Football's lawmakers are considering a major rule change after this weekend's Premier League drama. The discussion comes in the wake of Leeds United boss Daniel Farke accusing Manchester City of "bending the rules" as Pep Guardiola's side held on for a 3-2 win at Elland Road on Saturday afternoon.
Storming into a two-goal lead within 25 minutes, it looked like mission impossible for the newly promoted side to earn even a point against the perennial English champions. Second-half goals from Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Lukas Nmecha saw Farke's team remarkably level the score with less than half an hour remaining, defying all expectations.
Their perfect response ultimately counted for little, however, as Phil Foden struck for the second time in the 91st minute. The last-gasp goal moments after Gianluigi Donnarumma went down injured, allowing Guardiola a chance to issue instructions to his team.
Manchester City's Gianluigi Donnarumma sits down because of an injury.
Premier League - Manchester City v Leeds United - Etihad Stadium, Manchester, Britain - November 29, 2025 Manchester City's Gianluigi Donnarumma down injured Action Images via Reuters/Jason Cairnduff
Outfield players are temporarily sent off the pitch for 30 seconds if they go down with a knock - but goalkeepers are exempt, as they cannot be forced to leave for treatment. However, the BBC reports that a new proposal could require teams to temporarily remove an outfield player if their goalkeeper goes down on the turf.
The report states that the tactic involving the goalkeeper was discussed at length, with ‘support’ emerging for the idea that clubs must nominate a player to leave the field for half a minute while the goalkeeper receives treatment from medical staff. Another suggestion under consideration is banning players from approaching the touchline in such situations, with the outfield player proposal also “getting increasing support.”
A rule change of this nature would likely spark debate, and questions remain about how rigorously it could be enforced, particularly given that the eight-second rule has already had limited impact. But a former Premier League referee has also advocated introducing harsher punishments for goalkeepers.
Mike Dean Supports Rule Change Proposal
mike dean
On a recent episode of the Overlap Podcast, prior to this weekend's action, former referee Mike Dean didn't hesitate in answering Jamie Carragher's question about which rule he would change in football. He said (watch from 53:45 of the video below):
"Even when I was reffing, I used to hate goalkeepers going down in the second-half, especially when there's nothing wrong with them. As a ref, you know there's nothing wrong with them.
"Even at lower levels, the fourth official will predict that the goalkeeper will go down. So, he goes down, everybody goes over, you have a bit of chat between the benches - I would like to see, when that happens, an outfield player goes off for five minutes, because it's only a delaying tactic."
In the 2025/26 campaign so far, the ball has been in play for an average of just 55 minutes per match, suggesting the dark arts are only getting worse, and time-wasting is a real issue. That made up the basis of why Dean wanted that particular rule change to happen.
For managers, it has a diverse effect on the flow of their game, while the bigger teams are able to engineer lengthy stoppage time as a result.