Mikel Arteta set to cause worldwide football rule change as IFAB introduce two new laws

Mikel Arteta is set to cause a worldwide football rule change as the International Football Association Board (IFAB) are set to introduce two new laws.

During Arsenal's 1-0 defeat to Inter Milan in the Champions League last month, Arteta wrongly escaped a red card.

Inter's Matteo Darmian moved to play a ball which was going out for a throw-in until Arteta picked it up before it had crossed the line.

The Gunners boss was shown a yellow card, but by the Laws of the Game it should have been a straight red card.

Arteta isn't the only manager to have handled the ball whilst still in play as West Brom manager Carlos Corberan and Kilmarnock boss Derek McInnes have also found themselves in similar situations.

But, unlike Arteta, Corberan and McInnes were both sent off.

However, after discussions at its Annual Business Meeting, the IFAB recommended a change to the law.

According to ESPN, the IFAB believes that when the sole intention of the coach is to help the game restart quickly, then a yellow card is a more suitable punishment.

The change must be approved at the IFAB's AGM on March 1, which would then be introduced next summer.

Mikel Arteta is shown a yellow card for handling the ball whilst still in play. Image: Getty

Another change to the law is also in the works and it relates to the dropped ball.

As of now, if a team has possession and a pass hits the referee, they get the dropped ball regardless.

The proposal is that if the pass isn't going to the intended target and going to the other team, then the dropped ball should go to the opposition.