The soccer/football offside rule needs to be re-evaluated/modified.
The offside rule needs to be revisited.
When a player is ruled offside because a tiny part of their body—sometimes no more than the tip of a toe—is beyond the defender, an exciting attacking play can be wiped out over a virtually meaningless margin. A better approach would be to consider a player onside as long as any part of the attacking player remains level with any part of the defender. This would still keep the attacker within less than a body length of the defense while eliminating many of the frustrating "millimeter offside" decisions.
Another aspect of the rule that needs attention is the treatment of an "unintentional touch" by a defender. We saw an example of this in the Portugal–Croatia match tonight. The idea that a defender's touch can be considered significant in some situations but ignored in others makes little sense.
Consider this: if a Croatian defender's touch had caused the ball to cross the end line, the touch would absolutely matter in determining whether the restart was a corner kick or a goal kick. The touch would be considered consequential. Yet when that same touch results in the attacking team receiving the ball and scoring, the rules may treat it as if the touch was not meaningful because it was unintentional.
That inconsistency is difficult to justify. If a defender's touch is significant enough to determine possession when the ball goes out of play, it should also be significant when it affects the outcome of an attacking move.
The organizations responsible for the Laws of the Game should take a fresh look at these situations. Rules should be consistent, logical, and easy for players and fans to understand. Arbitrary distinctions and technicalities that negate quality attacking play do not improve the game.
