Jan 30 2023, 07:34 AM
An article on the offside event based on the laws of the game.
Images within the article in the link below.
What happened: In the 35th minute, Casemiro attempted to play a through-ball that Reading defender Thomas Holmes tried to intercept. The ball looped up and fell to Wout Weghorst, who headed across the face of goal for Rashford to score from close range.
After a VAR review, the goal was disallowed as Weghorst was in an offside position when Casemiro played the ball, and the striker was the next United player to become involved (watch here.)
VAR review: Even though Casemiro wasn't attempting to pass the ball to Weghorst, this is irrelevant in the offside law. The moment of the pass sets the offside position for all attacking players against the second-last opposition player, and it then depends how the ball comes to an attacker.
This drills right into the definition of a "deliberate play" in the offside law. We hear about this a lot in the modern game, even though it has existed within the laws for many years. The IFAB tried to clear up a lot of the mystery behind its interpretation in the summer, but it's application still remains incredibly subjective and very frustrating for many supporters.
Merely calling it a "deliberate play" is confusing in itself, because in almost all cases a player is trying to play the ball deliberately. The definition is far more complex and concerns, most importantly, a player having control over their actions and where the ball goes.
If a player is stretching, making a reflex action, or blocking a shot or cross, this shouldn't be seen as a "deliberate play." This isn't the same as a poor attempted clearance in which the player has the time and space to play the ball.
"Deliberate play" is when a player has control of the ball with the possibility of:
- passing the ball to a teammate
- gaining possession of the ball
- clearing the ball (e.g. by kicking or heading it).
The criteria to identify a "deliberate play":
- the ball travelled from distance and the player had a clear view of it
- the ball was not moving quickly
- the direction of the ball was not unexpected
- the player had time to coordinate their body movement, i.e., it was not a case of instinctive stretching or jumping, or a movement that achieved limited contact/control
- a ball moving on the ground is easier to play than a ball in the air
For Holmes, two of these clauses are important. Firstly, the ball didn't travel from distance, Casemiro was relatively close by when he played the ball. And most crucially, the Reading player didn't have time to coordinate his body movement. In attempting to cut out Casemiro's pass, Holmes made a blocking action with the outside of his right boot, causing the ball to loop up. It was not an attempted pass or a controlled clearance and absolutely fits the definition of a movement with limited contact/control.
Thomas Holmes makes a blocking action with the outside of his right boot, rather than a pass or clearance. ITV
There was no doubt Weghorst was in an offside position, so as soon as the VAR, Lee Mason, identifies the play wasn't deliberate, the only possible decision is to disallow the goal. That said, as this was a subjective call, referee Darren England really should have been sent to the monitor to confirm the decision, rather than it just being made by the VAR alone.
https://www.espn.com/soccer/english-fa-cup/...wed-for-offside
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