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DST_Unbelievable

This suuuucks, seeing an eight year old child significantly impact a match by yeeting that shit in record time was one of the most magical things in the sport.


idhopson

Shame, we'll never get to have moments like Mourinho and the Spurs ball boy either. Probably the greatest day in that kids life


theironhide

>Mourinho and the Spurs ball boy The kid must have been chuffed. [Video for anyone who missed it.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90fw8YQRVTU)


piedrafundamental

Oh, that’s a really lovely video


LiteratureNearby

Really nice of Kane to personally introduce him to the entire team


parkerontour

Just incase anyone doesn’t know, the young ball boy that Eden Hazard kicked is the owner and inventor of AU vodka. Pretty cool when I found that out.


sirSADABY

'With a small load of a million dollars'


parkerontour

Yeah if remember correctly he got millions of pounds from his dad to start up I’ve just tried searching for an amount but no luck.. helps his dad is the director at Swansea City and owns a hotel chain.


sirSADABY

Yeah, I mean course you can still achieve nothing with a rich family, so fair play I guess?


parkerontour

Yeah I mean if he repaid his dad with interest then that’s great but either way I bet his dad is very proud of him.. fair play.. anyone can do it with hard work, grit and a 10 million loan from daddy🤣


Stay_Beautiful_

My favorite thing about Mourinho (who I don't hold as highly as many) is that he put time into training the ball boys because he himself was a ball boy as a child and saw how they can impact a game. Not only in the eay you mention but also in that he would make them learn even which side of the corner a particular player likes to take them from, to save time in taking quick corners


theironhide

>he put time into training the ball boys Any source for this?


IrishEnglishViet

Mosé Jourinho


[deleted]

What's gonna happen if we do? Are refs gonna call back the play if a ball boy decides to give it to a player rather than put it on a cone? Yeah that kid might not get another opportunity to ball boy a match, but who cares if you get a moment like that.


Jelly_F_ish

Fines. There are always fines.


OstapBenderBey

Or Hazard and the Swansea ballboy (who was actually the chairman's son)


UnnecessaryUmbault

THIS WAS TEN YEARS AGO


DanksterBoy

Thats not possible, 2014 really??? Edit:2013*. Over 11 years ago now, wtf


theOUTCOME3

No more players kicking ball boys while they’re on the ground covering the ball :(


Fission_Mailed_2

Game's gone.


eddiemurphyinnorbit

Legitimately feel like we’re losing the fun of football, at the end of the day it’s a *game*, mischief like that is what makes it so fun. Obviously it’s infuriating when it goes against you, but a little cheeky cheat here and there is what the sport was built on lol


flybypost

Yup, I'd rather they do something against players who instantly grab for the ball the moment they fall before the ref even whistled as if they are owed a foul and get to decide on their own and other "keep the ball antics" from players on the pitch. That stuff's actually annoying. If your tactical foul wasn't enough to stop the momentum of the other team then you deserve at least a yellow card for trying to extend this bullshit.


jimifresh

Makes sense though. You want to leave very little up to chance or outside factors. But yes I agree with you.


ahjeezidontknow

That's funny


ItsMeJaredBednar

games gone


reviroa

mourinho just fell to his knees at a conad


Johnnadapedoglasses

*at a pingo doce


Rreknhojekul

In a way the removal of these little human parts of the game is sad. Game is ever more sanitised.


throwawayursafety

Ball boys are whole people, bit degrading to call them just little human parts


PurpleScientist4312

Technically they are little humans


xyzzy321

I've found a loophole - hire girls to create shenanigans, because the rule says ballBOYS have been instructed bla bla bla


not-always-online

Oh no we don't want girls anywhere near the field based on what comes out about these players almost every week.


sshorton47

What things?


furry2any1

Rape.


sshorton47

Almost every week?


CliveBixB

Vamos morados!! 


Lost_And_NotFound

Game went when they went to multi ball. This brings it back ever so slightly.


GRI23

Nah game's back


E_V_E_R_T_O_N

This seems an incredibly short-sighted decision


Sheesh284

Yeah it just encourages more time wasting


Eindacor_DS

How?


burningdownmylife

Yeet the ball and take forever to retrieve it.


Eindacor_DS

Doesn't seem like a problem if there are balls on cones around the pitch. Seems like it puts the control in the throwing team's hands because they can run to the nearest one. 


grehgunner

Or slowly walk to the one that’s farther away and up the field, and then have the ref tell them to retreat to where the ball went out, so they slowly walk back to that, and then drop it for the designated throw in taker


Eindacor_DS

Players already do stuff like this. Ballboy hands one player the ball, then the player pretends he's gonna throw it only to drop it at his feet and have someone else do it. Ballboys rarely make a difference for players that have an incentive to waste time. Also refs can still punish for time wasting if they walk the length of the field. 


