Darwin Nunez's biggest Liverpool problem set to be impacted by major Premier League rule change

Darwin Nunez and his Liverpool teammates will be impacted by a Premier League rule change next season. VAR has dominated conversations again this season, with controversies aplenty leading to calls from Wolves to ditch the technology.

It does not look as if they will get their way, but there will be changes to one element of officiating, and perhaps the most important of them all. The Premier League are set to bring in semi-automatic offside technology (SAOT) from next season. The technology detects offside quickly and more efficiently rather than human referees pausing footage and drawing a line to try to see if the players is offside.

Italy’s Serie A and Mexico’s Liga MX have already had success with the technology, and both the Premier League and La Liga will now implement it for next season. The technology uses 10 bespoke cameras that are installed on the roofs of stadiums, and the cameras scan players to make optimal offside decisions.

The Premier League have said in a statement: “The new system will be used for the first time in the Premier League next season, and it is anticipated the technology will be ready to be introduced after one of the Autumn international breaks. The technology will provide quicker and consistent placement of the virtual offside line, based on optical player tracking, and will produce high-quality broadcast graphics to ensure an enhanced in-stadium and broadcast experience for supporters."

The new technology will impact every Premier League club, but it could impact Liverpool more than most, with Nunez having been caught offside more than anyone last season, with 33, five more than Chelsea’s Nicolas Jackson. The Uruguayan’s tendency to be offside has seen him attract plenty of criticism during his first two seasons at Anfield.

Nunez has huge pressure on his shoulders to impress next season, and there has even been talk of Liverpool moving on from the forward after just two years. Though, now former Reds boss Klopp rejected those claims when he was last asked last month. “There’s no speculation. That must be an external speculation, because I don’t know about it,” he said. “But maybe! I’m not involved anymore. There’s no speculation, just the situation we’re in. Darwin was definitely not happy missing that chance [against Spurs]. He was unlucky in so many situations, where he’s doing everything right, then the ball still doesn’t go in.

“It’s really tough for a young man. He knows about the expectations, he has big expectations for himself. He has to go through it. It’s part of a footballer’s career. That’s all. His problem is that he is that good that he is constantly in these moments. If he is a little bit less good, he couldn’t have chances then people would say he’s not great. Darwin was definitely not happy missing that chance [against Spurs]. He was unlucky in so many situations, where he’s doing everything right, then the ball still doesn’t go in.

“It’s really tough for a young man. He knows about the expectations, he has big expectations for himself. He has to go through it. It’s part of a footballer’s career. That’s all. His problem is that he is that good that he is constantly in these moments. If he is a little bit less good, he couldn’t have chances then people would say he’s not great. And because of our situation as a team, if somebody else would score in that moment, people wouldn’t have felt that bad. Nobody likes it, but it’s part of a career. That’s it.”