Premier League clubs allowed to make five subs per game with nine on bench after agreeing on emergency law change

PREMIER LEAGUE clubs have again put off a decision on what to do if the restarted League cannot be completed.

In a surprise move, the clubs agreed that the issue will not be discussed UNLESS it becomes necessary because of a second shut-down.

Frank Lampard’s Chelsea side put forward the idea of increasing the amount of subsCredit: Getty Images – Getty

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But the clubs did vote to approve a vote urged by Chelsea which means managers will be able to make five substitutions for the rest of the season.

And there was also approval for another Chelsea proposal for teams to put nine players on the bench for the final part of the campaign.

The latest meeting of the 20 Shareholder clubs lasted just under three hours.

But after the acrimony of recent weeks, it seems that the mood of the meeting was a determined effort to put contentious issues to one side.

While there remains a split over what should happen if the season is “curtailed” by a second outbreak of Covid-19, the clubs opted to avoid a spat.

Instead, with the restart less than a fortnight away and just 13 positive tests from 5079 samples over the past three weeks, the mood of the meeting was bullish that the Prem will not just be able to resume, but also finish by the end of July.

And rather than pit the divisive issue to a vote, the clubs took a position that it was not necessary to fight over a situation that may never actually arise.

Rather than go through familiar ground, agreement was reached that the debate will only be reopened if the season is forced into stopping for a second time.

That avoided the faultlines between the clubs being further exposed although runs the risk of the League being accused of merely kicking the can down the road.

Premier League clubs allowed to make five subs per game with increased bench after agreeing on new emergency law change.

But the two Chelsea proposals over substitutions were voted through, both with a majority of 16-4 – two more than required for the regulation change to be put in place.

The Stamford Bridge club pushed for the vote on the emergency law change brought in by the International FA Board, with a substantial majority of clubs backing the decision to follow Germany’s example and allow two extra changes per match.

And Chelsea’s second proposal, which had been expected to encounter significant resistance, was also adopted, with 80 per cent of the clubs in favour of the expanded bench option as a new regulation for the rest of the campaign.

Premier League teams will be able to make five subs for the remainder of the season

Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk