AC Milan head coach Stefano Pioli believes that some rather radical rule changes could benefit the sport of football moving forward.
There were some eyebrows raised when it emerged that – out of the 95 minutes total when factoring in added time – the ball was in play for just 48 minutes of the recent game against Juventus in what was a very stop-start game.
Pioli spoke to the media who gathered in the Milanello press room on the eve of Milan’s game against Spezia, answering a variety of questions with his comments relayed by MilanNews.
He was asked about the five substitutes rule that Serie A is able to benefit from, before offering his thoughts on a couple of rule changes that could actually benefit the sport as a whole.
“They are very important, I have been saying this for a long time. Especially now that we play every 3 days. It is never the quantity of minutes in which one plays, but the quality with which one plays them,” he said (via Patrick Kendrick).
“If I had my way the clock would stop when the ball goes out of play and I’d bring in a time-out in the first half. If we want to see more attacking football in the modern game, bring in a rule where you can’t go back into your own half once you’ve crossed the halfway line.”
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