The eight most prolific divers in England's top divisions revealed
Relegated League One side Bristol Rovers have topped one table this season – being crowned the most prolific divers in England's top divisions.
The West Country team recorded eight yellow cards for simulation, the most of any team over the course of the past three seasons.
Advertisement
Premier League giant Chelsea followed with seven bookings for taking a tumble – the same number as Burton Albion.
Manchester City, Newcastle United, Crawley Town, Accrington Stanley and Barrow have been reprimanded six times each after being caught trying to con the ref.
(Image: SWNS)
Football statistician Statman Dave ran the numbers as part of Snickers' wider Off Your Game campaign, with the Deep Diving Audit offering a data-led look at diving across English football.
Dave O'Brien, who pored over match footage, referee reports and extensive game insights to reveal all the most dramatic diving data, said: 'Diving has always been a part of the game, but when you look at the numbers, like I've done for Snickers' Deep Diving Audit, it's clear that some clubs and players really know how to keep things interesting.
Advertisement
'Whether it's tactical, instinctive, or maybe even hunger-related, one thing is for sure, when players are off their game, it shows.
'And sometimes, it's not just the ball that goes rolling.'
Nearly all cases of diving occurred in the second half, with a particular uptick during the 90th minute – and 70 per cent of dives took place in the penalty area.
With Brighton & Hove Albion being named as the club players have dived against most in the Premier League.
Strikers are responsible for 26 per cent of all dives over the last three seasons, whereas in defence, only one centre-back was carded for a diving offence.
Advertisement
Looking at the 2024/25 campaign specifically, 75 per cent of dives occurred when the players' team wasn't winning, with the average dive last season lasting nine seconds.
Additionally, the average diving age is 22, they most typically wear white boots – and are also English, with these players making up 42 per cent of dives in the season just gone.
Diving in the men's game is significantly more prominent compared to the women's – with just one diving booking found on record from the last three seasons in the Women's Super League.
Snickers has enlisted football experts Statman Dave and Nada Allali to create a video which uncovers the most over-the-top tumbles across the England's top leagues.
Advertisement
Delia Lendais-Metral from the chocolate brand said: 'Let's face it, when you're hungry, you're not quite yourself.
'The Snickers Deep Diving Audit taps into those moments when things go slightly off, on or off the pitch.'
'Whether it's a mis-timed slide or a full-blown flop, this is a fun reminder that staying fuelled helps keep you on your game.'
Most dive-prone clubs of the past three seasons (22/23, 23/24, 24/25)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Times
2 hours ago
- New York Times
Rayan Cherki's lofted passes into the box can help Manchester City fill a Kevin De Bruyne-shaped hole
Now that the dust has settled on Manchester City's dramatic exit from the Club World Cup, they may begin to look back at the inaugural playing of this expanded version of the tournament for what it was; an incredibly lucrative, and fairly encouraging, two weeks in the American sunshine before their summer holidays. Advertisement Many will have expected Pep Guardiola's side to go further than the round of 16, maybe even win the entire competition. But while the eventful nature of their 4-3 defeat by Al Hilal of Saudi Arabia may leave a bitter taste in the mouth, the fluidity of City's attacking approach play throughout their four games in the U.S. — with new signings Rayan Ait-Nouri, Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki all involved — provided plenty to be excited about with the start of the next domestic season now just over a month away. There were moments against both Juventus in the final group match and then Al Hilal, in which City looked vulnerable on the transition, which had also been the bane of their failed title defence during the 2024-25 campaign. And in the Premier League — home to some of the stingiest, low-block defences and most devastating counter-attacking sides anywhere in Europe — there is work to be done to ensure that their counter-press is not unpicked as regularly as it was towards the end of last year. But equally important to City is that they have a variety of methods to continue creating chances against those deep defensive structures; to make their control of the ball count, and to take the game away from their opponents before the inevitable counter-charge arrives. In that respect, 21-year-old Cherki already looks to be a particularly shrewd addition to the squad. It's nothing we didn't know before — Cherki had already cultivated a reputation in French football as a maverick, a genuinely unpredictable creative player with an incredible variety of passes in his locker. Able to switch up the pace and the angle of an attack with quick flicks and two-footed play, he has been quick to prove his worth in a City shirt when it comes to floating