New Leicester City boss Steve Cooper eyeing Norwich City raid | OneFootball

The new Foxes boss is said to have made the Canaries specialist a target after taking the job at the King Power Stadium

New Leicester City boss Steve Cooper is said to be interested in bringing Norwich City set-piece coach Andrew Hughes to the club, according to journalist Tom Collomosse.

Cooper joined the Foxes this week having been out of work since his sacking by Nottingham Forest in December 2023, and replaces the outgoing Enzo Maresca, who recently made the move to Chelsea.

The former Swansea City boss has wasted no time in organising his desires in terms of backroom and staff, with the ex-Huddersfield Town man said to be top of the list.

Premier League side Brentford are also reported to be tracking the progress of the dead-ball specialist, who has helped the Canaries gain plenty of success from such situations since his arrival at Carrow Road.

Steve Cooper eyes up move for Norwich City set-piece coach Andrew Hughes after Leicester City appointment

Since joining David Wagner as part of the backroom staff at Norwich City, Hughes has helped the Canaries become one of the most prolific sides from set-piece situations in recent times.

According to Opta, only two sides scored more goals than City’s 18 from dead-ball situations in the previous Championship campaign, with East Anglian rivals Ipswich Town (19) and Cardiff City (21) the only two profiting more from such scenarios.

It was a regular occurrence to see the the Canaries wheeling away in celebration after a free-kick or corner situation, with Hughes’ plans coming to fruition time and time again.

With that in mind, it is no surprise to see the Foxes express an interest in the 46-year-old, who City player Sam McCallum heaped praise on last season after such a strong set-piece showing.

After two goals from corners earned them a 2-1 victory over Plymouth Argyle, McCallum said: "We spend quite a lot of time on it. Hughesy (Andrew Hughes) is the main guy, so he gets all the credit for it, but we still have to put it in action on the pitch.

"We have to keep practising. With the games coming thick and fast, we have to work on them on and off the pitch. We have to change it up because teams watch us and know that we need to change it up. I think Hughesy could be running out of ideas towards the end of the season.”

Andrew Hughes can help Leicester City improve set-piece proficiency in Premier League

Despite finishing as the second-highest scorers in the Championship last year on the way to securing the title, Leicester’s effectiveness from set-pieces was decidedly lacking in the previous campaign.

Only eleven of their 89 league goals came from a dead ball situation, leaving them in the bottom third of teams in the second tier in 23/24, and leaves plenty of room for improvement as they head into the Premier League.

New boss Cooper is already looking to improve this stat heading into the top flight, and will have learned from his record from set-pieces during his time with Nottingham Forest how important they can be.

With ten of his side’s 38 goals coming from a set-piece in the 22/23 top flight season, such situations can prove vital in keeping a top flight side in the league come the end of the season, and Hughes could be the man to make the difference in the Foxes’ upcoming campaign.