It’s the subject of every parent’s criticism, with fathers and mothers across the world making outraged and disgusted comments starting with “back in my day…” with the word disgrace peppered throughout the rant.
Spitting still disgusts many fans, with plenty making judgments on the players as a poor influence on the youth, suggesting that these highly-paid players should not behave this way.
It seems, however, not to be an issue of misbehaving…
In reality, players don’t spit simply for the sake of spitting, with a couple of reasons explaining the rather unsavoury habit, and even making a case for its importance.
The Science of Spitting
Dehydration causes the evaporation of water, which in turn makes saliva thicker, harder to swallow, and made up of more protein than when hydrated and relaxed.
Several studies have shown that exercise increases the amount of protein secreted into the saliva, with a particular type of music, known as MUC5B, being produced. This mucus makes the saliva much thicker, which in turn makes swallowing more difficult. In the midst of a football match, when you have no time to grab some water, spitting is the only option.
It isn’t known exactly why we produce more MUC5B during exercise, but it’s speculated that it may be thanks to breathing through our mouths when we exercise, the mucus stops the mouth from drying out at the cost of being harder to swallow.
Whilst other sports may punish such behaviour, spitting is considered necessary (unless aimed at another player).
Joseph Dosu, a former Nigerian Goalkeeper says they do this in order to “clear their throat…they make a run of maybe ten to 15 yards and they need air to breathe’.
Sports scientists also say high-intensity exercise increases the production of sputum (a mix of mucus and saliva coughed up from the respiratory tract).
But, as much as it’s a necessary evil, there are plenty of players who have been caught in the act of some truly gross misconduct…
Gross Conduct
Over the past 3 decades, some notable footballers have either spat at or been spat on. One of the earlier known incidents, and for many the most disgraceful act of petulance seen on a football pitch, came in the 1990 World Cup as The Netherlands faced Germany. Frank Riijkard would be caught spitting on German talisman Rudi Voller, not once but twice in the same game, to the outrage of spectators, commentators and pundits.
Sadly, this incident would slowly foster a small, but disgusting culture of spitting, with multiple unsavoury incidents occurring between now and 1990.
El Hadji Diouf, formerly of Liverpool and Bolton was a prolific spitter, who once spat at a Celtic fan in a 1-1 draw in the 2003 UEFA Cup. It outraged all who witnessed it, even Liverpool fans were incensed. To make such a poor impression of both himself and Liverpool was unforgivable; he was fined by a court and Liverpool FC for the incident.
His performances didn’t take help him, and had he the skill to compensate for his attitude fans might not have jumped on his back as much, but sadly, he lacked in class from both footballing and non-footballing perspectives. Jamie Carragher would criticise him heavily, stating “He has one of the worst strike rates of any forward in Liverpool history. He’s the only No. 9 ever to go through a whole season without scoring, in fact, he’s probably the only No. 9 of any club to do that. He was always the last one to get picked in training.”
Whilst he makes a good point and provides insight into Diouf’s attitude in training, Jamie isn’t one to talk, with the now pundit filmed spitting when in an argument with a “fan” back in March 2018.
Sometimes, this attempt at intimidation or even an innocent attempt to clear their mouth/throat can backfire.
Spitting in the Wind
One such example is the strange exchange between Cristiano Ronaldo and then Derby captain, Robbie Savage. To get in the mind of a man capable of spitting at another human over a game of football for a second, you’d assume the target of your sputum, would be the face, the hair, an exposed area of sorts.
However, as Ronaldo and Savage exchanged words in 2009, Ronaldo bizarrely, bent down to his knees and spat at Savage’s groin, leaving the future 5-live pundit more confused than anything. It was certainly not intimidating, it didn’t look hard, tough, or cool and whilst it was disgraceful, it made him look far more of a fool than Savage.
By far the funniest incident of a player being spat on, however, come from the well-loved legend, with the gangly frame, smooth dance moves and the best goal-to-game ratio in an England Shirt; Peter Crouch.
Don’t worry, big Pete didn’t sink to spitting on another play, nor was he assaulted by other players’ phlegm. Rather, he was his own worst enemy. On a legendary, windy, wet day in Stoke, Peter Crouch was once seen trying to spit in order to clear his airways, when the 6 ft 7 beanpole was quickly reunited with his expectorate, his own sputum blown right back leaving him with much worse than egg on his face.
Why do they spit their drinks?
Sometimes players are seen swigging their water, only to immediately spit it back out, which cant be a helpful method of re-hydrating. In these instances, they may be trying to clear their mouth of saliva, but there also lies an alternative explanation.
Carb rinsing is the act of swishing a carbohydrate solution in your mouth for between 5 and 10 seconds and spitting it out. Whilst this may seem pointless, some studies suggest that carb rinsing boosts athletic performance during high-intensity activities for up to an hour.
There are doubts. Research has shown that this helps runners, with those who practice carb-rinsing in tournaments feeling noticeably less fatigue. However, there is little evidence to suggest its effectiveness in soccer, with some believing it’s simply a classic case of the Placebo effect, with any legitimate benefit coming from a player’s belief that it works, making any positive effect purely psychological.
