World Cup referees ‘to stop’ bench huddles during goalkeeper injuries | OneFootball

World Cup referees will clamp down on bench huddles during goalkeeper injury stoppages this summer. The change follows a season in which Leeds United repeatedly railed against so-called timeouts.

According to the BBC, FIFA referees’ chief Pierluigi Collina said officials will act proactively and prevent teams heading to the benches while a goalkeeper receives treatment, after briefing coaches from all 48 teams.

The first flashpoint came in November when Manchester City’s Gianluigi Donnarumma infuriated Daniel Farke’s side, and similar episodes have followed.

In April’s FA Cup semi-final at Wembley, Chelsea’s Robert Sanchez went down after a reminder from Enzo Fernandez. Assistant Calum McFarlane gathered the players, and Ethan Ampadu briefly tried to break up the huddle.

Premier League officials have been unable to stop such tactics, since play must halt for an injured goalkeeper and the keeper does not have to leave the pitch. That looks unlikely to change imminently, but at the World Cup players will be kept away from the technical area during stoppages.

There are questions over how effective this will be, with scheduled water breaks already taking players to the dugouts. The Premier League has yet to announce anything similar, though reports across the season indicate the issue is under review.

Source: yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk