Topic: Liverpool are using Google Deepmind to work on corner positioning

[Sheer Magnetism]

Interesting article in the FT on how we're using AI to organise tactics on corners now:

Google DeepMind unveils AI football tactics coach honed with Liverpool

Google DeepMind has developed a prototype artificial intelligence football tactician in collaboration with Premier League club Liverpool, in the latest push to use the technology to master the ebb and flow of big-money sports.

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The DeepMind project is the product of three years of work with Liverpool on deploying AI, including in areas such as penalty kicks and predicting movements of players.

DeepMind’s latest model uses geometric deep learning on a data set comprising 7,176 corner kicks from the English Premier League between 2020 and 2023. Corner kicks represent a significant opportunity for attacking teams: along with other so-called set pieces, such as free kicks, they account for about 30 per cent of all goals.

TacticAI analysed outcomes from corner kicks with various configurations of players, using criteria such as who received the ball and whether they were able to shoot. It then suggested positional improvements and assessed their plausibility and usefulness in a blind case study by five experts at Liverpool: three data scientists, one video analyst and one coaching assistant.

The experts could not distinguish the AI-generated scenarios from actual match situations, the researchers said, favouring the TacticAI advice 90 per cent of the time over existing strategies. This showed the tool “readily provides useful, realistic and accurate” suggestions, the paper said.

Liverpool did not respond to a request for comment on whether it had implemented any of TacticAI’s suggested changes, as manager Jürgen Klopp strives to end his tenure on a high note with trophies this May.

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Projects such as TacticAI give clues as to how AI in football might evolve, said Sudarshan Gopaladesikan, director of football intelligence at Italian top division team Atalanta.

“This is the way that AI can help us approach football in a chunked or categorical way — as opposed to thinking it’s just this one big continuous flow and we don’t know what’s going on,” he said.

[Schmarn]

That's interesting as our corners have been noticeably more toothless in recent months. Could well be because Trent is out and his delivery is better than Robbo's but we had a dozen corners against City and quite a few against Man U and most were comfortably headed clear.

[Danny Boy]

Didn't work in defending one against City!!!

[Draex]

That's interesting as our corners have been noticeably more toothless in recent months. Could well be because Trent is out and his delivery is better than Robbo's but we had a dozen corners against City and quite a few against Man U and most were comfortably headed clear.

What I don't get is why Macca isn't taking them, his delivery has been excellent. Robbo has always been hit and miss.

[Draex]

Didn't work in defending one against City!!!

AI can't predict De Bruyne seeing a player and delivering that ball! Likewise the Trent to Origi one!

[Coolie High]

What do Arsenal use?

[Peabee]

What do Arsenal use?

Deepfakes.

[itihasas]

The description reads like finding out what position is efficient to take a shot from and who should shoot. These techniques have surely been around for decades. Presumably they have more data to work of but I'm a bit confused as to why it is "AI"

[rossipersempre]

***NERD ALERT...NERD ALERT...*** 

[Stevo]

What do Arsenal use?

Bukayo Saka

[Peabee]

Corners are just one part of the project. The prototype has been trained on patterns of play, penalty kicks, free kicks and player movements etc. (And conceding a goal on a corner kick isn't some gotcha that it doesn't work). We also don't know if Klopp is using TacticsAI in his coaching. I'd imagine Edwards will be keen to have it used/tested.

[Eeyore]

What do Arsenal use?

NFL play books.

[Fromola]

That's interesting as our corners have been noticeably more toothless in recent months. Could well be because Trent is out and his delivery is better than Robbo's but we had a dozen corners against City and quite a few against Man U and most were comfortably headed clear.

We're too reliant on Virg getting on the end of one. We need to be more of a threat aerially. Arsenal have really boosted their threat from corners and set plays.

Doesn't help that VAR can't wait to jump in with us if we do score

[Peabee]

The co-founder and CEO of DeepMind, Demis, is a Liverpool fan btw. 

[Mister Flip Flop]

Could they create an AI Jurgen Klopp for us next season that would be super thanks. 

[Peabee]

Could they create an AI Jurgen Klopp for us next season that would be super thanks. 

A Klopp/Shankly/Paisley/Dalglish hybrid is being worked on. 

[BigCDump]

Bukayo Saka

Deep Hub. Bukake Compilations.

[Peabee]

Deep Hub. Bukake Compilations.

Whoops. This isn't google search mate.

[BigCDump]

Whoops. This isn't google search mate.

Slip of the fingers. 

[Peabee]

Slip of the fingers. 

 

[Draex]

Slip of the fingers. 

That's what they said..
 

[JasonF]

Slip of the fingers. 

