The English Premier League has announced new rules for the upcoming 2024/25 football season.
As the domestic league games begin on Friday, August 16, 2024, with an opening match between Manchester United and Fulham, there will be a significant difference in the rules guiding the games, a statement on the EPL website read on Thursday.
“There will be a difference this campaign in how match officials will be applying the rules of the game,” the statement partly read.
The number of substitutes in a single match is five players which started in the previous season. During warm-up, only three substitute players from each team are allowed to warm up at the same time.
However, starting this coming season, “the number of substitutes allowed to warm up at the same time on the perimeter of the pitch during a match has gone up from three to five players per team.
“This is to correspond with the fact that teams are able to make five substitutions at any one time.”
The statement on the website stated that the EPL “will practise the multiball system in 2024/25, with 15 balls in use to speed up the game.
“When the match ball goes out of play and is not quickly retrievable, players must go to the nearest cone to collect a replacement ball themselves to restart play.”
The statement warned that “ball assistants are not permitted to return a ball to a player but should return it to a vacant cone.”
However, starting this new season, an exception to the rule is that “the ball assistants positioned behind the goals at the end where the ball goes out are allowed to return a ball to the goalkeeper who will take the restart.”
Meanwhile, Chelsea have agreed a deal worth almost £54m for Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Pedro Neto.
The Portugal winger will have a medical before finalising a move to Stamford Bridge that will take Chelsea’s summer spending past £200m.
Chelsea finally struck a deal with Wolves – an initial £51.3m with £2.6m in add-ons – after having two bids rejected.
The Blues’ player-plus-cash deal earlier this week – with David Datro Fofana and Trevoh Chalobah mentioned in discussions – was rejected, then a straight cash offer was also turned down on Thursday evening.
The 24-year-old has made 135 appearances and scored 14 goals since joining Wolves in 2019 from Lazio.
If the deal is confirmed, Neto will become Wolves’ record sale after Ruben Neves’ move to Saudi Arabia’s Al-Hilal for £47m last summer.
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