The start of the Premier League season in 2021-22 is finally here with us.

Brentford, who were promoted from the Championship, kick off their season on Friday night when they play an Arsenal side who finished eighth last season. All English Premier League matches will be available on your favourite football betting bookie, Vwin throughout the 2021/22 season.

A rule modification will be implemented for the game in west London, which will affect both clubs as well as the other 18 teams in English football’s top division when they take to the field over the weekend.

The regulation stipulates that nine substitutes are allowed in match day teams, as stated in the Premier League rulebook for the upcoming season.

“Subject to Rule L.28A, in any league match a club may include in its team sheet up to nine substitute players of whom not more than three may take part in the league match subject to the conditions set out in Law 3 of the Laws of the Game.”

That’s an increase from seven to nine substitutes, which will definitely help teams with larger squad depths.

This move also gives younger players the chance to be part of a Premier League match day squad and go a step closer to breaking into the first team.

However, the substitutions rule isn’t the only change that will take effect on Friday.

The Controversial Handball Rule

The unintentional handball rule is one of the first rules to be changed.

As a result of the amendment, any unintentional handball in the build-up to a goal will no longer be considered a foul.

Fans of Premier League teams had slammed the decision to rule out Fulham’s equalizer against Spurs last season, when VAR ruled out Mario Lemina’s alleged handball in the build-up to the Cottagers’ equalizer.

According to the new rule: “A player is considered to have made their body unnaturally bigger when the position of their hand/arm is not a consequence of, or justifiable by, the player’s body movement for that specific situation. By having their hand/arm in such a position, the player takes a risk of their hand/arm being hit by the ball and being penalised.”

VAR Offside Lines

The Premier League will employ thicker lines to determine offside decisions next season.

The Premier League has chosen to address fans’ complaints about goals being called off for offside when players looked to be level with the defensive line by adding thicker lines.

The idea is to avoid situations when a goal is disallowed because a player’s toe is offside, as Arsenal supporters witnessed last season when Bukayo Saka was deemed to be narrowly offside against Fulham.

The Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) has decided to introduce thicker lines, although the exact thickness of the lines is still to be determined.

Covid-19 Random Spot Checks

The Premier League has stated that in the first few weeks of the new season, supporters would be subjected to random spot-checks of their Covid-19 status at select venues.

“Initially, in the first few match days of the season, supporters can expect the introduction of random spot-checks for ticket holders at some grounds as we establish the required processes so clubs and fans are prepared for all match attenders to have their Covid-19 status checked upon arrival, should it become mandatory.”

The recent Community Shield clash pitting Leicester City and Manchester City saw the return of fans in the EPL for the first time.