passes into congested penalty areas, demonstrated with his immaculate assist for Phil Foden against Al Hilal, despite all 11 opposition players being between the Frenchman and the goal. The best attacking players increase their team's chances of scoring a goal by putting the ball exactly where the other lot's defenders don't want it to go, and in that regard, now-departed long-time City star Kevin De Bruyne was one of the best English football has ever seen. We are, of course, exceptionally early in Cherki's City career, which makes it impossible to tell where it all goes from here. But from what we've already seen, his lofted passes over the top of settled defences could be one method that club scouts identified to recoup at least some of the creative incision the club lost when De Bruyne left City last month after 10 years of sterling service. Flicking through the catalogue of Cherki's most dangerous passes, it's especially noticeable how inventive and skilful he can be when there are multiple defenders in the way. From across the width of the pitch, he is adept at getting his team into the penalty area, as illustrated by the quick ball-roll and punched pass through the lines for Lyon against Reims in the clip below. Though the pace and elevation of the original pass is a bit too much for Nicolas Tagliafico to handle, Cherki's ability to manipulate angles and find gaps often catches defences off-guard, taking multiple players out of the game with unexpected changes of direction and pace. That kind of cheekiness and imagination is at the heart of Cherki's game. This is a player able to chisel his way through set defences with a mix of technical skill and vision that few others can match. Here he is on France Under-21s duty (when he'd only just turned 19, by the way) in September 2022, running at the Belgium defence before spotting a scooped pass in to Elye Wahi, who takes the ball around the goalkeeper and scores. Pausing the clip at the moment of release (below) highlights the creativity of this assist. At speed, and midway through a mazy dribble, Cherki picks out a pass into the box that leaves opposition defenders flat-footed and unable to react to the surprise ball in behind them. It's something that could be invaluable to City as they look to break down teams intent on defending the edge of their own penalty area, with new team-mates such as Erling Haaland and Omar Marmoush able to pounce on those moments of uncertainty with bursts of acceleration and alert movement in the box. Bringing things back to the present day, data from SkillCorner helps to underline Cherki's capabilities when it comes to breaking down stubborn defensive structures. SkillCorner defines a low block as a recognisable, off-ball shape in which the average position of the deepest three defensive players is within their defensive third. In Ligue 1 last season, Cherki was the player to complete the most passes that led to goals within 10 seconds against said low-block defences (15), pointing to his lock-picking capabilities when the ball is at his feet. Advertisement Alongside the moments of quick-thinking and instinct, however, a more repeatable pattern is emerging; Cherki's lifted passes from deeper positions, or out wide. We saw a glimpse of his crossing ability as he came off the bench for France's senior team in a 5-4 defeat against Spain in the UEFA Nations League semi-finals last month, shifting the ball onto his left and digging out a cross for Randal Kolo Muani to head home and complete the night's scoring. Able to weight these looping passes so that they drop just behind the defensive line, Cherki can target the smallest of spaces to create big opportunities, even when the opposition are camped close to their goal. Where De Bruyne would eke out chances with those powerful, whipped, flat deliveries of his from out wide, Cherki's speciality seems to be pitching these golfing sand-wedge style approaches into the box, producing a near-identical pass to the Kolo Muani one for Foden to score City's third against Al Hilal below. Once again, look at the number of opponents massed in defence; Cherki is faced with what is essentially a back six, but it's the perfect weight of the pass that sees it drop just out of reach of both the central defenders and the goalkeeper for his team-mate to attack. MAN CITY ARE STILL IN THIS FIGHT!! MCI 3-3 HIL Watch the @FIFACWC | June 14 – July 13 | Every Game | Free | | #FIFACWC #TakeItToTheWorld #MCIHIL — DAZN Football (@DAZNFootball) July 1, 2025 Barely three minutes later in that same game, Cherki is at it again, but this time with his opposite foot. Straight from kick-off, he picks up the ball from Ruben Dias, ambles forward, and curls a pass right onto the chest of Marmoush in the penalty area. Unfortunately for City, the Egyptian fails to control, but it's another promising example of how Cherki can find the spaces in behind defences with pinpoint passing from all over the pitch, routinely turning low-probability possessions into high-value chances with his passing. Once again, the numbers corroborate Cherki's impact on the pitch, with the bar chart below underlining his creative ability. Opta's expected assists (xA), a metric that measures the likelihood