Fight the game's bounders, not the rebounders.
10 bigger issues than rebounds for Law-makers to tackle
“Well, that’s us f*cked,” Steven Gerrard said to himself when Xabi Alonso’s penalty was saved by AC Milan’s Dida in the 2005 Champions League final. Liverpool poured all their energies in getting back to 3-2, Gerrard won the penalty, Milan were losing belief and then Dida saved. Gerrard feared the momentum would swing back Milan’s way.
But, memorably, Alonso was quickest to the rebound, Liverpool had their reward and as Gerrard chased after the scorer, he was relieved that a good man, a good friend, wouldn’t have to cope with the fall-out from a failed penalty chance. “I wouldn’t want a missed penalty in a European Cup final on my CV,” Gerrard told me when I helped him with his first autobiography.
Of all the things I thought that the football authorities might tweak in the Laws I didn’t have “can’t score from a rebound at penalties” on my IFAB bingo card. Rebounds provide one of the dramatic moments in football. If the ball went “dead” whether after a save or rebound off post or bar, there wouldn’t have been Alonso’s follow-up. There wouldn’t have been the opportunity for coaches to use the moment to tell young players to work on both feet: Alonso took the penalty with his right, and then trusted his left with the rebound. There also wouldn’t have been Harry Kane pouncing on Kasper Schmeichel’s save when England played Denmark in the semi-final of Euro 2020 at Wembley.
The thinking behind the proposal is to stop encroachment, bring it into line with shootouts, and a general mood of “hasn’t the guilty side suffered enough?” The footballing authorities want it in place by the 2026 World Cup. It will still have to be approved by a full IFAB committee. Let’s hope sanity prevails, and the idea is ignored.
Are they trying to kill the game? If the ball went “dead”, there also wouldn’t have been the extraordinary chain of events at Vicarage Road in 2013. It’s still celebrated as “the most dramatic play-off match ever” for a mad minute deep into second-half stoppage time of the Championship semi-final. Leicester City’s Anthony Knockaert had his penalty and follow-up saved by Manuel Almunia (and heroic double saves would not be seen again under the new law). Watford famously countered, Troy Deeney struck, ripped his shirt off, leapt into the crowd, and joyous home fans celebrated on the pitch reaching the Championship play-off final. IFAB risks sacrificing drama like that.
The guilty side shouldn’t have life made easier for them. Foul play should be punished, and if that means, as currently, that a rebound can be taken, then good. Football is a simple game, and should be kept that way, and kept flowing, as much as possible. The proposal would mean fewer goals, less entertainment. And what’s the game supposed to be about? Will it lead to more tinkering and soon you can’t score from a rebound at a free-kick?
Anyway, there are at least 10 more pressing issues for the law-makers to consider than penalty rebounds…
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Firstly, get VAR right before even thinking about expanding its remit or changing the laws. Technology is here to stay so use it more effectively. Make it work properly. And remember, remember that the game belongs to players and fans, not people sitting in a committee room.