West Ham United’s Manuel Lanzini charged for diving in match at Stoke
The Football Association have charged West Ham United’s Manuel Lanzini for diving during Saturday’s Premier League match at Stoke. The alleged dive earned West Ham a penalty, from which they scored the game’s first goal. Stoke’s Erik Pieters didn’t touch Lanzini. And the FA’s three-person panel of “independent” experts will decide if Lanzini dived or was forced into evasive action.
If found guilty, Lanzini will get a two-match ban and be branded a cheat – just as Oumar Niasse was when he became the first Premier League player to be banned for diving.
“He’s clearly dived. He’s a clever player, he’ll draw a foul or some kind of challenge but he wasn’t clipped,” moaned Stoke’s manager Mark Hughes after the match. “Referees need to get match-defining decisions correct and he certainly didn’t get that one correct.”
Oddly, Hughes was less upset when Stoke played Arsenal earlier in the season, during which the Gunners were wrongly denied two penalty shouts. Hughes declared himself to be “delighted” with the outcome.
The game is full of bias. So here’s David Moyes, the West Ham manager, on the alleged dive: “Manu has ran 70 yards and probably ran his race at the end of it. I think the defender going to ground means the referee has a choice to make. I don’t think there’s any intent regarding a dive. I think he’s riding the tackle more than anything. If you take the whole action into consideration, I definitely don’t see it being a dive. I see it being tiredness at the end of it but I don’t see a dive.”
He didn’t dive. He was having a rest.
Manuel Lanzini should expect a ban from the FA after this ridiculous dive today vs Stoke! pic.twitter.com/bVVo2TghCv
— Transfer Swoop (@SwoopTransfer) December 16, 2017
Posted: 18th, December 2017 | In: News, Sports Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