that a given pass will become an assist for a goal, ranks Cherki as the player who moved the ball into dangerous areas most consistently per 90 minutes on the pitch across Europe's top five domestic leagues last season. Advertisement Increase the finishing ability of the centre-forward on the end of those passes, with Haaland and Marmoush now the likely targets rather than a 34-year-old Alexandre Lacazette, and logic dictates that the underlying quality of Cherki's deliveries should yield an even higher return than he enjoyed with Lyon. In addition to the clear quality City have added to the squad, they were notably dynamic in their off-ball movement at the Club World Cup, making sure to supply the likes of Cherki with options for the pass no matter how much the opposition sat off. According to SkillCorner, City completed 52 runs in-behind the defensive line against Al Ain of the United Arab Emirates in their second group game, and 41 against Juventus in the third one, having only completed 40 or more in four of their 38 Premier League games during the 2024-25 season. It's a sign that they are looking to stretch opposition back lines more regularly — largely through Marmoush and Haaland, but increasingly with late runs from deeper positions by Foden and Reijnders — and not just dominate possession in front of them. In the context of the campaign just gone, those movements are a welcome sight. When City were at their lowest ebb last winter, it often felt that attack could be the best form of defence, but they were too conservative on a number of occasions, unable to put teams away before their defensive disorganisation stung them at the other end of the pitch. The addition of long-time Liverpool assistant Pep Lijnders to the coaching team suggests that City will be making adjustments to their out-of-possession approach. But at the same time, a gradual uptick in direct, attacking runs — and the acquisition of a player in Cherki who is not afraid to take risks to try to find them — points to a City team who will be looking to overwhelm defences with their quality in the attacking third when the new season kicks off next month. And that, even from the neutral point of view, is very exciting news.
New York Times
2 hours ago
- New York Times
Sean Longstaff, Leeds' £10m bid and Newcastle's decisions over player sales
Should Sean Longstaff be sold by Newcastle United it will not be because Eddie Howe is desperate to offload the midfielder. The expectation since late 2024, when talks to extend his contract were essentially paused, has been that Longstaff would leave, either last January or this summer. Even though Newcastle have been standing firm and are attempting to extract more than £10million ($13.5m) — which, alongside £2m in potential add-ons, represented Leeds United's third offer for the 27-year-old — it still seems likely Longstaff will depart. Advertisement While Howe is reluctant to lose any first-team squad members without the guarantee of quality replacements, there are wider considerations beyond merely on-field matters. As senior Newcastle figures have maintained over the past year, the club have to 'trade' outwards to ensure they navigate the Premier League's profit and sustainability rules (PSR). Here, The Athletic examines which members of the squad Newcastle may consider selling — and those they are adamant are going nowhere — this summer. This group can be boxed off fairly succinctly: any player who is in Howe's first XI — and especially their stars. Alexander Isak continues to be linked with Europe's top clubs, but Newcastle have been consistently bullish about their ability to keep hold of the 25-year-old. The striker has three years remaining on his contract and Newcastle are keen to hold extension talks, too. Hands-off warnings have also been issued for Sandro Tonali, Bruno Guimaraes and Anthony Gordon. Tino Livramento continues to be linked with Manchester City, but Newcastle are resolute in their determination to keep hold of the England international. There has been speculation about Harvey Barnes' future, given Gordon was the first-choice left-winger last season, yet Howe does not want to lose the 27-year-old. Even if James Trafford or another goalkeeper is signed, Howe intends to keep hold of Nick Pope, who is keen to stay and fight for his place. Longstaff has long appeared the most likely player Newcastle would look to sell. While the club exercised a 12-month extension clause in December, that was to protect the midfielder's value. In January, Newcastle received interest and were open to selling the midfielder, but Longstaff did not want to depart mid-season and was keen to lift the Carabao Cup with his boyhood club. Whether he is more receptive to leaving now remains to be seen. Advertisement As Newcastle's style has developed and with Tonali excelling, Longstaff has fallen to sixth-choice midfielder and has not started a Premier League match since December 12. Any fee received for Longstaff would represent 'pure profit' for PSR because he came through the academy, meaning Newcastle would bank all of the money. Given how sales and purchases are registered in the accounts, theoretically, a £10m-plus fee received for Longstaff would practically