English football has seemingly been subject to a time jump, as the possession-based styles of the 2010s appear to have been ditched for the primitive age of football tactics.
Top teams in the Premier League are moving away from their slow build-up from the back as they realise the dangers it can bring due to the elite level of pressing in the top division and are now looking to utilise the art of the long ball and throw-ins to gain an advantage, with Arsenal being the prime example.
Phil Parkinson demonstrated his tactical nous in switching Wrexham’s formation; however, when he was deploying this approach in the National League and League Two he was not being labelled a genius unlike Mikel Arteta.
Now, the key man at delivering these long throws for the Red Dragons has revealed a niche rule that could have ended his career in the EFL.
Ben Tozer reveals the EFL bans towels to dry the ball
Ben Foster and Ben Tozer were discussing the art of the long throw-in that helped the pair win promotion from the National League before the defender continued the trick in League Two on Fozcast.
The pair have been admiring the top sides embracing this tactic in the Premier League title race, with Tozer dreaming of being able to unleash his secret weapon at this level, something he could not do in League Two for Wrexham under Phil Parkinson.
He said: “I love it. I literally love it.
“The fact they brought towels out and everything – like, the ego was just in the EFL; you’re not allowed towels.
“When we got promoted to the EFL they ditched towels, and I joked on talkSPORT. I said, ‘Oh well, they’re going to end my career then, aren’t they? They did obviously.”
Ben Foster believes long throw-ins are a goalkeeper’s worst nightmare
The former Wrexham shot-stopper will have faced countless long throws during his career, and from this he made it clear on the podcast that it is arguably the most difficult thing for a keeper who is not a giant to deal with.
He said: “It takes so much bravery, it does. It takes so much bravery, and you’ve got to be big as well.
“If you’re Nick Pope, Emmy Martinez, or GG Donnarumma, boom, you go for it, lads. But if you’re standing, if you’re a 6-foot-2-incher, you aren’t doing it. You aren’t doing it.
“If you’re one of those smaller goalies, mate, it’s the biggest nightmare in the world. “I promise you every time a player kicks out you think, ‘Mate, kick it out for a corner.’ I’ll take a corner every time.”