And the Oscar goes to.....

I was watching the beautifull game of football the other night, when a friend of mine, Nicole, made a comment about football on mxit. The comment was about the fact that the modern football player likes to take a dive whenever another player tries to take the ball from him. And, to make matters worse, they often pretend to be injured, and then, if they manage to win a free-kick, the 'injury' just goes away.

This however, was not the first time that I have heard comments like this. Often people say that players like Didier Drogba and Cristiano Ronaldo are 'pussies' because they go to ground too easy when tackled. People (including my friend Nicole)
even make comments saying that these players should go and play a game of Rugby, to 'toughen-up', and see what a real tackle is.

This got me thinking: Why do players do some players 'dive'?

To me, the answer is pretty simple...To win a free-kick or a penalty!!!

See, if you 'dive', and your team gets a free-kick in a good position, they have a opportunity to score a goal. If your teammate does score a goal, then you basically assisted in your team's goal...had you not gone down, they wouldn't have scored. If you look at it that way, then you will realise that a perfectly timed 'dive' is often as important as a perfectly timed pass to a player in a goal-scoring position.

It seems to me that in modern football 'diving' when getting tackled, has become an art form of sorts. It has become a skill that can be as important as being able to kick the perfect volley, on target.

People say that 'diving' are destroying the beautifull game, and that players should be penalised more for doing this, but I feel that no matter what people say, and how much players get penalised, 'diving' is here to stay. Rather than fight it, we should try and embrace it. We should compliment a player when he gives a well-timed dive, and wins his team a free-kick or a penalty.

And for those who think that these players should go play a Rugby to 'toughen-up', I say this: That is a ridiculous statement!! Football players, play Football, and not Rugby! Then you might as well say that a Rugby player should go play netball, to work on his passing skills. You cannot compare pears with apples...they are different for a reason!

So...next time when you see a football player 'dive', instead of shouting "Hey, if you want a Oscar, go act in Hollywood,and not on the football pitch!!", rather take a moment to think exactly why the players 'dive'....