Andy Gray says the off-side law is ludicrous in its present form - but teams should take advantage.
'Official communication can help clear muddied off-side waters'
Cristiano Ronaldo's second goal for Real Madrid against Racing last week summed up the ludicrous nature of the off-side law in its present form for me.
When he can stand unmarked, 35 yards beyond defenders who have pushed out, and then run legitimately onto the ball to score a goal from a position that gives him a clear, unfair advantage over the defence, then something's clearly wrong.
Such situations are ridiculous and shouldn't be allowed in our game; unfortunately the waters are now so muddied that I've yet to find a manager, player or referee who can give me a definitive definition of what is and what isn't off-side.
And don't bother asking FIFA or UEFA for a clue either; they seem to be banking on coaches and players not getting upset with the present situation, which isn't any way to go forward.
Tactics
So long as uncertainty exists, though, you can't blame managers and players of trying to take advantage of them, so who knows what this weekend's Premier League fixtures hold in store?
A manager is now well within his right to tell his striker 'don't worry too much about getting back on-side because if we break we'll try to play the ball down the flank and you can sneak in the way Ronaldo did and get your goal'.
I think managers do talk about those types of tactics. I remember Sam Allardyce, for one, tried a couple of different approaches when confusion first emerged over whether a player was inactive or inactive a few years ago.
I'm not saying that a wonder strike should be ruled out because somebody is stood off-side way out on the right wing.
What I am saying is that if there is a guy in the width of the goal in the six-yard box and the ball goes past him into the net, I think they are entitled to be flagged off-side.
If we get a situation where the ball ends up in the net and the linesman isn't sure if a player has blocked the goalkeeper's view then it takes simple communication to resolve the issue.
The linesman should put his flag up and say to his referee 'that player was stood right in the six-yard box; I flagged him because he was off-side, but it's up to you to decide if he is interfering'.
As much as it pains me to say it, Mikel Arteta's goal against Liverpool, should not have stood because Yakubu impaired Pepe Reina's view.
Debate
On the whole I think the officials have got most of the controversial decisions right but we will continue to get goals that many people think should have been given off-side and vice-versa.
I never want this game to be so black and white that there is no room for debate. What I don't like is the type of speculation we witnessed this week surrounding Chris Hughton's future and whether he was staying or going at Newcastle.
Now Chris is not what you what call a household name - he's not a Kevin Keegan, a Bobby Robson or Ruud Gullit - but he's proved he can revive a club that is nearly on its knees and lead them to promotion.
Having done that, I think he deserves an opportunity to show what he can do this year. I know Newcastle haven't started well at home and the early success West Brom and Blackpool have enjoyed is adding to that pressure.
But Chris deserves an opportunity to take this side wherever they end up and he's been around long enough to understand the game he's in if come the end of the season things haven't worked out.
Sunderland go to St James' on Sunday with a pretty awful away record; yes, they are tough to beat and will be full of confidence after that win over Villa but they seem to lack belief on the road and Steve Bruce would be the first to admit that overall they have drawn too many games.
It maybe that Steve will have to sacrifice a little bit of caution if he doesn't pick up more points; he might have to play Darren Bent and Asamoah Gyan away from home in a game to try and get a couple of goals.
This Sunday probably isn't the time to try it but it is something he could look at with a view to making his side more potent away from home in the future.
But whatever happens, if we do get a positive result in this game let's hope that the winning side's victory isn't tainted by off-side controversy.
