An attacker (Team A) attempts to pass the ball. A defender (Team B) makes a slide tackle to block the pass. The ball touches the right arm which is clearly extended away from the body and is not supporting the body. What is the correct decision?

THE DECISION

It is a handball offence. A player is considered to have made their body unnaturally bigger when the position of their arm is not a consequence of, or justifiable by, the player’s body movement for that specific situation. The referee will award a direct free kick (or penalty kick) to Team A.