Dusan Tadic came in for heavy criticism on social media during Willem II v NEC. The 37-year-old forward for the Nijmegen side made little impression in a difficult first half and much of the backlash centred on an incident in the 22nd minute.
NEC struggled from the start and for long spells barely troubled Willem II's defence. The home side created the first danger in the fifth minute with a quick break, while NEC did not manage their first shot until after 35 minutes, when Adam Tahaui aimed straight at goalkeeper Karst de Leeuw.
In attack, Tadic also failed to make his mark before the break. One viewer took issue with a moment when, in his view, the Serbian waited too long to shoot: "Tadic really needs to learn to shoot earlier himself."
Most of the attention, though, focused on an incident in the 23rd minute when Tadic went to ground after minimal contact and appealed emphatically for a penalty. On X, many viewers felt there was hardly anything in it. "A yellow card for Tadic would have been justified here. He misses the ball completely and then just turns it into a dive," Arthur writes.
Others felt the forward should also have been booked. "Incomprehensible that Tadic does not get a yellow card for enormously poor acting. What a disgraceful dive," reads one reaction, while another writes: "You should simply give Tadic a yellow for this. A ridiculously bad dive."
For some viewers, the performance from the former Ajax forward also revived old irritations. "Tadic hasn't lost it yet. Twenty minutes played and already doing the dying swan three times," one comment reads, while someone else writes cynically: "Scandalous foul on Tadic!"
Criticism did not stop at the penalty appeal either. "Hello NEC, would you like to stamp those 'world star' mannerisms out of Tadic very quickly?" one viewer wonders, while another says: "Tadic is the laughing stock of the day. What a dive, you should have given a yellow for that. What a clown."