offset a £50m outlay on a signing who agrees a five-year deal because the cost of arrivals can be amortised over their contract. That is why Longstaff has long been identified as Newcastle's 'most saleable asset', even if ideally Newcastle want to recoup a higher fee than Leeds have offered. Yet Howe is hardly demanding that Longstaff be sold. The head coach believes his entire player pool requires strengthening and, even if Longstaff's minutes have been limited this year, the demands of Champions League football mean every squad member will be required in 2025-26. The head coach appreciates Longstaff's tactical understanding and work rate, plus the midfielder's connection with the club and its fanbase. Should Longstaff be sold, Howe will push for a like-for-like successor, which may prove costly, especially if they boast similar Premier League experience. Perversely, while Longstaff's status as an academy graduate is the main contributing factor to a potential sale, it is also why keeping him for a European campaign makes sense. UEFA's homegrown rules govern the Champions League and Longstaff is the only senior 'club-trained' first-team player on Newcastle's books. Should Longstaff leave, Newcastle would be restricted to a 21-man Champions League squad, four short of the maximum permitted 25. Although the club are confident they could cope — they can still register up to 25 senior players in the Premier League, and several squad members are aged 21 or under so do not have to be 'named' — it would be far from ideal. Advertisement The costs and benefits of allowing Longstaff to leave are being actively debated inside St James' Park and the offers received have not decisively tipped the balance towards selling. The expectation is that may well change as the summer progresses. The decision to keep or sell Longstaff will have a knock-on effect for Newcastle's business — both incoming and outgoing. Howe believes his squad lacks Premier League depth. Ideally, he would like to replace anyone who departs, whether with a like-for-like alternative or a versatile player who can cover positions. But Longstaff leaving would not necessarily guarantee another midfielder arriving. The profit from a Longstaff sale would significantly boost Newcastle's position on PSR and, should the midfielder stay, then recouping funds to be reinvested from elsewhere would be essential. Even if Longstaff goes, Newcastle may still look to reduce the wage budget and generate further 'headroom' for PSR from additional sales. Joe Willock is not actively for sale but, with just two years on his deal, Newcastle must consider sizeable offers for the 25-year-old. Should Willock and Longstaff leave, a midfielder would have to be brought in. Martin Dubravka's time at Newcastle appears to have reached a natural conclusion, especially if Trafford arrives. The 36-year-old goalkeeper signed an extension when there was interest from Saudi Arabia in January, but that always felt like a temporary solution. Dubravka wants game time and is unlikely to get much on Tyneside. Odysseas Vlachodimos is available. However, a permanent exit will be difficult to achieve, given Newcastle paid Nottingham Forest £20m for the Greece international last year and accepting a significantly lower fee will harm their PSR position. Instead, the 31-year-old, who has made only one substitute appearance, is more likely to depart on loan. Advertisement Kieran Trippier's situation is also uncertain. The 34-year-old is into the final 12 months of his deal and has been considering his options. He is one of Newcastle's higher earners, so an exit would reduce the wage bill, though Howe values his leadership and creative abilities. Matt Targett, the 29-year-old left-back, is available, while offers would likely be considered for Joe White, the 22-year-old midfielder, and Harrison Ashby, the 23-year-old right-back. Generating funds from sales this summer is essential — so if Longstaff does not leave, others must be offloaded instead.
New York Times
2 hours ago
- New York Times
Do Manchester United shirt numbers matter? Ask Cunha, Rashford… or Carrick
Do shirt numbers matter at Manchester United? Maybe see what Matheus Cunha or Marcus Rashford think. Last Tuesday, United's new red home shirt went on sale, with Cunha having taken Rashford's No 10. You could get one if you were willing to pay £85 ($115), plus another £20 to have Cunha's name and number, and a Premier League badge printed on it. Advertisement United had laid the ground for Rashford losing the No 10, to ward off potential 'outrage' news stories involving fans who had paid significant sums for a 'Rashford 10' shirt, only to find he didn't have it. Aside from Cristiano Ronaldo, Rashford has been the most popular shirt seller in the last decade, transcending the generational gap among supporters until his form slumped. Younger fans tend to go for younger attacking players (think Alejandro Garnacho and Amad last season), older fans might be more likely to pick Bruno Fernandes. Rashford, a Mancunian and lifelong United fan, did well across the board. The loss of his No 10 shirt to Cunha is another tangible sign that he doesn't feature in Ruben Amorim's plans. Shirt numbers on the back of fan shirts