Whether it be the success England had with it at the World Cup in Russia or the growing depth of scouting and analytics set-pieces are trendy again.
The act of aimlessly swinging a corner or attacking free-kick "in the mixer" in the vain hope of finding a teammate's head is, thankfully, becoming less apparent as clubs get wise to their use and efficiency in scoring goals.
In the Championship this season there have been 284 goals scored directly via set-pieces, not including penalties, representing 23.7% of the total goals scored by all 24 teams.
That's only 41 set-piece goals fewer than in the entire 2017/18 campaign but the ratio - 23% - remains roughly the same. In the 2016/17 season, a considerable 368 goals were scored via that source.
Returning to this season, two teams are out in front in terms of their potency from dead-ball situations and it's of relevance to Bristol City as they're two of their direct rivals for the play-off places.
Aston Villa have found the target 22 times from set-pieces and Preston North End 17, with the two sides being the form teams in the Championship beyond the top two of Norwich City and Sheffield United.
City, in case you were wondering, are among a clutch of teams below the leading group on 13, representing 28.8% of their total goals - almost exactly the same ratio as 2017/18 when they scored 19 of 67 from corners or free-kicks.
It's an aspect of the game Lee Johnson has worked meticulous on having brought in experts for consultation on how the Robins can improve their set-piece prowess.
It's been vital in maintaining their play-off challenge and, without it, City would be considerably lower down the table.
Their last two goals have been either directly from a corner, Famara Diedhiou turning in Adam Webster's header or in the next passage of play, as a short corner was worked back to Niclas Eliasson who whipped in a cross for the defender to score against Ipswich.
That proficiency is the third-highest in the Championship, behind only Preston and Aston Villa, but further proof that if City could just add that little extra threat in open play, they could rejoin the elite teams in the division.
