It is nearly two years since Jose Mourinho entered into the consciousness of English football fans with all the subtlety of a nuclear blast. As Arjen Robben rolled around the ground at Stamford Bridge a few weeks ago (without any condemnation from his manager) I was reminded of my first acquaintance with the ‘‘special one”.
In 2004, besides his brash arrogance and touchline jig at Old Trafford, Mourinho and his FC Porto side knocked Manchester United out of the European Champions League, displaying signs of something that is totally unwelcome in the British game.
The epidemic of diving is something sadly not uncommon in the Premiership these days but Mourinho’s Porto side took it to new levels over the two legs of their encounter with United.
As the Times launched a campaign this week to stamp out the diving disease that is infecting the British game and in light of recent incidents involving Robben and Charlton Athletic striker Darren Bent, league managers lined up to criticise the recent spread of the virus threatening to break the very values at the fabric of the British game.
Physical but above all fair football was once the trademark of English Premiership football. Down through the years this reputation has been gradually eroded, to such an extent that we can all mention players who appear to spend as much time practising their acting skills as they do controlling a football.
One of the most surprising names to be caught up in the controversy last week was Darren Bent. Darren Bent! Proof, if any was needed, that this most loathed feature of the Italian and Spanish leagues, amongst many others, is now beginning to enter the psyche of young British and Irish players.
Jose Mourinho is not responsible for the diving phenomenon which is now ruining Premiership matches for fans and players alike, far from it. However his silence on the issue is proof positive of a failure to add his weight to the anti-diving campaign. His attitude is disappointing in the extreme.
It may be something that is shown a blind eye in the rest of Europe but, along with all the many positive things that the “foreign players” have brought to the Premiership, managers, referees and the football authorities must be firm in their convictions – diving is not a welcome feature of our national game.
About the team
This story was written and edited by John Monaghan, 18. It was published on the Reach for the Sky website.
