Professional football in England could be on the brink of a major law change aimed at reducing time-wasting by goalkeepers. According to the draft, the sport is moving towards a trial in which a manager must temporarily lose one outfield player after a goalkeeper receives medical attention.

The measure comes after existing regulations were introduced to stop players using treatment as a way to slow the game down. Under those rules, any player treated on the pitch must wait 60 seconds on the touchline once play restarts. Goalkeepers, however, were still able to continue without a similar punishment. That gap is now set to be closed.

The new procedure would start once the referee has signaled for medical staff to treat a goalkeeper. From that point, the team manager would have 10 seconds to inform the fourth official which outfield player will leave the field for one minute after the restart. If no player is nominated in time, the captain is withdrawn instead. If the goalkeeper is also the captain, the nominated outfield player who was chosen to speak to the referee before the match would be removed.

The idea has been pushed forward amid concerns about goalkeepers using treatment breaks to allow managers to pass on instructions. BBC Sport reported that professional English football has volunteered to trial the measure, and the change still requires approval from IFAB, which oversees the laws of the game.

The first scheduled fixture to use it would be Tranmere Rovers vs. Rochdale in the Carabao Cup preliminary round on Saturday, Aug. 1, if permission arrives in time. The first Premier League match affected would be Arsenal’s opener against newly promoted Coventry City on Friday, Aug. 21, pending approval.

The rule would also extend beyond the Premier League to the Women’s Super League, the FA Cup, the Carabao Cup, the EFL Championship, League One, League Two and the National League. The draft also says the Australian top flight is expected to act as a global test case, although its version would automatically remove the captain. No similar trial has been taken up by La Liga, the Bundesliga, Serie A or Ligue 1, and it would not apply in the Champions League.

Manchester United have been handed a more encouraging reading on Lisandro Martínez after his latest injury scare, with the defender’s situation not thought to be severe.

Martínez was forced off in the first half of the World Cup final, and the sight of the Argentina left-footed centre back leaving the pitch naturally triggered concern in Manchester. His central defensive partner Cristian Romero also went off injured after both had spent much of the match resisting Spanish pressure.

Although the final finished badly for Argentina, Martínez still had reason for recognition. He was later included in FIFA’s Dream XI, a nod to the strength of his individual tournament.

The issue is understood to involve his thigh, which at least places it apart from the long-running problems that have interrupted his United career. Since arriving at Old Trafford, Martínez has missed sizeable spells with foot, knee and calf injuries. His first season was ended early by a fractured metatarsal, while injuries kept him out of 41 matches in 2023-24. In 2025, a torn ACL sidelined him for more than nine months and even prompted thoughts of early retirement.

Muscle problems have continued to affect his recovery from that knee injury, but the present hamstring concern does not appear to be a major one. United are said to be relaxed, and Andy Mitten understands the club believe Martínez can be fit for the opening weekend of the 2026/27 Premier League season. The Red Devils travel to newly promoted Hull City on Aug. 22.

United have not yet added a defender in the summer transfer window, with Michael Carrick expected to trust the options already available to him. He will also hope Matthijs de Ligt can return soon, though the Dutchman still has a way to go before full fitness.

De Ligt’s recovery from his “complicated” back injury is expected to take almost a year. His last appearance for United came in a 2-1 win over Crystal Palace on Nov. 30, 2025, when Ruben Amorim was still in charge.

Chelsea’s move for Morgan Rogers has raised the same question many of their previous transfers did: what, exactly, is the long-term idea? Yet this deal appears to be different. Unlike much of the BlueCo recruitment that has come before it, Rogers was signed with Xabi Alonso’s backing, and the new manager has already outlined a clear intention for him.

Alonso spoke this week about Rogers’s adaptability, but his comments pointed towards a central role rather than a permanent place wide on the left. “I think that one of his best qualities is that he’s flexible,” Alonso said. He then added that Rogers is likely to operate in “that pocket position, close to the striker, close to the other 10,” while also noting that the player can work from the right or arrive from the left.

That possibility sits neatly with the assumption that Alonso may lean on a 3-4-2-1, the shape he used so effectively during Bayer Leverkusen’s unbeaten Bundesliga title run in 2023-24. In that system, Rogers could occupy the left-sided No. 10 role, with Cole Palmer alongside him and João Pedro ahead.

There are, however, other clues. Jamie Gittens, who has already felt the impact of tactical shifts in the past, sounded comfortable with the possibility of a wider role. “I think [Alonso’s style can suit him as a winger]. Last season was a 4-3-3 as well with two wingers which is always good, so let’s just see,” he said.

Alonso’s own recent history adds another layer. At Real Madrid last season, he used a 4-3-3 while trying to balance his squad, and this week he stressed that flexibility will remain central. “We will be flexible in our tactics, in our approaches, game plans,” he said. “For sure the ideas, the principles of what we want can be the same. But we have tried and we will try different ideas, mainly because these players have done it.

“So it’s not that I’m changing everything. It’s about updating, developing something that they have done with new concepts that each manager has. But the good thing is that many things that I like they have already done. So now it’s about changing or updating a few other things.”

The biggest tactical issue may be how Rogers and Palmer fit together. Alonso has made clear he wants them on the same side, saying: “I have a plan. I have an idea. I can see them linking really well.” Whether that means a shared central lane in a 3-4-2-1, or one of them drifting wide in a 4-3-3, will shape Chelsea’s attacking balance. A more adventurous option would place both behind a lone midfielder, a setup that may be reserved for weaker opponents.