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Cristiano Ronaldo’s summer departure to Real Madrid has left a gaping hole on the Premier League Diving Team (PLDT) for which Eduardo auditioned during last night’s second leg tie at home to Celtic.
The Brazilian (yes, he plays for Croatia but he is for all intents and purposes Brazilian) was none too subtle in performing what could best be described as a “belly flop,” but he was convincing enough for the judges to award a penalty which he cooly converted as Arsenal romped to a 5-1 aggregate win.
This may not have had a huge impact on the tie, the Gunners were by far the better team, but it is a terrible blight on the game.
The A-League recently took steps to prevent such behaviour becoming only the second league in the world, ironically after the SPL to implement retrospective punishments for “simulation” not seen by the referee during games.
The English FA needs to step up and have a long hard look at this as the problem of simulation does exist in the EPL.
Andy Johnson’s name has long been associated with the issue, and there have been suggestions that Golden Balls himself is not adverse to a tumble. But the English game has long been known for its bullish, aggressive style. Diving, it seems, has only become part of the game since the large scale influx of foreigners into the EPL during the 90s.
For me, the bigger problem is the other impacts diving has on the game.
Goalkeepers have become less aggressive with the ball on the ground, unwilling to challenge players with the ball at their feet. Generally, when the ball is in the air, the Keeper needs only be brushed and he’ll receive a free kick. But on the ground they are not usually given the benefit of the doubt (Tottenham – Man Utd game last year, anyone?)
Forwards in the EPL, with the exception of Wayne Rooney, are not as well balanced as they once were, preferring instead to go to ground when on a tough angle or surrounded by defenders in the hope the referee gives them something. Which is exactly what Eduardo did against Celtic.
More importantly, referees are much more reluctant to award penalties nowadays in the fear they will make a mistake because the player is diving.
As we know, most games produce at least one penalty shout, which is usually not given, but there are games when there could be four or five awarded only a referee wouldn’t dare for fear of retribution. He’d be branded a cheat when the reality is that referees are simply more lenient inside the area than out.
Personally I’d prefer to see less leniency, resulting in more penalties in the short term. This in turn would force defenders to play the ball more.
Over time, there would be less penalties and still more goals.
Referees are already asked to interpret if a player has stopped a genuine goal chance by having to issue either a red or yellow card. Why shouldn’t this be extended to the awarding of a penalty?
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