Up to fifteen minutes of setup and fewer penalty kicks. This is the trend in Spanish La Liga this year

Will there finally be clarity in contentious situations? The Spanish Arbitration Commission has introduced new rules for this season. The main topics of the recent conference were offside interpellations, effective playing time and penalty kicks. New developments in the operation of the VAR system were also presented.

“In the world of football there are always situations that change the interpellation,” said Medina Cantalejo, head of Spanish referees. That led to a new definition of offside after the controversy surrounding Kylian Mbappé’s goal against Spain in the Nations League.

The new interpellation is that if a defender hits the ball in an unexpected or instinctive situation and the ball then goes to the striker, an offside will be whistled. If the defender touches the ball with intent (consciously), i.e. if he has to stretch his leg to reach the ball, the attacking player will also be offside.

On the other hand, if the defender touches the ball after a game or technical error and the ball goes the wrong way, then the attacker is not offside. Distance, speed, the trajectory of the ball or whether the ball rolls down the field or is in the air will be elements for the previous interpellation. Precisely to be able to analyze whether the actions of the defenders are intentional or not.

Effective playing time

Medina Cantalejo stated that referees have been asked to talk less to players in an effort to combat wasted time and increase effective playing time. Nevertheless, the chairman of the referees’ committee assured that last season the effective time was increased by 32%.

There was also an emphasis on the rule that the goalkeeper can hold the ball in his hands for a maximum of six seconds. If this creates a new way to waste time, the referees’ committee will stop it immediately. The same will be the case for injured players in the last minutes of the game, who will be primarily treated off the field.

One of the main controversies from last season was the issue of extending the normal playing time. As players kept wasting time, referees kept adding more and more minutes. “This trend will continue. This season, referees can set up to 15 minutes, ” Medina Cantalejo warned.

VAR, penalties, handball

Regarding the VAR system. It will be able to control every situation with a possible penalty, especially when there is a clash of players. This is to prevent players from simulating and looking for an advantage when overreacting. Special assistants for the VAR system will be available at most of the first and second league matches in Spain to standardise and speed up decisions.

According to the referees’ commission, the number of standard situations is to be reduced. In addition, referees are to try not to take penalty kicks in the often “grey areas ” when playing with their hands in the penalty area. Hand play will not be whistled if: 1) the hand is in its natural position, 2) a player plays the ball and accidentally hits his hand, 3) a defending player plays the ball with his hand and it jumps in the net, 4) a player is lying on the pitch.

A hand play will be called if: 1) an arm that is resting on the court intentionally touches the ball, 2) an arm in an awkward position plays the ball 3) the arm extends the contour of the body. In addition, it is emphasized that arm movements that do not interfere with the normal progression of the action will not be whistled to avoid interrupting play.

Regarding penalty kicks. It has been decided that no penalty kick will be whistled after minor contact. In order for the referees to order a “ten” to be played, the contact must be with some force and obvious.

Source: AS