Former Premier League referee Graham Poll has insisted that Bayern Munich winger Arjen Robben should receive a retrospective ban for his showmanship against Manchester City.
The Netherlands international, who was also accused of diving during this summer's World Cup, went down during last night's 1-0 victory over the Citizens under the faintest of touches from Fernandiho.
Match official Alberto Undiano Mallenco waved play on at the time, but Poll is adamant that Robben should be punished.
"Arjen Robben deserves his reputation as a diver and he added to his collection of tumbles shortly after coming on as a substitute for Bayern," the 51-year-old told the Daily Mail.
"With the teams deadlocked it was clear that Bayern were getting more and more desperate for a goal – hence the call for Robben to enter the pitch. Whilst Fernandinho may have made slight contact with his arm Robben went to ground and threw his legs out behind him making the possible contact irrelevant and the act worthy of an Oscar nomination.
"After a dive at the World Cup in the summer Robben issued an apology – until he starts to get retrospective bans he will continue cheating to try and help his team."
Poll officiated in the Premier League for 14 years before retiring from the game in 2007.
Daniel Lewis