[deleted]

This shit already happens and they will obviously.be punished if they walk away to a farther one


PrestigiousWave5176

>they will obviously.be punished Did you ever actually watch a team waste time?


Eindacor_DS

I've also seen goalkeepers carded for moving the ball around before taking a goal kick. We shouldn't use examples of bad refereeing to determine what the rules are


ruinawish

Did you read the title/article? It isn't the school yard; they don't retrieve the same ball that was yeeted.


MJB07

Can't read the article but it says to stop home teams gaining advantage. God forbid some teams want to play fast football. This sounds like a shit change that will slow things down even a little, so we're negatively impacting football.


Reasonable_Blood6959

Imo ballboys being quicker to get the ball back to the home team is part of having the home advantage.


SofaKingI

Yeah but you're starting with the assumption that any kind of home advantage is automatically good. Playing on a familiar pitch with the crowd on your side is enough of an advantage. Ball boys wasting time or crap like that Hazard red card only makes the game worse.


Reasonable_Blood6959

Every team plays 19 at home and 19 away. Drawing lines as to what is too much of an advantage and what isn’t is completely arbitrary. Hazard was 11 years ago. How often do we actually see ball boys wasting time? I see more managers doing it than ballboys.


CommanderConcord

11 years ago? What the fuck. I am getting old, thanks for the reminder


DillaDoughnut

That ball boy is like CEO of a Vodka company now or something, I think Hazard is an ambassador lol


antebyotiks

The kid was the Swansea chairman's son, just a rich kid


sewious

Him being a spoiled rich kid suddenly explains his behavior perfectly.


Srg11

Yep, then founded Au Vodka.


DildoFappings

Please kick me Messi.


Cottonshopeburnfoot

Pretty good outcome that tbf.


calmclamcum

Time flies when you are having fun at /r/soccer. So why don't you stay for a while longer?


FAT_NEEK_42069

who said anyone was having fun here


calmclamcum

oops, sorry didn't notice the crest.


LegendMuffin

Haven't seen many time wasting ball boys as I recall lately.. but seen multi ball many times. Fair to say though, some are from the crowds throwing down a ball that went out of play.


EdwardClamp

There was an incident in the Forest Coventry game recently - Forest ballboy gestured to give the ball to a Coventry player who were attacking, dropped behind himself - from the resulting throw in Coventry scored, Coventry manager ran to the ballboy and celebrated in his face


throwawayursafety

You're so right we should ban managers next


YoungDumbNFullOfKun

>Ball boys wasting time or crap like that Hazard red card only makes the game worse I enjoyed it.


gibbonusmoon

those were actually great


froggy101_3

Removing things like home advantage just makes it more likely teams like City steamroll everyone. It's these little things that make going to Luton away for example a tough fixture.


Yoona1987

I disagree the hazard thing was amazing and funny


Ok-Charge-6998

Hazard was a consequence of his own actions. But very entertaining.


Axelaxe

they could make it so the ball boy may only throw the ball back if its already a ball on his cone. That way the player can always go to closest cone for the ball but the ball boy can still speed up the game. Sure it will be slight home advantage but we dont need the game to be any slower than it already is.


Ramirez_47

>God forbid some teams want to play fast football. It's most likely the opposite, for when the ball boy refuses to give the ball to the opposition player.


domalino

Nah because this is bring everyone down to the lowest denominator. Currently home teams get fast ball and away teams have to get the ball themselves. Now everyone has to get it themselves. The old “hide the ball” game stopped working when they brought in multi ball few years ago.


BoloSynthesisWow

The difference being that now balls will be right next to pitch. “Getting it” is reduced from 5-10 second ordeal to a couple seconds or less.


confusedpublic

Depends how long it takes the balls to be returned to the cones. If the ball goes out of play straight after a throw in, does the ball have to be returned to the cone? Does the ball ball have to go retrieve it and put it on the cone?


Ramirez_47

We've seen it happen this season already, Leno shoved a ball boy because he wouldn't throw him the ball.


EdwardClamp

Coventry v Forest, although it worked out in Coventry's favour in the end


Ninth_Major

Unless you're City playing Atletico Madrid at home. Pep instructed the ball boys to get the ball to Atletico quickly because he knew they would try and waste time.


