Divers, Cheats, and Chelski!!

**wendigo100** · 27 March 2006, 12:38

Without wishing to defend the ridiculous Drogba, his instability stems from that Barcelona keeper last season, who got him sent off by feigning injury.

It's the way football is now. Show me a team without divers and I'll show you a team that doesn't win anything.

Quite plainly, it is not possible for referees and their assistants alone to sort it out. The only chance they have got is by using video replays at the time, not after the match.

**Dundeegeorge** · 27 March 2006, 12:40

So do you reckon the FA will be

Originally posted by shaunbhoy

I see Diddy Dogbath is still playing his football in the long established style of the "Special One" then! A bloody disgrace, mind you hardly surprising. Moronho has assembled a more expensive collection of cheats at Chelsea than the ones he presided over at Porto. Makes you feel sorry for the John Terrys and Frank Lampards of this world that they have to share the stage with the Robbens, Coles, and Drogbas of this world. How embarrassing for them. They'll be signing Rudolf Nureyev next!

handing out a retrospective card for this, or does that only apply to other teams? And will he be fined for bringing the game into disrepute?
Oh, and I noticed it was almost unremarked in here (which is odd giving the preponderance of Scots) about the death of Jimmy Johnstone. A real class act, sad to see him die so young.

**shaunbhoy** · 27 March 2006, 12:46

Originally posted by wendigo100

Without wishing to defend the ridiculous Drogba, his instability stems from that Barcelona keeper last season, who got him sent off by feigning injury.

Sounds suspiciously like you ARE defending him. No, if you want to put a timeline on it, pencil in his becoming familiar with the tactics of a certain J Mourinho. He has a real track record of encouraging that sort of thing.

**DaveB** · 27 March 2006, 12:47

On an almost entirely unrelated note.....

SOFIA (Reuters) - A Bulgarian third division football match was called off after only three minutes at the weekend when one of the teams was reduced to six men.

Struggling Chepinec arrived for their match at Pirin Blagoevgrad on Saturday with only seven players but one of them suffered an injury in the third minute and with no substitute available the referee was forced to blow the final whistle.

At the time the score was 1-0 to Pirin and the result stood. Under football rules a team cannot continue with less than seven players on the field.

Pirin Blagoevgrad were expelled from the Bulgarian premier league after two games over unpaid taxes but the club was allowed to play in the country's amateur championship.

**Phoenix** · 27 March 2006, 13:00

Originally posted by shaunbhoy

Sounds suspiciously like you ARE defending him. No, if you want to put a timeline on it, pencil in his becoming familiar with the tactics of a certain J Mourinho. He has a real track record of encouraging that sort of thing.

Drogba is giving Chelsea a bad name and should be punished for his pretending.
However Shaunboy, you must be a young lad of maybe 10 or 12 years......trying to make this sound like a new invention of the Mourinho era...
Even a former best footballer in the world had problems cheating...this is not new....and you have only fallen for the media hipe! as usual.....

**Dundeegeorge** · 27 March 2006, 13:06

If you're referring to Maradonna

Originally posted by Phoenix

Drogba is giving Chelsea a bad name and should be punished for his pretending.
However Shaunboy, you must be a young lad of maybe 10 or 12 years......trying to make this sound like a new invention of the Mourinho era...
Even a former best footballer in the world had problems cheating...this is not new....and you have only fallen for the media hipe! as usual.....

as the former best footballer in the world, then I would say you're comparing apples and pears. Maradonna still retains massive affection because he was a massively talented footballer. I'm not sure that Drogba is fit to clean, let alone wear his boots. Having said that, that doesn't excuse cheating, but I would suggest that Maradonna is entitled to far more leeway than a hack like Drogba merely because of the huge differences in their abilities. It's only a spectator sport after all.

**shaunbhoy** · 27 March 2006, 13:22

Originally posted by Phoenix

Drogba is giving Chelsea a bad name and should be punished for his pretending.
However Shaunboy, you must be a young lad of maybe 10 or 12 years......trying to make this sound like a new invention of the Mourinho era...
Even a former best footballer in the world had problems cheating...this is not new....and you have only fallen for the media hipe! as usual.....

If it were only Drogba that all might be true. But its not. Moreover, I don't recall Chelsea resorting so readily to this style under Ranieri, Vialli, or Gullitt. No, this is verging on institutionalised cheating. It is not just the diving and handballs either. It has become a fundamental part of their game under Mourinho and whilst many clubs have players that may indulge in this type of thing, at Stamford Bridge it has reached epidemic proportions. Sad really when they clearly have the best and biggest squad and resources in the land that they still feel the need to stoop so low.

**Mordac** · 27 March 2006, 15:25

Originally posted by Dundeegeorge

Maradonna still retains massive affection because he was a massively talented footballer.

Only in Scotland, and not because of his talent, either.

**stackpole** · 27 March 2006, 21:41

Originally posted by shaunbhoy

If it were only Drogba that all might be true. But its not. Moreover, I don't recall Chelsea resorting so readily to this style under Ranieri, Vialli, or Gullitt. No, this is verging on institutionalised cheating. It is not just the diving and handballs either. It has become a fundamental part of their game under Mourinho and whilst many clubs have players that may indulge in this type of thing, at Stamford Bridge it has reached epidemic proportions. Sad really when they clearly have the best and biggest squad and resources in the land that they still feel the need to stoop so low.

Under Ranieri, Vialli and Gullitt Chelsea never won the league. Under Mourinho they do.

Of course it is institutionalised cheating! But it isn't just under Mourinho, it is everywhere; under Wenger, Ferguson and Benitez. We only hear more about Chelsea now because they are top dogs. And because Porto beat Celtic a few years ago.

Professional football is like anything else, you push the boundaries to get an edge. Fans don't complain about it in Spain as much as we do because it is more part of the game over there.

To win the league or the European Cup these days you've got to have a few players who dive, squeal like a small girl, pressurize referees, use a sly hand to control the ball, tug shirts at corners.

Divers, Cheats, and Chelski!!