Let’s get this straight right from the start: all referees hate the offside law. Sometimes we feel that The International Football Association Board (IFAB*) intentionally messes with Law 11 just to mess with our heads. It probably gets more changes over the years than any other Law, and never gets any less confusing. The Law has enough variables in it that it can be nearly impossible to make the right call.
Mark Geiger faced just such a situation Wednesday evening. In the 6th minute Josef Martinez scored what appeared to be a typical Atlanta United early goal.