Asian Cup 2019: AFC to allow fourth substitute at quadrennial tournament if matches go to extra time

Kuala Lumpur: Next year’s Asian Cup will allow a fourth substitute when games go to extra time, the Asian Football Confederation announced on Friday. [caption id=“attachment_5366731” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] The AFC Asian Cup 2019 trophy. AFP[/caption] The move follows a change to the official Laws of the Game, which was also implemented at this year’s World Cup in Russia. “I am confident the new regulations will add to the excitement of Asia’s flagship national team competition and further strengthen the AFC’s ambitions to be the world’s leading Confederation,” AFC president Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa said in a statement. The same rule will also apply at the AFC U19 Championship, starting next week in Indonesia, as well as next year’s AFC U19 Women’s Championship and the AFC U23 Championship in Thailand in 2020, the AFC said. In July, Russia midfielder Aleksandr Erokhin became the first player to come on as the fourth substitute at a World Cup when the hosts went to extra time against Spain. The AFC has also said it is considering using Video Assistant Referee (VAR) technology “at some stage” at the Asian Cup in the United Arab Emirates, which starts on January 5.