Is Bale A Diver????? Na.........

[Metalanimal]

2 games in a row Bale has been booked by eager refs for what they feel is diving, I like AVB's response in the media saying that Bale has to take evasive action to protect himself, very viable that!!!

Personally I dont think Bale is a diver and the last thing we need is refs looking at Bale in that way, how does everyone else view Bales recent yellows cards, play acting or Bale-ing out to prevent possible injury?

[baldbloke]

2 games in a row Bale has been booked by eager refs for what they feel is diving, I like AVB's response in the media saying that Bale has to take evasive action to protect himself, very viable that!!!

Personally I dont think Bale is a diver and the last thing we need is refs looking at Bale in that way, how does everyone else view Bales recent yellows cards, play acting or Bale-ing out to prevent possible injury?

For some while I have got really p155ed off with certain players being branded as divers. If your running at the speed of light and someone sticks a foot out, it is natural to dive over it. Sometimes you may get clipped, and other times not. The fact is that only a complete fool would run into that foot and injury themselves. Although Bale made a bit of a drama out of it yesterday, he was clearly fowled. I am more than capable of objective thinking, and will quite often stick up for the opposing player or team, but on this occasion I can quite clearly state, Bale is NOT a diver.

[Metalanimal]

Big Martin Jol has been quoted saying the same thing Bale is not a diver, just hope refs dont target him from now on.

[spursjoolz]

Last season Bale has blatantly dived on 2 occasions that I have seen and didn't get booked. He is now being punished for making a meal when he goes down on the tiniest of contacts,  He needs to change his tactics or fear getting booked everytime he goes down or refs will single him out.

Personnally, I dont think he is a diver if you compare him with others,  but perhaps he should have stayed on his feet for some of those.

[dimexi]

I cannot stand diving, it has no part in an honest game which involves contact. I hate it when people (pundits) use the phrase there was contact so it cannot be a dive. The definition, which I think would hold up on video evidence if needed. (to give retrospective cards for fouls or diving) It is very simple, a player must have contact with the ground in order to be able to play. If a tackle comes in and the player takes the weight of his feet first it is a dive even if the player then makes contact with him after. The player is diving, trying to get a foul, he has made no attempt to stay on his feet. This can be clearly seen when a player puts himself into a dive body position before contact. Players are very good at disguising it but I think that in every tackle you can see if the tackler has made contact before the dive position.

Worse than this are the players that take the weight off their feet and then let their trailing leg make contact with the tackler, this is blatant cheating.

Has Bale gone to ground without contact? Yes, so he is a diver, maybe not the worst but he is one. I hope he changes this aspect of his game. However, in this instance it was not a dive. The problem is that Bale puts himself into a pathetic dive position. With the speed that he travels it is hard for the ref to see the contact first, and his dive position does not suggest that any contact was made. Now I know that some people will say if a tackle is coming in the player must protect himself. A standing foot is what causes a broken leg. I have no problem with a player jumping to avoid, but if that is what you are doing jump and then land, don't throw your head and arms back, because that becomes a dive. You are trying to win the foul, which referees should give anyway. 

[Glenn R]

Bale isn't a diver. He has just been unlucky.

[pieboy]

Bale has been in for some rought treatment of late( Charlie Adams for one has made some terrible challenges against him)
So I get the point that he needs to hurdle some of these challenges to prevent himself from getting badly hurt.
But there's no doubt that Bale on many occasions has taken a dive, and if he is not careful every fall he makes , the ref will assumed he has dived. Meaning we could lose legit penalty calls.

This was one from a few weeks ago( I don't think he got booked for it either)
I remember of a couple of dives just like this last season.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FbaUhiS4lgU&feature=youtube_gdata_player

[ugs]

Bale is not a diver in the sense of he is looking to throw himself over any unsuspecting body part that is put in his way....... but he is really making the most of every little contact that he feels and at times it does look like he has been taking lessons from Tom Daley !!!!
 
If your clipped then just go down but quit the double somersault with half twist and pike !!!!
 
 

[Glenn R]

I see Ginola has come out to defend Bale over diving.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/20587205

Watching Match of the day on Saturday they said that they didn't think he dived but the way he fell made it look dramatic.

[Metalanimal]

Ginola, now he was class in the THFC shirt! and passionate about winning!

I think it was George Graham who sold him on??? what a wanka

[RiffHard]

I hate diving and other theatrics in football, it's awfully unfair and bad influence on kids. Bale has dived, yes, other Spurs players of past and present have also dived, but none of them are divers like C. Ronaldo, Nani or Robben. Actually almost every football player has dived to get a free-kick, penalty etc.

Bale has been hurt on numerous occasions and f**king up star players has always been an issue (just go and look at some videos of players trying to stop Best, Pele or Maradona, some awful challenges there) and as I've played football myself and had a fair share of injuries, I can only say that injury is not only physical problem, it's a psychological problem as well and by that I mean that after shaking off the injury player will try to evade any possibility of getting the same injury again. And, by avoiding clumsy/late/malicious challenges some players tend to overplay it and it can look like diving, and to be fair, sometimes it is. Bale has a long career ahead of him and (for example) an ankle fracture could effectively put an end to it.

Now, I mentioned C. Ronaldo before... I don't like him but I obviously rate him. He has a reputation of a diver and I believe him to be one, but I admit, some of his dives are definitely consequences of players going after his ankles and who wants to be hurt or put out of the game?

Taking the ball away from a skilled player is a difficult task, breaking his leg and putting him out of the game is easy-peasy. We all know what Thierry Henry has said about Ledley King - he thinks King was the best defender he ever played against because he was the only one able to tackle him without fouling him.