On Monday, Brazil defeated Mexico 2-0 to advance to the 2018 World Cup quarterfinals in a relatively drama-free contest aside from one controversial moment: Brazil’s Neymar took what looked to be a hard tackle and lay on the ground, writhing in agony. A card for Mexico’s Miguel Layún looked to be in the books, until VAR showed the magnitude of the tackle, which appears at about the 0:32 mark of the video:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Pdq2RFQQFmo
Immediately condemned for his actions, Neymar represents a long line of footballers who utilize the art of the flop in order to secure victory for their side. The point of flopping should be to draw attention to a foul rather than trying to sell a foul that never happened, as Neymar did. Take a look at this clip from the 2016 Copa América Centenario final, in which Argentina’s Lionel Messi appears to get taken down in the penalty area by a Chilean defender. There is contact and a foul on a clear chance for Argentina, yet Messi is booked for diving on the play.
Although Messi may have dived on the play, there was a clear foul and a penalty should have been rewarded. Since the game went goalless before Chile won on penalties, this proved to be arguably the biggest moment of the game, possibly costing Argentina the Copa title. The way Messi fell however, is the way diving should be done: to draw attention to a foul that actually happened, as compared to Neymar trying to make it seem like a foul happened. Unfortunately, that is usually what players try to do when flopping in soccer. It is making the game harder to watch, as players go down with the slightest touch from an opponent, and the officials end up fooled. It can also be bad for the players being tackled, as they may suffer Messi’s fate and get booked wrongly. FIFA and the refs need to become stricter towards the issue to see any change in this disgraceful trend, and to possibly save the Beautiful Game.
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