PIECE OUT
Major change to Premier League rules could nullify Arsenal’s secret weapon in major blow to title hopes
The change could limit one of Arsenal's biggest strengths
A STRICT rule change to set-pieces is going to be introduced in the Premier League this season.
Officials will clamp down on players' attempts to impede opponents during free kicks and corners.
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Arsenal benefited hugely from set-pieces last season, scoring the most goals from them excluding penalties (22) and the most from corners (16).
They also conceded the second-fewest number of set-piece goals excluding penalties (six) during the 2023-24 campaign.
The Gunners achieved the feat by obstructing or blocking opponents, including the opposition goalkeeper.
However, they will not be able to do anything like that this time around.
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According to The Times, acts of holding, blocking and obstructing during set-pieces will be penalised more stringently from this season.
The new rules could hinder Arsenal's attempt to dethrone Manchester City for the Premier League title.
Mikel Arteta and his side are expected to go toe-to-toe with Pep Guardiola's Cityzens again this season.
Reflecting on last season's near miss, Arteta recently told ESPN: "When you are analytical and you gather all the stats and everything the team has done over the past 11 months in the Premier League, we should have won it. That's what the stats say.
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"The reality is that we didn't so there is something that is there that we haven't managed as well as Man City or other clubs in the past.
"I think we understand where those margins are. I think we have come very far. We have been really consistent now in the past 24 months in terms of performance and the levels that we want to hit.
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"But those margins are super small. One thing is to get the 90% that we want and actually the 10%, 5%, 1% is what defines success and winning major trophies.
"Now we have to continue to do all the right things that we are doing and just make those small margins that are going to be able to win the tournaments."
Changes to the Premier League for 2024/25
NOTHING stays the same forever.
And that includes the Premier League, which is making a number of tweaks this season.
Team news will now be released 75 MINUTES before kick-off, 15 minutes earlier than had been the case before.
Things could get crowded on the touchline, with the number of substitutes permitted to warm-up boosted from three players per team to FIVE.
There's also a change to how added time is calculated when a team scores a goal, an update to the 'multiball' system and the introduction of semi-automated offsides - but not straight away.
Go here to read about all the changes to the Premier League for 2024/25.