Premier League confirm rule change impacting Man Utd and Man City players

Manchester United and Man City players will be impacted by a temporary rule change this weekend in the Premier League.

The Red Devils began the new campaign last weekend with a 2-1 defeat at home to Brighton, while City beat West Ham 2-0 on the road.

United will be looking for a response at Brentford tomorrow (Saturday) and City also play on the same day as they host Bournemouth at the Etihad Stadium.

But both matches will be impacted by the introduction of drinks breaks thanks to the heatwave in the UK this weekend.

Temperatures in London will hit around 33c for United's game at Brentford, while in Manchester the heat is set to hit 31c.

For these reasons, the Premier League have decided to reintroduce drinks breaks for this weekend’s fixtures.

With an amber alert in place for the South of England, drinks breaks will be called after 30 minutes in each half of this weekend’s fixtures.

In leagues such as La Liga, drinks breaks are only used in the summer months, with breaks lasting two minutes.

Though, the breaks have come in for criticism, with some feeling they break up play too much, disrupting momentum and giving teams an extra chance to reset.

Referees have also been criticised for allowing breaks to run for too long, with some extending past the two minutes mark.

But particularly in the UK, where many players are not used to playing in very high temperatures, safety is the most important aspect.

It’s for that reason the Premier League have reintroduced drinks breaks, though, only temporarily.

The breaks have only been confirmed for the upcoming weekend, with no news on whether they will extend into late August.

The Premier League are likely to take the issue on a game by game basis based on weather forecasts across England.

But we do know both United and City will have drinks breaks during their matches this weekend.