Handballs: the concept of “voluntariness” will come back into fashion in Serie A. An in-depth article published on the inside pages of the magazine focuses on this aspect. Sports Courier – Stadium distributed this morning at newsstands.
From the concept of punishability introduced a few seasons ago, next season we will return to that of voluntariness. The legislators wanted to equate this situation to that of the Dogsowhere the red for the denial of an obvious goal has been downgraded, based mainly on the genuine attempt to play the ball, to a yellow and possibly a simple penalty. The same will happen with handballs. An obvious handball in the penalty area will not lead to a red, while outside the area it will always be red.
Red will be in case of voluntary intervention. The decisive factor will be the movement of the arm towards the ball. Taking the concept to the extreme, anyone who, not being a goalkeeper, voluntarily opposes a tackle will be punished with a red card. The other novelty, deriving from rugby, will be the introduction of the “concussion”, or the change (in football it would be the sixth) in the case of head trauma. Finally, the procedure for encroachment (the invasion) on penalty kicks will also change: it will be punished only if it “impacts” the outcome of the shot”. All these changes to the regulation will be explained by Rocchi and Pinzani, coordinator with the clubs, to the Serie A and Serie B clubs in the gathering, scheduled from 4 to 9 August, in Cascia.