Embarrassing: How Can We Rid The Premier League Of Diving?

If you thought Gareth Bale moving to Spain to play for Real Madrid would bring the rate of diving down in the Premier League, then you were wrong.

Bale is a fantastic diver, one of the best, but there are still many players in the Premier League that are experts at trying to cheat the referee by pretending they are Tom Daley.

On New Year's Day I watched two live games. The first was Southampton vs Chelsea and that featured a 9.0 from Cheslea's Oscar. It certainly fooled me but the referee was wise to it and made the excellent decision to give a free kick to Southampton as opposed to a Chelsea penalty. 

The second game I watched was Manchester United vs Tottenham. In this game, United's Danny Welbeck provided a admirable 8.5 (not quite as good as Oscar's) half way through the second half as United looked to equalise. Welbeck's dive also dispelled the ridiculous notion that it is foreign players who are the main culprits when it comes to diving.

The diving debate has reared its ugly head again and it has been rife this season. No manager is able to honestly say that none of their players have been guilty of diving. It has become part of the game, unfortunately, and if the Premier League aren't furiously finding a way to eliminate the problem then they should be.

But what is that solution? It is a thorny issue but the obvious choice is administer greater punishment for repeat offenders. If a player is booked for diving once then they should receive a one match ban and a fine. If the same player is again shown a yellow card for diving then the consequences should be a three match ban and a heavier fine.

If the players recognise that diving will be result in bans and hefty fines then it will surely deter them. Currently, players probably aren't too bothered at trying to con the ref as they know that if the ref catches them red handed it will only result in a booking.

With all the furore that has been created by diving in recent weeks it would not surprise me in the slightest if there was a rule change or two.