The International Football Association Board (IFAB) is reportedly considering a change in the highly-debated offside rule in the game next season that is at par with what legendary football manager Arsène Wenger suggested as he currently serves as the Chief of Global Football Development at the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA).
It’s worth trialling, but not in the premier League.
The big positive is that it removes some of the subjectivity with line measurements being done from images that don’t have the accuracy for line measurement. People saying, “a toenail is still offside” have been pissing me off for years. The images they’re using are not accurate enough for that. They can draw it a couple of pixels off on both players and change a decision. Those pixels could be misleading due to artifacts that we have visually seen in the clips they used, such as oblong balls.
When they have been drawing these lines I’ve always said that if they’re touching, they should stick with the on-field decision or give preference to the attacker.
If they change it to what is being proposed, that whole debate is in the bin, as there has to be actual space between the players. There is still room for VAR error on tight calls, but that room is far, far smaller.
On the other hand, a high press with offside trap is way harder to pull off unless you have quick CBs, that would be a big change to adapt to. I think it’s likely we see the defensive line dropping deeper when out of possession which could stifle play, and in some cases result in less goals.
It’s worth trialling, but not in the premier League.
The big positive is that it removes some of the subjectivity with line measurements being done from images that don’t have the accuracy for line measurement. People saying, “a toenail is still offside” have been pissing me off for years. The images they’re using are not accurate enough for that. They can draw it a couple of pixels off on both players and change a decision. Those pixels could be misleading due to artifacts that we have visually seen in the clips they used, such as oblong balls.
When they have been drawing these lines I’ve always said that if they’re touching, they should stick with the on-field decision or give preference to the attacker.
If they change it to what is being proposed, that whole debate is in the bin, as there has to be actual space between the players. There is still room for VAR error on tight calls, but that room is far, far smaller.
On the other hand, a high press with offside trap is way harder to pull off unless you have quick CBs, that would be a big change to adapt to. I think it’s likely we see the defensive line dropping deeper when out of possession which could stifle play, and in some cases result in less goals.
Currently being trialled in Italy, Netherlands and Sweden.
Shame I don’t watch any of those leagues 😅