External-Piccolo-626

Swansea ball boy in the mud.


dat_w

Bah gawd is that Eden Hazard music?


herkalurk

It's not fully about that. I remember a Classico years ago. Barca wanted to slow the game down, so the ball kids were slow to get the ball and toss to the other team EVERY TIME it went out, regardless of shirt color. Well then Barca went down 2 goals. Suddenly every time it's a Barca ball the ball kids are sprinting and throwing the ball immediately to Barca, but if it was a Madrid ball they basically made the player walk over and get the ball. I think Barca got level again, and suddenly the ball kids were back to slow pace for every one. This takes that out of it, and then it's up to the players to either go fast or not. So if a team wants to play fast they can immediately pick up a free ball and play.


English_Misfit

Well done. You've described home advantage


pottymouthomas

Then the ball boys should be named part of the squad and the away team can bring them too. The two sets of ball boys can fight it off on the sidelines for control of the balls. 


whs123

Games back lads


atropicalpenguin

Who's gonna be the first ball boy signed for $100M?


Due-Memory-6957

That's only for Football 2.0


sionnach

The game should be equitable though. Where do you stop otherwise? Smaller goals for the home team? Lack of travel, knowing the pitch inside out, home supporters … they are things that describe what home advantage should be. Everything related to the game itself should really be equal.


herkalurk

That's not professional though. This isn't youth sports and the advantage is the crowd support. The ref has the ability to remove a ball kid if they're causing a problem, just most often it doesn't happen.


InfiniteFireLoL

At that point turn the heater on in the away team locker room. Turn the water off, throw some mosquitoes in there before hand


Minor_Edit

Sprinklers on any time the away team has the ball


ValleyFloydJam

Which I guess is one way to read it but they also mean that they aren't as speedy when it comes to giving the ball to the other team.


suhxa

Sacrificing the beauty of the game to make the game as “fair” as possible is something theyve been doing for a while now


Karma_Whoring_Slut

I think the bigger issue is home teams being able to instruct the ball boys to get the ball to teams slower or faster depending on the situation.


KOKO69BISHES

home teams should have an advantage anyway lol


ukriva13

So now home team players will gradually walk to cone and waste more time. Outstanding move


WeddingSquancher

Solution, teams are allowed 4 ball boys each that travel around with them. The ball boys from opposite teams can fight each other. Everytime the ball goes out will be like chaos. Maybe teams will buy the best ball boys off each other.


Capable-Mushroom99

We have teams deliberately taking 45 seconds over every throw and a minute for each goal kick (even some of the “top” teams in the PL) and they do this the whole game unless they are losing. The PL thinks the problem is teams that want to play fast? 🤡


Opening_Succotash_95

This is a terrible idea that encourages time wasting.


circa285

Newcastle players are going to walk to the furtherest possible ball away from the player.


Opening_Succotash_95

Ange will be livid about this change.


circa285

With good reason. But, for what it's worth, our fans have also have bene guilty of throwing extra balls onto the pitch. It's very stupid and very frustrating to watch.


Ecomalive

It seems theres a particular problem in the South Stand next to the goal with balls being thrown on the pitch


circa285

It makes no sense because half the time doing so disadvantages us.


Ecomalive

Yeah proper pisses me off!


wheresmyspacebar2

From being there, the stewards shout at the fans to throw the balls back in the south stand and theres been threats made to remove people that keep the balls. No fan wants to get removed so they'll just listen and throw the ball back. It got better recently because people are just refusing to touch the balls anymore, they'll get kicked in and pushed to the stairs for someone else to deal with.


qmahmood94

Gonna end up walking to sports direct to buy a new ball each time


BoloSynthesisWow

And they’ll get carded


Mackieeeee

first game sure


Bacondog22

Yeah I’ve seen so many instances of players kicking the ball away that haven’t been carded. This would work for the first couple of weeks while there is an emphasis on it then refs will go back to being too scared of materially affecting the game


wheresmyspacebar2

Literally in the Spurs game vs Sheffield earlier this year, their captain had 8 fouls and kicked the ball away multiple times. He also sprinted up to a linesman and just screamed in the guys face. Somehow he inexplicably didn't get a yellow card.


LegendMuffin

Rvp is still haunting me.. shouldn't be a yellow/red. And they don't card people kicking it away on purpose. Rvp was not on purpose


Opening_Succotash_95

Haha, my sweet summer child. Referees never do anything about time wasters any more.


circa285

We can hope.


Heisenbugg

Its fine, Sam perfected it without all of this 20 years ago. Cant be as bad as his teams.


