Fabio Silva had the goal at his mercy for Rangers against Hearts at the weekend but he fell theatrically – and John Hartson isn’t best pleased.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Fabio Silva has been criticised for his diving antics, with John Hartson calling it ’embarrassing’.
- Silva faced backlash for going down easily against Hearts, adding to his controversial image.
- Rangers won 2-0 despite Silva’s actions, setting up a Scottish Cup final against Celtic.
Rangers striker Fabio Silva had been chastised once again for his diving antics after he appeared to go down under no challenge against Hearts at the weekend looking for a penalty – with Celtic legend John Hartson labelling his diving behaviour as “embarrassing”.
Silva had already created a few enemies in the Scottish game after going down incredibly easy looking for fouls against Celtic in the Old Firm derby at the start of April, but after originally being booked for a dive in the box before VAR overturned the decision as an Alistair Johnston foul – a chance that James Tavernier converted from 12 yards – it encouraged him to do so again.
Many aren’t happy with his conduct, but Silva furthered his controversial image against Hearts at Hampden Park at the weekend. With strike partner Cyriel Dessers dancing down the byline and squaring the ball for Silva, he appeared to go down theatrically looking for a penalty, even though nobody was around him. Whilst he may have simply felt some tinge of injury, it hasn’t stopped comments flooding through from fans and pundits alike over the incident – and now Hartson has had his say, labelling Silva as “embarrassing”.
Hartson: Fabio Silva Dive was “Embarrassing”
The Hoops hero was not happy with what he saw from Fabio Silva
Speaking to Go Radio, via Football Scotland, Hartson claimed that even Rangers players have had to have a word with the Portuguese striker over the incident. He said:
“I know, but it’s embarrassing. Even his own players have to have a word with him. After the Celtic game it was banging on the floor and everything. It’s ridiculous. Everyone in the ground is thinking ‘what are you doing pal?’ – it’s embarrassing. And then he does it the following week. We can’t really prove that he dived at the weekend but it was a gaping goal, nobody was behind him.”
Rangers eventually won 2-0, with Dessers scoring either side of half-time to send the Light Blues into a Scottish Cup final against local rivals Celtic.
With the Gers having already won the League Cup, and a title battle on their hands, the final few weeks of the campaign promise to be enthralling with the possibility of a treble for Rangers, albeit there could be a double for the Hoops if they manage to oust Rangers in the run-in before taking the spoils on cup final day at Hampden Park.
Fabio Silva Hasn’t Overly Impressed at Rangers
The Wolves loanee hasn’t exactly pulled up many trees at Ibrox
Silva joined Rangers with high anticipation in the January transfer window on a loan deal from Wolves. With the Premier League outfit forking out £35million for his services from Porto back in September 2020, he hasn’t nailed down a starting place at Molineux and so he was loaned to the Gers back in the winter transfer window to find some form.
But four goals in 19 appearances haven’t made him a first-team starter. Two goals in the Scottish Premiership – both coming in drubbings against Hearts and Livingston – means that he isn’t entirely a player to rely on when needing a result.
Fabio Silva has only scored five goals in 72 outings for Wolves since his move in 2020
There is obvious talent there, and it is easy to forget that Silva is only 21 years of age, with much more learning to do in his career. But it appears that Rangers aren’t getting the best out of him, and it will be likely he moves on for pastures new in the summer.
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