The 10 best football dives
Posted by Pierre Igot in: FootballNovember 4th, 2003 • 4:34 am
The Observer Sport Monthly has a list of what were, according to them, the top 10 best football dives of recent times.
It’s a fun read — but also a painful reminder of how much in football depends on player theatrics and less-than-reliable refereeing: West Germany winning the 1990 World Cup thanks to diving, French captain Laurent Blanc missing the final because of a dive by a Croatian player in the semi-final, etc.
I wonder if we’ll see some kind of reform of football refereeing practice in the near future. I suppose such problems have always been part of the game, but the extensive TV coverage of recent years has definitely introduced a new dimension that needs to be taken into account.
I am not claiming that I know how to go about using video replays in football matches, though. It’s definitely a tricky issue. But with all the modern technology that we have at our disposal, which enables even casual TV viewers to form a better, more reliable opinion than the referee on the pitch, something has to be done.