September 28, 2022
The brief from today:
Bundesliga to crack down on penalties
The committee in charge of refereeing in the Bundesliga is planning to institute stringent guidelines regarding penalties beginning in the 2022/23 season. As a result of a study done on last season’s penalties, it was discovered that there were 15 incidents on 17 saved penalties where goalkeepers were off their goal line. The official rule for penalties state that when the ball is kicked, the keeper should have at least one foot on the goal line as they dive. Due to the findings which showed that keepers blocked numerous penalties despite breaking regulations, the officiating committee intends to have a “zero tolerance” policy commencing next season. The directive that will be given to referees is to particularly scrutinize goalkeepers’ foot placement, and order the retaking of penalties as needed. That is technically the mandate already in place, but there seems to be more of a focus now considering the sheer number of saves that took place last season, which are deemed to have been unfair towards the penalty takers. In addition to this, the VAR has also been instructed to spend more time and effort scrutinizing goalkeepers when penalties take place, and notify the on pitch referee when the rule is broken. To some, this latter directive indicates that this review wasn’t taking place consistently last season. Whether this will now result in goalkeepers adhering to the rule more, or if it will result in multiple retaken penalties is something to look out for next season.
Goalkeepers in the Bundesliga will be heavily scrutinized on penalties beginning next season
History to be made in Serie A this weekend
The Serie A match this weekend between Sassuolo and Salernitana is set to be the stage for an historic moment in the league. For the first time in Italy’s top flight, a woman will be the head referee for a match. Maria Sole Ferrieri Caputi made headlines earlier this summer when she was announced as the first woman to be appointed among the list of Serie A referees. The 32-year-old began her career in Italy’s lowest tier, Serie D, and steadily worked her way up the ranks through Serie C, B, and has now reached the first division. This weekend her first match will be official at the Mapei Stadium when Sassulo, in 11th place, host 13th place Salernitana. Perhaps a lot more than fans of the two sides, and neutral Serie A followers, will be watching the match to see the type of performance Caputi will put in. She has earned her right to be a referee in Serie A, and along with making history, hopefully she can continue to impress and further cement her status as a top level referee.
Maria Caputi (center) will be leading out Sassuolo and Salernitana this weekend in the Serie A