The Best Football Players Are Anti-malingerers

One of the most pressing issues in sports concerns fair play. At a time when simulations are becoming more common on football fields, it is important to single out those players whose honesty has become an example to follow.

Roy Keane

This Irish central midfielder represents the quintessence of British football in the 90s. Roy Keane, the captain of Manchester United, is described by a steely character, intransigence in the fight and recklessness. He never lied on the field and did not forgive his teammates. The most vivid story, describing, at times, the wild temper of a Mancunian, is the case with Alf-Inge Holann. By the way, modern online casinos aus offer many slots based on the history of football, including the biography of this football player.

The father of the current Manchester City star in a match of the 1997/1998 season, after a clash with Roy, allowed himself to reproach him for simulation, although the episode for the midfielder ended with torn “crosses”, which left him out of the game for a long time. Four years later, they crossed paths again on the field. It turned out that all this time Captain MU was eager for this meeting and at the first opportunity “drove” into Hollan with two legs, effectively ending his career.

Andrey Shevchenko

The striker, who has excellent plasticity, could deftly evade rivals throughout his career. Defenders in the Italian championship often fouled the Milan star, but all violations were recorded in the case and were never provoked by forward simulations. The player was always on the verge of serious injuries, because in order to stop him, the Ukrainian was literally “mowed down” on the field.

When he joined Chelsea, journalists asked if he was afraid of the same criticism from fans that came down on Drogba, who liked to make “dives” into the opponents’ penalty area. However, Sheva affirmatively stated his dislike for such a style of play, which captivated London fans.

Dirk Keith

Of course, this Dutch striker is not one of the cohort of great players, but with his honesty on the football field, he made all the fans respect him. Being a real “plowman”, he rushed for any ball in his selection attempts and could never afford to cheat free kicks, as many of his colleagues did. The Dutchman’s high level of honesty even turned into a meme a few years ago. Then a video with an explicit simulation of a football player was distributed on the network, which, in fact, turned out to be just a filmed episode from a popular football simulator.

Miroslav Klose

Fair play is not an empty expression for the legendary German striker, because he has adhered to these principles throughout his career. Two of the most famous episodes in the player’s career are indicative of this.

In one of the Bundesliga matches in 2005, he persuaded the referee to put a penalty on him, as Klose considered that there was no contact with the opponent. Almost 10 years later, playing for his last club in Lacio’s career, Miro scored with his hand. Unlike the iconic Argentinian, he did not invent anything about the hand of God and honestly told the match referee about foul play. Then the Romans lost to Napoli 0:3, but every Neapolitan player expressed his respect to Klose.

Lionel Messi

At the dawn of the Messiah’s career, he did not give up such a dirty trick as simulation. No wonder, because with his playing style, fouls are showered on the player almost in a cascade. However, as he got older, he reconsidered his views and in the course of his later career earned himself the reputation of one of the most honest football players.

It is noteworthy that for almost all dribblers, diving and cardboard falls are an integral part of the game, and with Lionel’s phenomenal skill, there are two or even three times more reasons for “falls”. He could have earned a lot of free kicks and cards for opponents, but instead he prefers to find the best playing solution on the field. At the same time, a football player can push himself and skillfully play with his body, despite his modest size. In the mature stage of his career, there were several cases when a player fell on the field without permission, but at the same moment signaled the referee about the simulation. 

The footballers above have proved that to achieve success, you need not only talent and skill, but also unwavering honesty and respect for the game. Their example should inspire both professionals and football fans, while continuing to fight for the integrity of the game.