Tackling... a dying art?

Over the past few seasons tackling has become an extinct art in the Premier League as every week player’s walk on eggshells with the worry of a sending off.

That last-ditch game saving tackle or block could now result in a dismissal as some of the game’s biggest stars are beginning to fall foul of some ludicrous refereeing decisions.  

The Premier League’s most combative players have come under severe pressure from referees as tough tackling begins to take a back seat in modern football.

Part of the problem appears to be the lack of cohesion between referees and their understanding of new guidelines and rules, particularly on two-footed challenges.

There is always shroud of doubt in their minds when a player commits to a two-footed tackle and this confusion has seen some seemingly fair challenges receive a red card.

These poor decisions have played havoc in some of the biggest games this season and have put a huge dampener on some fantastic spectacles by becoming the main talking points of several games.

Vincent Kompany and Jay Spearing are just two to name that have been victims of this, as tackles that would have been applauded seasons ago have given them their marching orders.   

This uncertainty has become a real worry for some of the EPL’s top players as Bolton’s tough tackling midfielder Nigel Reo-Coker said: “I can’t take that mentality when you don’t know what you can go in for and (what you) can’t. If I feel I can win a tackle, I’ll go for it. I can’t change.

“But who knows? Even the powers that be themselves don’t really know the true rules about tackling.

“Everyone can have such long discussions on what tackle is deemed as fair and what tackle is dangerous. I don’t really think there are clear enough guidelines to know how you can tackle in the modern game.”

It is clearly evident that even the top professionals are unclear about the rules so there really is no surprise that we are witnessing a sharp decline in tackling.

One of the biggest dilemmas facing the art is the accelerating growth of playacting in the modern game.

Player’s dramatic over reactions to distinctly fair challenges is appalling and fears grow as we see it more and more in the modern era.

It has tarnished the Premier League’s identity of possessing a tenacious style of play that is unlike any other league in the World.

Bobby Moore’s iconic challenge on Jairzinho in 1970 and Terry Butcher’s blood-splattered, bandaged forehead in 1989 are clear depictions of English football’s true grit and determination that has allowed it demand a global fan base into the millions.  

Spanish football is optimised by stylish and quick interchangeable passing relying on clever movement, Italian football is very technical and astute with some of the fittest professionals around but English football has since lost its robust identity.

The globalisation of the English game has sanded down the rough edges of a proper challenge and the powers that be will certainly need to take the issue seriously before we see the complete extinction of a tough tackle.

Tackling will one day become an archaic art!