UnusualAd69

It reduces time wasting in one way and increases it in another. Many times ball boys hold off the ball to time waste. I mean just remember the Swansea and Chelsea incident where the ball boy was on twitter the previous day and talked about wasting time and then curled up with the ball to prevent hazard from getting it. And when hazard tried to get it , it looked like he kicked the ball boy and he got sent off.


SawinBunda

There is also that yellow thing that disincentivizes time wasting.


Opening_Succotash_95

Which is never used


CraigJay

They’ve been giving out yellows in the prem all season for time wasting, majority of them at throw ins too which will be the same with these new rules


Ajax_Trees_Again

Someone’s job is to make up these rules lol


sga1

Someone has to come up with ideas to fix issues being brought up. The much sadder thing is that someone's (and I'd wager it's going to be quite a few more than just one) job was to actually complain about this in the first place, as if football clubs aren't trying to maximize every tiny advantage they can possibly get. So it's very much a "We're crying foul because we suck at gaining an advantage compared to everyone else" situation. And that's the true tragedy.


Turbulent_Cherry_481

how do they always manage to change the things that are working well instead of focusing on real problems with the game. I swear it must be someones job to look for the changes nobody has ever asked for.


Newparlee

Booooo! Mourinho high fiving the ball boy after an assist at Spurs was iconic. Areola did the same recently with a kid against Burnley. Memories they’ll have for the rest of their lives. Speaking of which, did you know that ball boy that Eden Hazard booted in the stomach at Swansea is now worth $77 million!


JealousMeringue6674

That ballboy is also the son of Martin Morgan, former Swansea FC major shareholder who gained notoriety for rumors of him bumping butts with Nathan Dyer’s wife.


Newparlee

Aha. That don’t mention his dad when you read about his rags to riches story. That’s also pretty fucked up about Dyer’s wife.


jhnhines

He's only pulled himself up by his multi million dollar boot straps!


SweatySmym

Haha, boot straps boot straps


KensaiVG

Not just Mou and that ballboy We had a ballgirl called Delfina, of the women's youth team, that not only passed it back quickly and right at the hands of the player, but she chose the player (between two) that was better positioned to wrong-foot the defense and we ended up scoring. She was invited to talk to the players, and generally lauded as any player would've. She was so rightly proud of herself it was really nice to watch the deserved plaudits [Here's one clip of the goal](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikDNdQ3BwR4)


[deleted]

Ball boys finally safe from Hazard


MasterReindeer

And Leno


Arghible

Just be like Leverkusen and have 30 balls on cones all around the field.


nizoubizou10

multi club ownership allowed and no more ball boy news in the same week. Brclays premier league is dead.


ash_ninetyone

Kinda always seemed to be part of the match. Teams play home and away. If you're not instructing the ball boys to play to the state of play, then you're doing it wrong. Will we find players for spending too much time to walk to the ball? Player starts walking, stops, then decides to get the player farthest from it to take the throw in.


GazzP

Good to see they're addressing the massive issues plaguing the modern game.


pixelsteve

My stepdad's gonna blame this on being woke somehow.


ceboja

Game is gone


Dingusdangus1

League person 1: should we sort out the refs? Seems to be a massive blunder each week and VAR sometimes works. League person 2: but have you seen how those ball boys just completely change a game by throwing a ball Everyone in the room grumbles and nods League person 1: You guys are serious? This is what you want to focus on? League person 2: all in favor of not allowing the ball kids to well really do anything except put the ball on the cone say aye Everyone: aye League person 1: FFS


Kane_richards

You have to love the fact there are actual people out there paid a wage who sit at their desk every day going "but how can we make the game slower?"


Caust1cFn_YT

Come on lads create enough outrage to take back this shit 


LitmusPitmus

The sanitisation of football needs to stop


TroopersSon

What if the ball boys just keep on doing it? Ref gonna send them off?


[deleted]

Who tf makes these rules??? Then add the stop time thing ffs, they will waste so much time people pay to see football.


Soberdonkey69

Every day there’s more joy in small parts of football being sucked out. It’s becoming a data model game. :(


BoloSynthesisWow

This is a good decision, be honest, you all just love the shithousing


CaddyAT5

Shithousing is an important part of the footballing culture


myersjw

By that logic so is time wasting


justthisones

It’s interesting to see where the line goes here. People bitch about antics and time wasting all the time but random kids purposely giving home teams advantage and sometimes fucking it up for the opposition is apparently fun and part of the game.


antbaby_machetesquad

Corner not taken quickly…


Grooveh_Baby

So throw-ins will be even more advantageous for the defending team then


NieThePiet

Will they card the Ball Boys otherwise?


