The Big Dive!

I wrote a blog the other day that included judgment calls in the game of soccer. I spoke of a hand balls and the honesty/dishonesty that surrounds it. The one factor in professional soccer that really gets me going is the exaggeration of a foul. What is known as taking a dive, diving, or simulation has become a big concern in the soccer world. The referees can only see so many things at one time on the pitch. They have to make calls that they might not have seen to clearly and if they see a downed player holding a body part in agony, the closest opposing player stands a good chance of receiving a yellow card. These dives can be exaggerated to the point that where they were initially contacted was not the area that they were nursing when the referee comes to make a judgment. The players could have been running side by side and one of the players would contact the other player in the chest. It would not be that uncommon for that player to then take a dive and roll around on the ground holding his face. Simply by looking at the review of the play, which the referee does not have access to, the player is obviously putting on a show. What the leagues are now starting to do is they will give the player who is faking the injury a yellow card if they can prove that they were simulating the foul. It is one way to make the players think twice before they try to pull a fast one on the referees.