Referees can use discretion + Arsenal’s midfield problem

Morning.

I suppose it’s quite funny to see my various social media feeds etc awash with examples of players who ‘delayed the restart’ this weekend by picking the ball up when a free kick was awarded, or stood in the way to prevent the opposition getting things going again quickly. The ‘letter of the law’ merchants have little to say about it, and here’s the thing we all know: if the letter of the law was applied across the board in every game, football would be ruined.

For example...