This cliche is used to describe the staggering process by which a player ends up sprawled on the floor clutching his knee and crying for the medic. This cliche must not, however, be used in the event of a legitimate foul, for 'going down in instalments' is a cynical term that suggests a player could have stayed on his feet if he wanted to but chose to pretend he was hurt. In British football, there's no worse crime than rolling around howling on the floor, insisting that your leg's been broken despite a total lack of contact from other human beings. However, simply saying "he's faking it" will allow us to retire this most gratingly over-used cliche.
