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AIPROPX ReportYahoo Sports · 1h ago
New rules not easy for officials
Vitor Matos is starting his first full season in charge of Swansea City [Huw Evans Picture Agency]
Vitor Matos has suggested match officials will need time to get used to new rules aimed at increasing football's pace of play.
Matos' Swansea City side played under the new regulations for the first time as they were beaten in the EFL Cup first round by Birmingham City on Saturday.
A five-second throw-in countdown at throw-ins and free-kicks is among the rules introduced for the 2026-27 season.
If there is what the EFL call an "unfair delay" at a throw-in, possession will be given to the other team. If a goal-kick takes more than five seconds it will see a corner awarded to the opponent.
With a number of other new regulations also introduced this season, Swansea head coach Matos says officials have a lot to think about.
Speaking after Birmingham held on for a 1-0 win at the Swansea.com Stadium, Matos said: "It's interesting because the rules somehow are quite hard for the refs as well to apply.
"I think the reason behind the rules is clear, it is to make the game faster for everyone and I think that's good.
"I understand that it's hard for the referees with so much information at the same time and then trying to apply the rules in the best way possible."
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There are other fresh rules this season designed to raise the tempo of games, with substitutes forced to wait on the sideline for at least a minute before coming on if a substituted player takes longer than 10 seconds to leave the field.
Also, any player who requires medical treatment must then leave the field and spend at least 60 seconds on the sidelines before coming back on.
The exception to the rule is if the treatment is the result of a challenge which warrants a yellow or red card.
There was an example of that scenario at Swansea, after Cameron Burgess was booked for a foul on August Priske, but there were no punishments at goal-kicks or throw-ins.
"It's hard because sometimes it's five seconds, sometimes it takes a little bit more time, sometimes even the goal-kicks, it seems short but then they can lace the shoes and then go back again and then go long," Matos added.
"That slows the game, that puts the momentum down again and you need to start again the attack. When it's a cup game that is at the end of the game, one team out, one team in, every small thing matters.
"Of course, we didn't do the right thing by [going in front in the game]. We could have scored the chances we had and then it would be a different story, but we didn't so Birmingham scored and after that they created the momentum that they wanted.
"That's somewhere for us to grow in terms of maturity."
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