Five substitutions and an offside adjustment. A summary of the new Premier League rules

The best football league in the world starts this weekend. We’ve become used to the Premier League changing the rules slightly every season, and this year will be no exception. So what changes will the new season bring?

More substitution options

Clubs will have 2 more substitutions from the new season. Instead of three players, clubs will be able to replace five.

This trend started after the enforced coronavirus break, it even worked in the Premier League, but in the end England decided to go back to three substitutions, which was quite a unique decision in Europe.

In the end, the Premier League decided to align with the vast majority of European leagues looking to give players a bit of a break in their busy schedules.

It should be added that this change plays into the hands of the bigger teams, which have busier benches.

More difficult postponement of matches

Postponing matches in the Premier League will now be even more difficult than it was before. This is logical given that the schedule will be even busier due to the winter break for the World Cup in Qatar.

The official Premier League statement reads as follows:

“Match postponements will only be granted by the Premier League management where player unavailability is wholly exceptional. A club requesting a postponement must first take all possible steps to avoid any postponement.”

Modification of the offside rule

The Premier League will also make a slight adjustment to the offside rule. Now, an offside player will only return to play when any player of the other team touches the ball.

This change should eliminate situations such as Rodri’s goal in the 2020/21 season against Aston Villa. That would no longer be valid under the new rules.

Source: Premier League