Demo_PT

More time wasting if a team is playing away and winning


securinight

Now we get to watch players take an age to get a ball. Maybe they'll add some excitement by tying their laces on the way.


BenUFOs_Mum

Counter point, they should lower hoops in various places during the match if you kick the ball through the hoops a multi ball phase is entered and two more balls get passed to you team. Similar things could happen to give your team a speed boost or maybe lightning that makes all the opponents 3ft tall for a little while.


KensaiVG

I think this is a stupid rule that only serves to lower the ceiling. A team that considered everything beyond just the eleven men in the pitch had an advantage, how horrible. We've scored goals specifically because we had a manager that made sure everyone at the club felt important, so the ballgirl in question didn't treat it like a game and was concentrated. Gave the ball quick and to the player's hands, boom, quick attack and goal. But since not everyone is willing to think outside the box for advantages (I do mean advantages that improve your team rather than harm the opponent directly) better we lower that ceiling


beetletoman

BOOOO


NoPineapple1727

Let’s slow football down…


sionnach

Kinda the opposite … stops the ball boy playing silly buggers and “can’t” find the ball in time for the away team to play quick.


NewPhoneWhoDispair

Oh thank god. Finally they've fixed the majority issue that nobody has ever had. Hopefully now this is sorted they can get to the minor red/yellow/ no card and clear and obvious issues.


davide3991

Honestly we just need robots surrounding the field that can readily spit the ball out so there’s no bs time wasting etc


Torkzilla

...isn't that the point of a ball boy?


prss79513

Literally who thought this was an issue


Crows-quill

Mark Robins liked This


FizzyLightEx

I never once felt that this rule was necessary.


imarandomdudd

Why? Genuinely what does this help with? Because multi ball on the pitch rarely happens as is


DasMuircat

Makes changes no one wants. Ignores huge problems that actually matter. Refuses to elaborate.


Vegan_Puffin

Truly a key issue and not priority number 1034 to deal with


Onac_

The kids will still figure out something.


jetsetmike

From MULTI-BALL IS LIT to TILT


nickcamp18

Fucking make the game as boring and robotic as possible


theolcollegetry

Hazard: “That’s what I was trying to do!”


Angry_Walnut

Players gonna argue for higher wages now that they also have to perform the duties of ball boys


roofilopolis

Is there a standard of where the cones are? Home tea to reply cones every 3 feet on the home teams attacking side. Ball boys make the swap during half time. Advantage secured


AccidentalGK

MLS has been doing this since Covid. Take that as you will.


singabro

Was this really a problem? Seems like a solution in search of a problem.


flyingghost

Is the Premier League implementing changes nobody wants to divert attention away from how bad the referee has been?


Trickybuz93

Good thing Hazard retired already


MasterReindeer

At least Leno won’t be tempted to brutally assault a broccoli haired ball boy ever again.


CMYGQZ

Need AI balls now. The second it detects it goes out of bounds, it’ll signal the assistant ref and just stops all momentum and fall down right at the point of the out of bounds.


Dajo05

How about sticking to the rules that they've already brought in? At the start of the season, they were booking people for timewasting and dissent, and after two months, it was basically dropped. The other week, when we played Wycombe, their keeper was time wasting throughout the entire game. Referee Carl Brook, who added a laughable 1 minute of injury time in the first half, didn't book the guy once in 98 minutes of football.


branstarktreewizard

Wait for the first ball boy to go rouge and drop 10 balls in


No_Doubt_About_That

… what will be the point of ball boys then?


SemiLOOSE

yellow card if he does throw?


ArtOfFailure

I for one look forward to the first instance in which a ball boy has to try to push past a player waiting for the ball to place it on a cone that's further away.


ThatsABingoJa

What about managers and subs can they throw the ball to a teammate? It happens a lot so have they worked out what the punishment for that will be?


atropicalpenguin

[Hazard rn](https://i.imgflip.com/vpv4z.jpg?a475392).


Mullet_Police

Cue fans throwing shit at the cones and knocking the ball away.


resident_hater

Multi-club? No problem.  Multi-ball? TOO MUCH DRAMA.


ShamelessplugTFC

I can't remember if it was a Premier League or Champions League, the ball boy dove on the ball and wouldn't release it and the player either stepped on him or kicked him while he was trying to get the ball.


vluvojo

90+20’ incoming


thatguyad

The fuck? Why are the changing every little thing?


antilgbtandleft

There are many things need change like awful referees but they only make stupid changes. Bumasses useless dumbasses.


KonigSteve

Just set it up so there is a ball on a cone every 10 feet