GM football fans. It’s Wednesday, Dec. 31 - Fifa and Ifab will discuss changing the offside rules, the oldest professional footballer has signed a new contract, and everything else you need to know. Forwarded this email? Sign up here.
KEY RESULTS
Premier League: Arsenal 4-1 Aston Villa. Arsenal have scored 17 goals from corners in the league this year, with only Manchester United in 2012 having scored more in a calendar year (18). Manchester United 1-1 Wolves. Wolves earn a point at Old Trafford to end an 11-game losing streak, to pick up their third draw of the season. Chelsea 2-2 Bournemouth. Chelsea have now won just one of their past seven league games, while Bournemouth remain winless in 10. See upcoming Premier League fixtures here.
Results…
TOP TALKING POINTS
Offside Change Advances
FIFA and football’s lawmakers Ifab have formally opened discussions to change the offside rules. The new rule, dubbed ‘Wenger Law’, states that any part of the body capable of scoring that is level with the defender keeps the player onside. The law will be discussed at Ifab’s annual meeting on January 20, with reports (unverified) in Spain suggesting this development makes it highly probable the law will be implemented.
Fifa has reportedly already backed the proposal in principle. The governing body’s president Gianni Infantino also advocated for the change earlier this week at the World Sports Summit in Dubai, stating: "We are considering changing the offside rule, which has evolved over the years and currently requires the attacker to be behind the defender. Perhaps in the future, the attacker will have to be completely in front to be considered offside.”
The attacking-friendly proposal has been pioneered by former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, now Fifa’s Chief of Global Football Development. Positive trials in youth competitions in Italy and Sweden in 2023 have bolstered his case.
Set-Piece Coach Axed
Liverpool have parted ways with set-piece coach Aaron Briggs, with no team in Europe’s top five leagues having conceded more set-piece goals this season (excluding penalties). For now, the responsibility of set-piece coaching resides with the current coaching staff.
Liverpool have conceded 12 set-piece goals in the Premier League this campaign, most recently conceding from a corner in their 2-1 home win over bottom side Wolves. This puts them level with Bournemouth (12) and Nottingham Forest (12), while West Ham (11) and Bundesliga’s FC Koln (11) follow closely behind. The Reds have not conceded more than 12 set-piece goals in a full domestic season since 2015-16, but have already hit that mark at this season’s halfway point.
The teams in the Premier League with the best set-piece stats, at the time of writing, are league leaders Arsenal with a +9 set-piece goal difference, just ahead of Spurs (+7), Man Utd (+5) and Sunderland (+5).
Dive deeper into the stats behind Liverpool’s set-piece problems here.
World’s Oldest Player Continues
Kazuyoshi Miura, who will be 59 in February, has signed a loan deal until June with Japanese third division side Fukushima United. Officially the world’s oldest professional player, Miura is preparing for the 41st season of his career, more than double the length of Lionel Messi’s professional career to date.
Last season, Miura made seven appearances on loan for fourth-tier club Aletico Suzuka, but didn’t score across the 69 minutes he played. His move to Fukushima will be his fourth loan since 2022 from J2 League side Yokohama FC, where he signed in 2005 but has not played for them since 2020.
The former Japan striker scored 55 goals in 89 games in an international career that ended in 2000. He is affectionately called "King Kazu" after playing a central role in the rise of Japanese football's popularity following the launch of the J-League in 1993.
Watch Miura discuss his impressive boot collection here.
POLL
In general, do you think rules should favour attackers or defenders?
ON THE BALL
Europe
> Manchester City are close to agreeing terms with Bournemouth to sign Antoine Semenyo for £65m (More) | Crystal Palace have reached an agreement of around £35m with Tottenham Hotspur over a deal to sign Brennan Johnson, with the move now up to the winger (More)
> Former Juventus and Barcelona midfielder Miralem Pjanic has announced his retirement at 35 after playing 780 professional matches (More)
> Former Spain international Enrique Collar, the longest-serving captain in the history of Atletico Madrid, has died at the age of 91 (More)
Americas
> Pachuca defender Ayo Oke is joining Denver Summit FC for what would be an NWSL record transfer fee for an American player (More)
> Former Rangers manager Russell Martin is a contender for the Columbus Crew vacancy following the departure of Wilfried Nancy to Celtic (More)
Rest of the World
> Tanzania and Tunisia secured the last two available spots in the Africa Cup of Nations last 16; see which teams went through from the six groups (More)
ROUTERS’ VOICE
Yesterday’s Poll: Are you confident your team will get the signings they need this January?
🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ 👍 Yes (25%)
🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🙅♂️ Nope (72%)
🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other (3%)
Your punditry takes:
👍 J.P: “Liverpool just missed out on signing Marc Guehi in the Summer, I’m confident they get him this time. Palace don’t want to get anything for him when he can leave on a free after the season.”
🙅♂️ J.K: “No. As a Spurs supporter, the answer is always no — doesn't matter what the current needs are (which are many).”
🙅♂️ P: “I am a West Ham supporter, and I know my club will do nothing that it needs to in this window. The team’s majority owner, David Sullivan, controls all transfers and fancies himself a deal maker. Our recruitment woes are at his feet. Our team will do nothing until the final hours of the transfer window, where Sullivan will panic-buy relics for too much money like a kid trying to spend his last penny at the candy store. Championship, here we come!”
EXTRA TIME
Reviewing the best goals of the year.
What will the Premier League table look like at season's end?
This match was so cold that players had mid-match cups of tea.
The mystery of why Premier League teams haven't played every club yet.
What will women’s football in England look like in 10 years’ time?
Wolves captain on leadership while living with a stutter.
The best goal of Afcon so far.
What do Europe’s big clubs need in the transfer window?
GAME FACE ON
Question: These players are among the oldest goal scorers in Premier League history. Rank them from oldest to youngest at the time they scored.
Thiago Silva
Ashley Young
Teddy Sheringham
Dean Windass
Ryan Giggs
Scroll below for the answer.
Daily Wordle: Guess the football-related word, from player names to classic phrases, in six tries or fewer. Play it here.
I’m not Harry Potter. He is magical, but in reality there is no magic. Magic is fiction and football is real.
Answer
Teddy Sheringham (40y, 268d). Dean Windass (39y, 235d). Thiago Silva (39y, 198d), Ashley Young (39y, 148d), Ryan Giggs (39y, 86d)
