OK, In the UK now the subject of diving is the main talking point.
Game after game players are taking dives to win fouls, get players sent off and it is not on.
Arsenal have their own breed of player who seems prone to taking a dive, Pires, Reyes and Fabregas are all known for the diving abilities.
But this is not on. As an Arsenal fan I dont want to watch a game where my players are diving. It is a bad advert for the game and the club I love.
Yes other players and teams are worse but no one wants to stand up against this. The FA dont issue red cards after the events. Refs sometimes issue yellow cards but not all of the time and so this sends mixed messages to the players.
The managers and coaches of clubs dont seem to want to speak out against it in public or even private as this is a growing problem.
So how do we stop this and who should do it.
Simple.
The clubs and managers need to speak out against it. It is all well and good complaining that you have been hard done by, with another player diving against you, but if your players dive where is your arguement/
Managers should come out and condone the actions of their players and make public the internal discipline that they pass on these offending players. ?1,000 fine is not much for a Prem player but it serves it purpose. It is a warning to all, it says if you dive you will get fined, and potentially dropped.
Football is about playing fairly and as the stakes have risen players and coaches seem to try and abuse this to their benefit.
It is time to stamp this out.
AW, AFC if you are reading this take a stance, make the first move.
10 Responses to “Diving”
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March 28th, 2006 at 2:05 am
Bollocks. It’s up to the Refs to do the business.
I’m sick of refs blowing the whistle for a dive and not punishing the offender with a yellow.
CONSISTENT REFEREEING IS THE ANSWER.
Any half decent player knows what a foul is compared to a dive.
March 28th, 2006 at 2:29 am
In continental football diving is unfortunately part of the game in UK it is frowned upon but with so many non-UK players playing in the EPL there is no choice….
It is down to the Refs to be consistent - which they never are these days as I believe the refs standard this year has fallen and continues to do so….
Drogba is a diver no question about it - Pires against Portsmouth a couple of years back also dived no question about it but its all part of the game now….
March 28th, 2006 at 3:12 am
Correct but players do their best to hide where they CHEAT.
You can see this with a simple throw in. When there are two players near the ball both will appeal that the throw is their’s, however they both know who was the last to touch the ball.
The players should have more respect for their fellow professionals.
Another example is if a player goes down in the box. If he wins a penalty he is the star the main man, however if he gets booked or sent off then he is the villan.
I agree it is left to the ref’s decision, but the player who goes down knows if there has been contact. If there has been no contact then he should get up and say nothing happened. That player would earn some more than money. RESPECT.
Ref’s have a hard job, and potentially if the FA, UEFA or FIFA said any player deemed to have dived or cheated gets a straight red and the ref’s follow then great.
Until that time I look to the managers to guide their players and bring some discipline.
March 28th, 2006 at 7:08 am
It’s 0 -0 and extra time in the CL final….Pires bursts into the box, he pushes the ball past the keeper and leaves his leg trailing to provoke minimal contact and goes down like a sack of sh!t…do you want him to get up and tell the ref it wasn’t really a foul, he was just being cute, please don’t give the penalty? Do you want Arsene to fine him and drop him from the team?
I’m with desertgooner on this, we have FIFA, UEFA and the FA, it’s up to them to sort the problem of diving and, talking of chelsea, cheating in general. In Serie A, they have a video review panel which reviews dubious incidents - the panel recently gave a player a 2 match ban for handling the ball before scoring. Net result - De Rossi from Roma handles in another game and scores, but owns up to the ref and the goal is disallowed.
In terms of refereeing standards,the EPL seemingly plays to different rules to the rest of Europe. Reyes, Fabregas and Pires may be considered divers, but Arsenal and Reyes in particular has suffered because fouls that would definitely be given in Spain are waved away in this country - just look at the Battle of the Buffet. Over the last 2 years, standards of refereeing in this country have definitely slipped back to ‘it’s a man’s game’ mode and we are the team to suffer most.
March 28th, 2006 at 8:14 am
I respect real Chelsea fans for what they did to Dog Face on Saturday. I have been saying this for a while now and like most football folks I have talked to before this Chelsea saga on Saturday I have nothing but respect for them..
Is about time fans take a stand and stand up for the beautiful game.
Some people say I hate Reyes but that is not the case. I can’t stand divers period.
March 28th, 2006 at 9:46 am
sometimes i feel when a player dives, it’s not just trying to cheat, but also trying to save their face. For instance, when a player breaks into the penalty box, with a good chance to score, yet he pushed the ball too far. In order to save himself from the embrassment, he dives.
It’s difficult to stamp out the diving though, as it’s nothing new. Gary Lineker of the past did the same things again and again, but nobody said he’s a cheat. And still they all believe diving is something imported by the “foreign” players.
i agree with Desert_Gooner though, if u wanna do something about it, don’t expect the players to do it. In the heat of the moment, and u r telling them to restrict themselves to be a saint? It should be enforced by the football law and regulation. If FIFA feels that it’s something WRONG, then make a rule and get players’ book for it. Either way i think it’s more realistic than booking players for over-celebration.
Anyway, diving is one thing. What i can’t stand most is play-acting. Most players after they dived, they just got back up. A few of them though lying on the ground yelling mourning sulking crying, that’s what make me sick.
March 28th, 2006 at 10:00 am
This situation is almost impossible to control, it’s very difficult to blame the referee as it is impossible to spot a dive if his view is being partially obstructed by the player who is right next to the diver.
The only thing you can do is take retrospective action - players should be punished if the video shows beyond question he is being theatrical or taking a dive.
However, even some so-called dives are difficult to evaluate. Sometimes a player might pre-empt a tackle that never arrives, lose balance and fall over. How can you discriminate between that and a dive?
Personally, I hate diving and I am not impressed with any Arsenal player who behaves in that way. I don’t care if it wins us the Champions League final, I see no merit in cheating whatsoever. Either win fair or square or not at all.
March 28th, 2006 at 10:05 am
The issue of cheating is cut and dry for me if you put it in this context:
if a person admits to robbing a bank, beating an old lady for her purse, murder or any other such crimes, they would be investigated and subsequently charged if mitigating facts proved their admittance to be substantiated.
How then is cheating any different?
If a player like Drogba admits to diving or a handball, and the tapes show he did, why wouldn?t the FA charge him for the un-sport-mans like behaviour he committed, particularly if he?s standing there admitting it to the world in front of the TV cameras. Okay maybe Drogba was confused by language differences but the video tape knows no language barrier.
No one likes a cheat, their like a thief , this is a no-brainer for me: like video or photo radar for speeding or running red lights send him or any other cheater the damn red or yellow card in the mail.
March 29th, 2006 at 3:40 am
OK, in your case, if Pires does go down he will either get a pen or a yellow card.
If he gets the pen, he is the hero, if he gets a card he is the villan.
Simple.
So you could argue that it is down to the refs to sort this out. With a single decision they will dictate who wins and who loses.
I would always prefer to win, playing the right way. No one can come back to you if you win a game fairly like last night, if there is a hint of foul play you will be remembered for winning but doing so in an unfair manner.
March 29th, 2006 at 5:51 am
Don’t get me wrong, I’m completely against cheating. The Pires case was just to show the grey area (as much as a player can play for the penalty, the keeper is equally trying to gain an advantage by closing down the ball) and that I don’t think it would be possible to expect players and managers police the game.