Whoops. This isn't Greggs mate.

[John C]

This might be flippant, out of context or in the wrong place but please can we use either basic or superior intelligence on throw-ins?

FML we are shite at them, so inoffensive and negative with zero creativity.

As you were 

[Peabee]

This might be flippant, out of context or in the wrong place but please can we use either basic or superior intelligence on throw-ins?

FML we are shite at them, so inoffensive and negative with zero creativity.

As you were 

Close your eyes and hope for the best may be a better option. 

[redbyrdz]

Does not seem to have helped so far. Maybe they trained the model on all corner kicks, and not just successful ones...

[Samie]

Is Robbo using pornhub? The man struggles to clear the first defend pretty much all the time.

[itihasas]

This might be flippant, out of context or in the wrong place but please can we use either basic or superior intelligence on throw-ins?

FML we are shite at them, so inoffensive and negative with zero creativity.

As you were 

Tony Pulis better than any algorithm out there

[PaulF]

This might be flippant, out of context or in the wrong place but please can we use either basic or superior intelligence on throw-ins?

FML we are shite at them, so inoffensive and negative with zero creativity.

As you were 

Maybe we should get that throw in coach back

[Draex]

Maybe we should get that throw in coach back

Chelsea just poached Brentford’s set piece specialist, big business now..

[classycarra]

[RainbowFlick]

feel like it shouldn't take AI to suggest Robbo should take less corners

[classycarra]

This might be flippant, out of context or in the wrong place but please can we use either basic or superior intelligence on throw-ins?

FML we are shite at them, so inoffensive and negative with zero creativity.

As you were 

glad it's not just me - so fed up of robbo bouncing it slowly to the stomach of someone under pressure, on the side of their wrong foot. it's like he's constantly experimenting to find the worst height and side to throw it

that throw in coach is truly a conman he said robbo and trent were the best throw in takers in the world

[Robinred]

Corners, free kicks, throw ins. All dead ball situations are being subject to scrutiny and analysis by football boffins.

Who’d have thought only a few seasons back, that Arsenal would be amongst the clubs benefitting most from corner routines (mostly involving fouling the ‘keeper and blocking key markers)? We’ve got to the stage when ‘taking one for the team’ - the old ‘professional foul’, has been expanded to so many other areas of strategic coaching. Throw ins at L.F.C is an interesting one; what happened to that specialist coach?

[thaddeus]

It doesn't seem like anything that is going to lead innovation.  It would surely treat corners like that delivered by De Bruyne as outliers, which is what they are as is the case with anything novel and innovative.  It's good that the club are investigating it though as any advantage it could deliver would be invaluable, just so long as we don't become too dependent on it.

We're always amongst the higher clubs when it comes to goals from corners but it often feels like it's down to sheer weight of corners won.  This season we've had 50% more corners than Everton, for example.

Arsenal have been really good with short corners this season but I think that's predominantly because they use Odegaard as the short-corner receiver.  They're effectively creating lots of open play moments with a full penalty area and their best passer/most creative player on the ball.

[Elzar]

It doesn't seem like anything that is going to lead innovation.  It would surely treat corners like that delivered by De Bruyne as outliers, which is what they are as is the case with anything novel and innovative.  It's good that the club are investigating it though as any advantage it could deliver would be invaluable, just so long as we don't become too dependent on it.

We're always amongst the higher clubs when it comes to goals from corners but it often feels like it's down to sheer weight of corners won.  This season we've had 50% more corners than Everton, for example.

Arsenal have been really good with short corners this season but I think that's predominantly because they use Odegaard as the short-corner receiver.  They're effectively creating lots of open play moments with a full penalty area and their best passer/most creative player on the ball.

Arsenal constantly have new tactics at corners and obviously work really hard on them when they feel there is a weakness in opposition. They look dangerous so often because they are structured and have a plan, rather than just getting the big fellas up and putting a ball in.

At the rate we need, every single advantage should be taken. The same was said about the throw in coach, and if this is going to improve us then great. Matip and Konate need to learn to head the ball better when attacking though!

[kesey]

Most of our corners are outswingers 59% I think with 1.6% of our players being in the six yard area and Virg connecting with something like 29% of them in the penalty area . I seen that in me Ma's today on some channel she has.  Fascinating stuff

[meady1981]

Another Wasted Corner

[elbow]

I thought it meant Google Deep Dream, which lead me to look up some truly interesting YouTube videos.

The Bob Ross one would go some way to explain Kloppo’s departure.

[Vote For Pedro]

Would prefer they worked on Deepmind referees. The ones we have at the moment barely seem to have their own mind at all.