Per the letter of the law, that's a handball, but for an opponent to strike it directly to your hand at such extrememly close distance and that somehow penalize the offensive players fault is ludicrious.
The EPL needs some stringent clarification to their rules book. And how far back into build-ups does VAR re-adjudicate? I remember for Liverpool a VVD possible handball, but it wasn't even looked at for VAR because it was 3+ touches away from the goal, but clearly allowed for VVD to retain possession. It is the inconsistency of what is clear and obvious that seems to be a headache to me
They said it was inconclusive.
it's managed very well in the BuLi and MLS.
If it isn't a certain distance off, it isn't clear and obvious. I think there's still too much human interaction with setting the lines to be black and white. It also doesn't seem to be in the spirit of the game to me. And I think it should only look at the feet.
A diving header with the person's entire torso offsides wouldn't be overturned?
IMO, they just need to let the linesmen call the game. If they are flagged for offsides then so be it. On the other hand, if it is a goal they can review for any clear and obvious errors. In other words, VAR should account for human error and just letting the game be played. But if there's something obvious (by a defined amount like 6-10 inches), then that can be overturned.
I want to see that happen. The skill involved must be off the charts for both the goal scorer and the assist maker. To be able to dive such that half of your torso is offside when the ball is struck and remain in the air long enough to head the ball in would be an insane feat of athleticism. And to be able to deliver a ball to another player's head who is already diving when you're kicking the ball? Tremendous!
Joking aside, I didn't think it all the way through. That was just my immediate reaction to seeing too many armpits, toenails, and scrotums having lines drawn on them.
Arlo White's tweet (linked in this thread) is probably the closest to what I'm thinking. Have a broad line from the second to last defender. If any part of an offensive player that can score a goal is past the line, then it is offside. Not sure what would be a good length of that line to take into account the spirit of the law/human error/clear and obvious - 6"? 8"?
Almost every free kick around the box involves players jockeying for position leaning forward for a header.
Telecasters should start drawing lines from scrotums. Maybe that will force a rule change! haha
Make it fully software-driven with no human interaction with the decision and thus making it very quickly and without question, or make it such that unless you can glance at it - without lines - and clearly show the positioning is offside, wave it off and move on. If it so close to level you can barely tell, then don't call it.
I don't want to change the 'any part of the body you can score with' aspect, though.
Not sure how realistic the former is, but the latter - clear and obvious, makes sense to me. Arlo white had a similar suggestion
Software driven being the ideal. Not sure if/when cameras and software will be at that point in every stadium, though.