Gerrard "is a diver"

[Alan Key]

If Ronaldo had done what Gerrard did on Sunday, this board would have exploded. Same with Drogba. When gerrard does the same thing, there is a debate as to whether it is a dive.

A quick youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvWMR4ulwuo

Excuse me on this one, it's an awful watch, but two of them are terrible dives:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uVb2gbMtN3I&feature=related

He dives, as do a lot of players, but he dives.

[Shaggy]

Hi Speedy

[tommyg]

Theres no rewards for honesty in football....

[Reece]

Theres no rewards for honesty in football....

Apart from the Fair Play award.

[tommyg]

Apart from the Fair Play award.

If that could be exchanged for the premiership im sure that diving would cease to exist!

[ufc43]

Pretending to have been fouled/simulation? Ie, going to ground under no contact...a dive.

However, if a player dives in and makes contact, as Friedel did, then a foul has been committed. Gerrard just tries to exagerate it to try and make sure the ref gives it. I don't like him doing it, but it's not a dive.

But thanks for providing me with the information that proves the point.

So not only did he dive, he is a cheat also??

[akjs123]

once again after seeing further evidence i stand more firmly, it's a blatant dive and you see that he isn't standing on his left leg when friedel makes contact, you can see that he's trailing his left toe when contact is being made. he's already has it in his mind that he's going doe way way before that happens. you can see how long his last step is and how he starts to jump way before friedel arrives. second if he had been standing on his left leg and a friedel knocked him of it no way would he have been falling to the left like he did, most like he would have fallen in the opposite direction, and if gerrard had been standing in that leg when contact was made he would have hurt himself real bad as there is nothing like a tackle on the standing leg, his leg would have been left behind and actually could have suffered an horrific injury, but you can clearly see that when contact is being made he's not standing on it anymore, and thats further evidence that this is a dive...

Mate if you analyse the way Gerrard runs, you will find that the shape of his left foot is normal. See the first video I uploaded and see the shape of the foot on which he lands in the steps he takes in his run. Also notice that it takes him little time to change to that shape and it is no different for the third step. The only thing now is that his right foot's direction has been changed by Friedel so it hasnt moved forward.

you can see how long his last step is and how he starts to jump way before friedel arrives

his last step has to be long because he has to get a touch on the ball.




if you are suggesting that gerrard has decided to dive at this point, then see how far Friedel is from him and he has calculated that his right leg will be fouled by Friedel, then he also knows that his left is very close to his right and that he will be taken by Friedel anyway so there is no need for diving in the first place.
I could even argue that if he has calculated that Friedel will come in contact, then by your own admission, if he is standing on his left then he has a good chance of injury so he has tried to avoid it but from what I have seen, I believe that it is his normal way of running as I tried to point out at the starting of this post.

[Skillz]

FFS it was embarrassing. He looked for it and played for it. He quite rightly lost and admitted it after the game to his credit.

[dww]

Steven Gerrard - "I don't think there's anything worse than a player diving when no one's been anywhere near him. It does ruin the game. If I saw a team-mate doing it, I would definitely have a word" (The Daily Mail, April 1st 2006)

Steven Gerrard is a hypocrite!

No he is just giving more honest team mates some good solid advice. If you are going to pretend to be fouled at least do it near a member of the opposition. Realism is everything.

[DaHongDe]

I believe the referee had four alternatives:

1. Penalty
2. Goal Kick and yellow for Gerrard (for simulation / unsporting conduct)
3. Free Kick to Blackburn and yellow for Gerrard (on the basis that Gerrard may have kicked Freidel - again unsporting or reckless challenge)
4. No clear foul therefore goal Kick and nothing else

This is not clear cut at all which is why I think the referee went for option 4. The referee would have needed to be convinced of a foul (either way) or of simulation to choose anything else. He may have been leaning towards option 2, but Gerrard's reaction (i.e. not really interested in a pen) may have ruled that out in the mind of the referee.

Looking at the replays, what I find interesting is the reaction of the Blackburn fans in the front row - they obviously felt it was penalty when they saw it live.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=GJmdfJfkw3Y&feature=related

[Skillz]

I believe the referee had four alternatives:

1. Penalty
2. Goal Kick and yellow for Gerrard (for simulation / unsporting conduct)
3. Free Kick to Blackburn and yellow for Gerrard (on the basis that Gerrard may have kicked Freidel - again unsporting or reckless challenge)
4. No clear foul therefore goal Kick and nothing else

This is not clear cut at all which is why I think the referee went for option 4. The referee would have needed to be convinced of a foul (either way) or of simulation to choose anything else. He may have been leaning towards option 2, but Gerrard's reaction (i.e. not really interested in a pen) may have ruled that out in the mind of the referee.

Looking at the replays, what I find interesting is the reaction of the Blackburn fans in the front row - they obviously felt it was penalty when they saw it live.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=GJmdfJfkw3Y&feature=related

That's all well and good but I saw it live on TV and wasn't convinced. I was then subjected to many replays and it was an obvious attempt to leave a leg in and go down. I have denigrated Ronaldo for this for 2 years so when I see Stevie do it I have no choice but to call it.

Ronaldo is a lot better at it though

EDIT: just want to say that I think Steven Gerrard is almost the best player in the World. He can get there by winning trophies. If we play Manure in the final I feel we are very much underdogs. However we have the experience and for me, WE HAVE STEVEN GERRARD.

He will do it because he is scouse. Carra will back him up, but if we are to win, if we play off, Gerrard will be key.

Sidenote. Torres could be key too. Just covering my bases

[Scratch]

So not only did he dive, he is a cheat also??

****s sake, lets try this again, using small, one or two syllable words...it's not a dive cos there is contact, and by making the most of the contact he makes sure the referee is well aware of it. Something Gary Lineker used to do very well.

A dive is when a player goes down under no contact.

Gerrard no more "dives" than Torres does. But Torres is the golden boy and beyond criticism, even if sometimes he goes down quicker that a cheap whore.

[einar]

****s sake, lets try this again, using small, one or two syllable words...it's not a dive cos there is contact, and by making the most of the contact he makes sure the referee is well aware of it. Something Gary Lineker used to do very well.

A dive is when a player goes down under no contact.

Gerrard no more "dives" than Torres does. But Torres is the golden boy and beyond criticism, even if sometimes he goes down quicker that a cheap whore.

I disagree. A dive is not doing all you can to stay up.

[Shaggy]

A dive is when a player goes down under no contact.

Who says? You?

A dive is a dive whether there's contact or not. A dive is when a player voluntarily hits the deck, when a player actively chooses to go to the ground - contact or no contact.

Minimal contact does not make it okay to "exaggerate" and go down like you've been shot.

Your comments smack of someone who hasn't played much, if any football.

It's a contact sport and contact doth not a foul make. End of.

[Tee]

I disagree. A dive is not doing all you can to stay up.

How do you define doing all you can to stay up?