A Goodness me Brendan, that’s blaming someone else (a whole nation?) for a problem all of your own making.

I’ve watched Spanish football for years and if they gave a penalty every time an attacker and defender brushed hips, not many games would finish goalless which, incidentally, was exactly the scoreline when Atletico Madrid and Barcelona – the top two in La Liga – met on Saturday night.

Like many issues in the modern game, to call the soft penalty awarded to Liverpool at Stoke on Sunday – when Marc Wilson bumped into Raheem Sterling – a Spanish one is to blame (or perhaps credit?) foreign influence. But the incident at the Britannia Stadium involved internationals from England and the Republic of Ireland – although if Marc Wilson was Catalan, as opposed to Celtic, perhaps Brendan Rodgers is suggesting he’d have been more adept at getting out of the way.

But then why should he? He’s a defender, the very name of his job defines his role and it’s a task made increasingly impossible by the antics of the modern forward and the regularity with which match officials are duped by them.

Sunday’s incident led to Twitter comments suggesting defenders should no longer attempt to tackle in the area – it’s become a low percentage play where risk far outweighs the likelihood of reward. It’s a persuasive argument, although it’s a depressing one to have to make.

But it’s worth remembering Wilson didn’t even try to tackle Sterling. He merely stood his ground and blocked his path to goal, only to be penalised when the forward took advantage of the most incidental contact.

Brendan Rodgers might call it a Spanish penalty. Most of us call it diving, and until refs recognise it and authorities act against it football will be the loser.