

Against United, Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka swung corner after corner – 13 in total – right in front of the beleaguered Andre Onana.

Reflecting on his performance, Rice told Arsenal’s official website: “There were a few that were really good tonight. Every time I wanted to take the corner, I knew it would be a good ball. In my head I was just thinking about putting it in the same spot and with repetition you end up scoring goals.”

Arsenal have also recruited for this. It’s no coincidence that the squad is full of giants like Gabriel, William Saliba, Kai Havertz and Mikel Merino. The fact that Arsenal can allow the big figure of Rice to take corners or alternatively linger on the edge of the box tells you something about the wealth of aerial strength at their disposal.

They needed those game-winning dead balls against United. Although the pre-match atmosphere was crackling in anticipation of the men’s 500th competitive match at the Emirates Stadium, the first half was largely disappointing. The two chances Arsenal actually had – missed by Thomas Partey and Gabriel Martinelli – came from corners, of course.

Arteta admitted he “tweaked a few things” in the second half and the improvement was obvious. When the breakthrough came, it was Jurrien Timber who rose at the near post and fired the ball into the net, with references to Steve Bould in George Graham’s heyday.

Jurrien Timber gives Arsenal the lead (Julian Finney/Getty Images)

The goal capped an excellent performance from the Dutch defender, who shone at right-back before switching to the left to deny substitute Amad. Timber has been close to breaking his Arsenal duck in recent weeks. He had a goal disallowed against Nottingham Forest and Lukasz Fabianski made a brilliant save against West Ham United – both from set pieces. This time Onana couldn’t do anything.

Then it was Saliba’s turn. In the absence of his defensive partner Gabriel, the Frenchman put in an excellent performance. Without his older defensive partner, he seemed to take on a leadership role. The goal was just a reward for his performance – even if the way the ball bounced off him was accidental.

Arsenal’s dead-ball prowess is evident, but Arteta stressed there is more to their game. “Last year we scored the most goals in the history of this football club,” he said. “Not just because of set pieces, but because of a lot of things we have. We want to create individual and magical moments. Many players can create their own goals. We can score goals from short and long counterattacks, slow build-up phases, restarts and opportunities to open up the opponent. Let’s maximize every single phase of the game, keep working and keep improving.”

However, Jover knows he is valued at Arsenal – especially Arteta. After the manager signed his contract in September, the club began negotiating contract extensions with his managers. The resignation of sporting director Edu has not derailed these talks – the baton has been taken up by managing director Richard Garlick and the club is now confident of being able to conclude deals with players such as Jover, Carlos Cuesta, Miguel Molina and Albert Stuivenberg.

The win puts Arsenal seven points behind leaders Liverpool. Perhaps more importantly, it continues the positive momentum that has been building since the team returned from international duty.

When it comes to set pieces, Arsenal will continue to innovate. To stay one step ahead of opposing analysts, Jover makes optimizations throughout the season – but always based on the same basic principles.

These do not need to be changed. As Wednesday showed, they are working excellently.

(Top Photos: Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)