Drogba in full flight at 2006 world cup
Foul simulation says a lot about a player or team. It is a good indicator that they have “street smarts” on the field. Whether it is an attempt to give your team a free kick, waste time, or persuade the ref into giving an opponent a yellow card, the idea is to give your team an edge.
A lot of people in this country just focus on the superficial part of player’s diving – it is labeled as cheating.
Whether it is defined as cheating or not doesn’t matter.
The only thing to consider is diving exists. It is part of the game whether we like it or not.
If a player or team wants to take the high road and not participate in this practice, good for them and I wish them the best. In the mean time, they might find themselves watching the “smart” team lifting trophies.
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
umm yea it is smart. ask facundo
Haha rommi,
Facundo fooled the ref less than half the time. He needs a lot of practice!
Hey Gary, I was just wondering. Is it good to dive more than half the time you get “fouled” ? And when is the best time to dive?
What’s up Ben!
You ask a very interesting and tough question. It depends on many factors:
1) The referee.
2) Are you going to lose possession?
3) Do you want to slow the game down?
4) Do you want to try to get the other player a yellow or red?
5) Does your team need a free kick in the opponents final third?
And the list goes on and on. There are so many scenarios to consider, and the correct decision to “dive / exaggerate” is a split second one that comes with experience.
I’ll touch on point #1 (the ref), and leave the others for separate articles …
You have to judge what “kind” of referee you have. Is he calling any tiny foul? If so, no need for diving.
If people are getting hacked and the ref isn’t calling anything, then exaggerating a foul is probably in order.
Is he pulling yellow cards like crazy? Maybe you can get an opponent a card with exaggerating …
Does the ref seem like a “no-nonsense” guy. Then you might want to be careful, because you’ll get a yellow for diving.
Again, experience and experimentation …
thanks gary!
I have to disagree with you on this point Gary. Diving is detrimental to the game in all respects. For example look at Messi. For a top forward in the world he is one of the most honest and non-diving players I have seen. One might argue that he should dive more and draw fouls and penalties for his team, but I think his honesty has done just that on its own. Refs watch soccer. They know the players who dive, even if they don’t get it right every time. It seems Messi sometimes gets calls just because of his clean, honest play.
I’ve read a lot of your posts, and I think you love the game of soccer just as much as I do. From my experience when you love something you respect it. You don’t cheat on it because in the end it all comes back around. Respect for the game is a missing ingredient in the modern soccer experience. I think soccer is the best game in the world, but when i see diving, pulling shirts, hand ball goals, reckless tackles, dissent to refs, disrespect for refs, and more, I am ashamed to be so readily affiliated with the sport.
With the right attitude, passion, honesty and love for the game there is no way to lose. Even in defeat we are humble and can appreciate the opportunity to learn from our mistakes. Its a win-win situation.
When you cheat its a lose-lose situation. When you win a game the joy and fulfillment is hallow and fleeting. Your subconscious knows the truth.
Looking forward to a response.
Hi Oliver, and thanks for your thoughtful comments!
I am dedicating an entire post to respond.
I’ll try to publish it by tomorrow …