Rio Ferdinand has dismissed the suggestion that Harry Kane dived to win Tottenham Hotspur a penalty against Everton.
Although Tottenham were dominating proceedings against the Toffees and looking menacing in the final third, it took a penalty kick just before the hour mark for the home side to take the lead.
The spot-kick was won by Kane, who was first to the ball after Jordan Pickford spilt Matt Doherty’s short, with the Everton goalkeeper then pushing his head into the Tottenham striker’s feet to trip him.
Despite having missed the last penalty that he took against Eintracht Frankfurt, Kane confidently blasted it into the corner past his England teammate to send Spurs on their way to a 2-0 win.
However, predictably, the England captain has been accused by many opposition fans on social media of diving to earn the penalty.
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However, Ferdinand was having none of that, insisting that the 29-year-old was clearly fouled.
When asked if Kane dived, the former Manchester United defender said on his YouTube channel Rio Ferdinand Presents FIVE: “No way. He might have simulated a little bit, but Pickford touches him, he goes down. It’s a penalty.”
Spurs Web Opinion
It was clearly a foul by Pickford and any player in Kane’s position would go down to bring the referee’s attention to the foul.
Asking whether the contact was enough to bring him down misses the point, as we know that referees encourage players to go down when they have been fouled. Otherwise, they do not tend to give penalties.
Only if a player goes down without any contact can it be termed a ‘dive’, which clearly was not the case on this occasion.
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