“We are not going to take a decision on something like this in 10 days.”
FIFA’s head of global development Arsene Wenger wants to see a change in the offside law which could end a run of contentious decisions in the game since the introduction of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), but no decision is imminent.
Wenger, who was manager of Premier League club Arsenal for 22 years, wants a player to be deemed onside if any part of their body which can legitimately score a goal is level or behind the last defender.
It will flip the current rule which states the player is in an offside position if any part of their body they can score with is beyond the line of the last defender.
However, the International Football Association Board (IFAB), football’s lawmaking body, does not have any concrete proposal for a law change on the agenda for their 29 February, Annual General Meeting.
IFAB’s general secretary Lukas Brud told the media that any discussion of changes would be a general one and ruled out an immediate change.
“This particular proposal is not on the agenda for the AGM,” said Brud, adding that any changes to the laws need to go through a considerable consultation process and trials before any concrete change is considered.
“We are not going to take a decision on something like this in 10 days.”
IFAB may discuss ideas for changing the offside laws at the meeting, in general terms, but no decision on a concrete proposal will be made, Brud added.
The use of video review has been a source of constant criticism since its recent introduction, including concern about the time to take decisions and the precision with which offsides are judged.
Reuters
