John Obi Mikel is scythed down by Peter Crouch in a two footed tackle and the Nigerian midfielder is unable to continue the game. Crouch was red carded and rightly so but he made clear that Mikel was play acting. It would have been fine if Crouch had confined himself to these remarks. But then he went onto say.
What I’m thinking is if you go in on Frank Lampard or John Terry would they roll around like Obi Mikel did? I don’t think they would have done.
“Would someone like Carra [Jamie Carragher] have gone down like that? I think it’s safe to say that he wouldn’t.
“Foreign players have brought a lot to our game but that’s something you don’t want to see. I didn’t catch him but he’s gone down like he’s been shot.”
Crouch’s remarks come on the heels of an English establishment consciously putting out a mantra that the present woes bedeviling their soccer is due to the influx of foreign players. The media have gotten into the act.
The Premiership has become the most watched league in the world for a number of reasons, one is the undeniable skills of its foreign players. Crouch’s ignorant remarks deflect another reason why Premiership soccer is so popular, foreign players have benefited too from the relatively clean style of soccer played in England by curtailing their diving. Its a two way street. Avram Grant is right, Crouch did the right thing by acknowledging his mistake and should have left it at that. He should have not used it as an excuse to indict foreign players but maybe his remarks are a reflection of the present climate of conveniently pinning the blame on foreigners.