Diving must be stamped out of our game

There has been a big furore about Manchester United winger Ashley Young diving in the past few weeks and also Chelsea‘s Didier Drogba producing amateur dramatics during his clubs clash with Barcelona.

However the England and Ivory Coast internationals are not the only ones who produce amateur dramatics during games.

Simulation

Simulation or diving is rife throughout the beautiful game. It has got worse in recent years as the game has became big business. The stakes are higher than ever and players seem to do anything to win a game these days.

Exaggerating fouls and contact has became part of the game in recent years and it seems to be accepted by the football authorities.

Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has stated that he doesn’t believe that FIFA will act on the situation this summer. He told Sky Sports: “It doesn’t lie with the clubs, it is FIFA and UEFA. But there are a load of things we ask them for, including goal-line technology, and nothing’s ever done. It doesn’t bother me one way or the other, because I don’t think it will happen.”

FIFA

The livelihood of the game lies in the hands of FIFA because they are the keepers of our game. They make the rules and they enforce them. Unfortunately at times they tend to take a lot of time to act on situations.

Diving is a curse on our game and it has to be stamped out. FIFA and the clubs have to work together to get rid of it from football.

Disgrace

I have to say I was embarrassed as a football fan to watch Didier Drogba throwing himself on the floor against Barcelona in the Champions League. He is a great player but he has always been an advocate of play-acting.

It’s frustrating watching great players fall over when nobody is near them or when a player has made minimal contact with them.

Clasico

Later today Spain’s biggest game of the season El Clasico takes place between Barcelona and Real Madrid. The two Spanish giants have displayed some of the worst play-acting of recent times when the pair has met.

The likes of Barca’s Sergio Busquets and Real’s Angel Di Maria amongst others have shown diving skills that wouldn’t look out of place at the Olympics in the summer.

Even for somebody who is a big fan of Barcelona some of Busquets behaviour is very embarrassing. He is a good player and shouldn’t rely on going down every time somebody touches him.

Unfortunately in his short career he has established a reputation as a cheat. It’s a shame for a player that plays in one of the best club teams to play the game that he has earned himself such a bad reputation.

I just hope that tonight’s Clasico is talked about for the football and not the play-acting. So often the games between the teams are ruined by controversy, either because of theatrics or off-the-field actions.

Unlikely

Its very unlikely that players will stop diving or play-acting without intervention from the football authorities. Players are currently getting away with play-acting and diving without punishment, because they can.

Diving is cheating and shouldn’t be allowed in football. Unfortunately it doesn’t seem to be considered a priority for FIFA and it will continue to happen. It seems that play-acting is a curse that is going to be hard to lift from the beautiful game.

Do FIFA need to do more to get rid of diving from football?