The penalty by Militao's hand at Real Madrid-Sevilla has once again stirred up a controversy that never ends. The one with the rule of the hands. Day after day there is a team that cries out against this regulation, which season after season some of its criteria changes. What makes understanding difficult and creates confusion in the footballers and the fans. So much so that from Madrid it is considered an error that Militao's hand was thrown, but from the refereeing environment it is considered a success based on the current regulations. Since the great change in the rules was made in 2019, every season has been modifying some section and adding clarifications to the controversies that have arisen. This has caused the number of penalties per hand to increase. Last season 149 maximum penalties were issued and 48 were per hand; This season, of the 134 whistles, 42 are for this reason (24 at the request of the VAR) and there are still 31 games to play.
The great change in the Football Rules was approved in spring 2019 for the 2019-20 season, but in Spain several of the criteria for signaling penalties per hand were already applied during the 2018-19 campaign. The first in which the VAR was established and the first with Velasco Carballo at the head of the Spanish Referees Committee. In 2019 it was when the new range of premises to establish when it should be sanctioned (if the hand is located above or at the height of the shoulder, separated from the body, a goal is scored, if it regains possession …). Something that was a great revolution and brought a lot of criticism and confusion.
Yet without football players getting used to the new criteria, the IFAB approved a new variation: First, it was established which part of the arm is considered a hand and which shoulder. “The limit of the arm is established at the lower point of the armpit“, dictated the circular of the International Board in 2020. That is to say, every ball that hit the arm above the armpit was no longer considered an offense. The second change came for the forwards. In the previous season everything A goal or obvious chance was annulled if there was a previous hand of the attacking team, something that changed to limit it more: “In the event that the attacker touches the ball with his hand in a fortuitous way, it will only entail a sanction if the play ends« immediately »in a goal or on a clear occasion of scoring in favor of the attacker or his team”. That is, the “immediate” tag was added. It was no longer worth that several passes were given nor did the entire action have to be reviewed from the VAR to decide.
A new change in sight: opportunity to end complaints
But the changes did not stop there and for the next season there will be even more annotations and clarifications. Regarding the hands in attack, the margin is still reduced to indicate this: “The action in which the ball is accidentally touched with the hand or arm and, immediately afterwards, a teammate scores is no longer considered an infringement by hand. goal or have an opportunity to do so. ” That is, in three seasons it has gone from any hand in the offensive phase (whether the scorer or a teammate was the offender) to end with a disallowed goal to that in the next campaign it is only disallowed if it is the scorer who kicks it just before to mark.
But there is another and that will be very important and decisive. This is a clarification given the concern that exists in the International Board for the designated hand penalties. “It will be considered that the player has achieved that his body occupies more space in an unnatural way when the position of his hand or arm is not a consequence of the movement of his body in that specific action or cannot be justified by said movement. By placing the hand or arm in this position, the player risks the ball hitting that part of his body and this constitutes an infringement “, says the latest IFAB circular. What does this mean? Well, for example, in A jump will be seen if the position of the arm is natural with respect to the movement it is doing. It is normal for the arms to be somewhat separated from the body when jumping, to gain momentum, but not so much when you are on the ground. Although this clarification, as consulted by AS, will not mean in principle a revolution when it comes to whistling hands. It will be one more consideration when deciding whether it is punishable or not. And hands like Militao's yesterday would continue to be sanctioned … But other members of the refereeing community see this new clarification as an opportunity to redirect a law that the players consider unfair in recent seasons and that Velasco could take advantage of …
When is it considered hand?
-Touch the ball with your hand voluntarily
-Score a goal with your hand, even accidentally
Goal is scored / scoring chance is generated immediately after the ball touches the scorer's hand / arm or a teammate, even accidentally
-If the arm is in an unnatural way, making the body occupy more space. (It will also be considered an offense if the ball bounced off his own body or from a rival)
-If the hand / arm is located at or above the arm. (It will not be considered a hand if it bounces off his body and he intended to play the ball. If it bounces after trying to clear or stop the ball, if it is considered an infraction)
When do you not blow a hand?
-If it comes directly from the head or body (including the foot) of the player himself, the footballer intentionally plays the ball and hits his own arm / hand.
-If it comes directly from the head or body (including the foot) of another player, but the ball unexpectedly rebounds, as long as it is not in an unnatural position occupying a space.
-If the hand or arm are close to the body and are not in an unnatural position with which to occupy more space.
-If the player falls and the hand or arm is between the body and the point of support on the ground, but not away from the body to the side or vertically