http://www.tsn.ca/soccer/news_story/?ID ... ame=soccer
Jamie Bell
10/7/2007 3:50:42 PM
One particular incident this past Wednesday illustrated perfectly why soccer will never be a major sport in North America.
During Wednesday's Champions League encounter between Celtic and AC Milan, Scottish striker Scott McDonald scored an enormous goal at the death to secure all three points for the Glasgow giants. Not surprisingly this drove the fans at Celtic Park into a frenzy. One particular "fan", a 27-year old idiot from Glasgow, decided that he would attempt to "rub it in" on Milan's goalkeeper Dida. This yahoo ran on to the pitch and gave the Brazilian a light slap on the face before running off. This supporter was apparently taught the "5-point palm exploding heart technique" under the cruel tutelage of Pai Mei (of Kill Bill fame) because Dida took five steps towards the supporter before collapsing in a heap.
It's not for me to say how much the slap to the face actually hurt Dida (although I'm guessing not much) however he needed to be taken off the field in a stretcher after the incident. What certainly was hurt however was Dida's reputation.
This episode of "play acting" was an embarrassment to anyone who loves the beautiful game. Publicly Dida's own teammate, countryman Kaka called the incident "wrong" while his coach Carlo Ancelotti said that Dida made a big mistake by reacting as he did. Privately Milan's president Silvio Berlusconi is reportedly furious with Dida for tarnishing the club's reputation and has already gone in search for his replacement in between the sticks for Milan.
Sadly feigning injuries has become as intrinsic to the game as shin pads and orange wedges at half-time. Teams at all levels of skill often take a dive or go to ground with a phantom injury in an attempt to gain an advantage. Referees have been told to crack down on such incidents, but it is incredibly difficult to determine in a split second if the offender is acting or genuinely hurt. The more that these type of incidents continue to happen, the more desensitized we become, but lets call a spade a spade here…it is cheating pure and simple.
This epidemic is not a matter of race or nationality as I have seen several players who I consider honorable go to the ground, writhing in agony only to be revitalized seconds later by the magic sponge. As a fan of football you shake your head and hope it doesn't happen again. However non-football fans view episodes such as Wednesday's as just another reason to disregard soccer.
Working at TSN you run into fans of every sport under the sun, however no sport divides people as much as soccer. I have had arguments with peers whom I consider intelligent that hold soccer with as much contempt as professional wrestling, largely due to the diving and faking of injuries. Anytime there is a high profile incident, such as Dida's fall, it gives the "haters" more ammunition and there is nothing that can be said to dissuade their beliefs.
A lot of North American sports fans believe that the leagues that they follow are immune to this sort of activity. That assessment is obviously ridiculous. I remember quite clearly an episode from 2004 playoffs where Montreal Canadiens forward Mike Ribiero went to the ice as if he had been shot in a first round game against the Bruins. Boston was accessed a penalty and Ribiero was back on the bench laughing seconds later.
Flopping in the NBA has become a common occurrence, former Raptors guard Morris Peterson (a good guy by all accounts) is one of the best in the league at it. As well it is not uncommon to see a defensive lineman in football suddenly cramp up and fall to the ground to stall as an opposing team's offense is driving late in a game. Yet these are all considered smart, tactical plays rather cheating in the mind of the typical North American sports fan.
I would hate to call it prejudice, but there is a certain amount of anti-European/South American sentiment to this sort of thing. North American sports fans want their heroes to play tough, which is something David Beckham discovered in his first season on this side of the pond.
Beckham was hounded by media and fans alike after playing only limited minutes for the Los Angeles Galaxy when he first arrived from Real Madrid. Despite suffering through an ankle injury, Beckham knew he had to take the field and earn his huge salary otherwise he would be considered "soft," a cardinal sin in pro sports. He also discovered two more things: firstly, that the Galaxy are not very good and secondly, lesser skilled players will constantly attempt to negate his skills by attacking him physically.
The Galaxy are lacking any sort of "hard man" in the mold of a Roy Keane who would stick up for star players, so Beckham was forced to take the abuse that was being dished out. To Beckham's credit he never backed down, he refused to flop anytime he was touched so players began to take liberties against him. This led directly to a devastating knee injury during a SuperLiga final against Pachuca. Now Beckham's season remains in doubt due to the fact that he attempted to appeal to the North American "tough guy" image.
It's a real catch-22 for the former England captain as now he must sit on the sidelines and wonder where it all went wrong. He came to America to help bring soccer to the masses and instead became a symbol of why exactly soccer is considered a second class sport on this side of the Atlantic. To these fans he was just another overpaid, injury-faking foreigner playing a game that kids play before they are athletic enough to take up a "traditional" sport such as football, baseball, basketball or hockey.
The most marketable player that soccer has ever had is now undoubtedly questioning his decision and contemplating if he would have been wiser to stay in Europe where a well timed dive is still considered a valuable tool.