is a relatively new — and profitable — phenomenon and no club has exploited that better than United, whose merchandise arm has continued to perform remarkably well given the team's slump. That said, no shirts have sold as well as 'Ronaldo 7', which flew off the shelves even faster when he signed the second time round in August 2021 than during his first spell between 2003 and 2009. Four years ago, there were queues of fans outside the Old Trafford Megastore stretching down towards Hotel Football wanting to buy his jersey. New racks of shirts were brought to the shop floor in addition to the shirts normally hung on the walls. This had never been seen before since the Megastore opened 30 years ago. United's executives appreciated the importance of striking while the printing irons stayed hot, especially Ed Woodward, then chief executive, who convinced the Glazers that the numbers would stack up should they sign Ronaldo again. The fact that there was such a thing in football worldwide as a player-specific shirt — a 'hero shirt', in merchandising parlance — was partly because United had been so successful at commercially executing the idea since the 1990s. The No 7 has become United's most famous number (and 'No 7 at Old Trafford' was trademarked by the club in 2017) since George Best, Bryan Robson, Eric Cantona and David Beckham wore it before Ronaldo. It's perceived to be the shirt of a wide man or attacker, yet Best wore No 11 more than No 7 and Robson was a central midfielder (he also never wore that number in the Premier League, having been 'relegated' to No 12 by 1992). Advertisement In general, it is the forwards who shift the most jerseys, although there are notable exceptions. Beckham is the prime example but shirts with Juan Sebastian Veron's name on the back were also bestsellers, outstripping fellow new signing Ruud van Nistelrooy by four to one when the pair arrived in 2001. Veron's arrival was trumpeted as United signing a truly world-class player at his peak for the first time and the enthusiasm around that was reflected in sales, even if the move did not work out as fans hoped. Unsurprisingly, shirt sales go up and down with the form of the player. A shirt with a player's number and his name only became a practice in 1993-94, a year after the Premier League started. Before then, players could and did wear a variety of numbers, particularly if they were versatile. 'Played in every shirt number' used to be a proud boast. United began offering names and numbers printed on the back when players were given set squad numbers. Suddenly, a player could covet a preferred squad number. Just being given a squad number is a stepping stone for a young professional and that number tends to go lower as their career progresses. Ego is part of it. When the previously injured Zlatan Ibrahimovic became United's No 10 after Romelu Lukaku asked him if he could wear No 9, Ibrahimovic gave his blessing before noting that he'd 'upgraded' his shirt number. Given that Ferenc Puskas, Pele, Diego Maradona, Michel Platini, Roberto Baggio, Dennis Bergkamp, Zinedine Zidane, Ronaldinho and Lionel Messi have worn No 10, maybe he had a point. That's the same Ibrahimovic, by the way, who became the No 9 on his arrival at United, with Anthony Martial switching to No 11. The Frenchman then went back to No 9 after Ibrahimovic and Lukaku left the club. Despite the high shirt sales, United have lacked obvious heroes in recent years. Bruno Fernandes is the No 1, Lisandro Martinez had a moment when he was given minor cult status as a (slightly) hard man soon after he signed in 2022 and Kobbie Mainoo's growing status as the big hope for last season was reflected in shirt sales before he got injured. Inevitably, though, fans relate a number to a player. Paul Scholes, Ashley Young, Fernandes and Casemiro have all worn No 18. Roy Keane wore No 16 (having refused to be No 7) and Michael Carrick, too. 'I said to him, 'I'm giving you the No 16 jersey', so he was delighted at that,' Sir Alex Ferguson claimed to reporters at the time. 'That showed great courage because sometimes players are a bit superstitious about things like that, but he was keen, and said he would gladly take No 16.' Yet Carrick's recollection was slightly different. 'I was sitting in the boss's office, I think it was the first day I was there, and he said, 'What squad number do you want?'. I said, 'I'm not fussed, to be honest'. He said, 'What about No 16?'. So I said, 'Yeah, no problem'. And literally, that was the conversation. I really didn't give a monkey's, to be honest. It really didn't bother me one bit.' Advertisement Others were bothered. Antonio Valencia didn't like the pressure of being No 7 and, after an indifferent season, asked to return to his former No 25 shirt. And there are other quirks. United didn't wear squad numbers in European games for a few years after the Premier League began. The last game to feature a 1-11 was a defeat at Juventus in 1996-97, but even from there, the European numbers were different from Premier League games: Phil Neville wore 12 in the league and 28 in Europe, Paul Scholes wore 12 in Europe and 18 domestically. No, we don't get it either. And does it matter? Well, it depends on who you ask.
