Two things are blatantly obvious:
The FA report on the Suarez Evra affair and it’s findings and conclusions is the first. Secondly, is a Manchester United site like The Faithful calling out LFC after such a report is read and digested.
It is fair to say we are all a bit sick of the whole charade now, but a serious charge was and has been answered, and depending on your stance on whether your football club or morals come first..it was important that the right outcome was made by a Football Association that has got so much wrong in previous times. It was a decision about protecting the future of the game on these English shores, and not a decision to stain the name of one of our famous football clubs…as much as mindless, less intelligent fans wished it to be. There was an air of inevitability of how Liverpool fans reacted after the ban had been announced…but the stance of Dalglish and his players was more insulting to a black footballer than it was backing a fellow club employee. It damaged the fabric which stitches the history of Liverpool together. It was a dangerous game to play when the findings of the report had yet to be published. And now the egg that resides on their faces will need more than just a scrub and a wash to fully clean up.
As a United fan, I really dont care two hoots what Kenny Dalglish has to say about my club. In the same way im sure Scousers care not for Ferguson’s words, our ‘Nineteen times’ chants or T Shirts declaring which ship has never docked in Liverpool (The PremierSHIP of course) …most of this tit-for-tat banter is normal in the game. Managers, including our own knighted one, generally lie in their press conferences. They will say anything to spin the coin in their favour. Some try harder than others to do this (Remember Rafa and his ‘FACT’ speech?) but the point is the protection of the club comes first.
However, exceptional circumstances require a shift in tact.
Dalglish tried to play the old skool game. ‘I am the manager and I wont turn against my player no matter what’….Again…many expected this including myself. What I didn’t expect though is the depths this would sink to. On announcement by the FA of the Suarez eight match ban it was expected Liverpool would release a strong statement in favour of their player…but no one expected a statement defaming Evra and making wild claims as to why their footballer could not possibly be guilty of racist language. When I read that statement I felt sick. Not for obvious Manchester United reasons. But because a great football club steeped in tradition and fighting for justice of its own, was willing to sacrifice that all for a Uruguayan chap who thought he would be clever and try to provoke a black footballer in a bout of unacceptable gamesmanship. It was more important to retain the services of Suarez during the eight matches he will rightfully miss than it was to uphold the values all Red Scousers claim to hold dear in accordance to their five times European champions football club.
I believe Dalglish was the driving force behind this diabolical decision. His press conferences before the FA ban announcement were a joke. Little smirks behind his comments of Liverpool’s stead fast position behind the player. It made me want to scream at my TV set. How dare he trivialize such a matter as racism on our English football pitches. Who the hell did he think he was? And then to follow this with a tweet defending Suarez, with the tag line ‘This is the time when Luis needs our full support. Let’s not let him walk alone. KD’…like Suarez was a murderer walking on death row needing absolution, prayer and justice…well it just stank. Follow this up with the biggest T-shirt incident in English football history, where the whole squad wore Suarez Free The Merseyside One emblazoned across their hearts…I just felt really embarrassed for them all.
Liverpool has rightfully taken the stance that they will ‘digest’ the findings of the report now it has been made public..and Kenny Dalglish has not yet put another tweet to his name since that day of the 20th December. I can not believe for one second that the LFC owners would have sanctioned such statements of intent that were based on a ‘them against us’ football bravado that has no place when tackling the issue of racism. Now it has been proven that Suarez said “I kicked you because you are black” and “I don’t talk to blacks” directly to Evra, and that Patrice took the correct line of recourse by reporting it immediately to the referee and the authorities afterwards rather than smashing Suarez’s teeth down his insipid throat (as our King Eric no doubt would have) …it is only correct and proper that Dalglish issues a full apologetic retraction on his stance on the matter.
No one is asking him to send Suarez to hell. No one is asking the Liverpool players to not be his friend going forward. But as I stated before with former Manchester United manager Ron Atkinson…if you do the crime, then you must do the time. This is not reflective of a normal matter on a football pitch, where you can defend a late tackle, or even an elbow in the face. This isnt similar in matter to defending a Scouser like Michael Shields of whether he received justice or not, and it is not the same as trying to claim justice for the Hillsborough dead. Dalglish and LFC need to understand their position on this as a whole…and how it effects the young kids kicking a ball around football pitches on Merseyside. How those kids wearing Suarez shirts need to understand what conduct is and is not acceptable in our beautiful game. They are the custodians of what is right and wrong for Liverpool fans around the globe, and they must responsibly play their part in the continued fight none of us must take our eye off. Because before you know it the modern day equivalents of John Barnes will be having bananas thrown at them again.
Im sure Patrice and MUFC will be reviewing their legal options after what has been done and said, after a constructive campaign to ruin Evra’s name. How dare a black man object to racism!..he’s got form for all this hasn’t he!? But I hope that Dalglish and company will see the error in their judgement, which understandably was fuelled to protect one of their own, but turned into a crushing damnation of respect many people ever had for the man or the club.
So if King Kenny wants his crown back, he knows what needs to be done.
It’s will be interesting to see the case in a court of justice . how fair was FA towards both players in its procedures. What the video of the match reveals and how they interpreted it and so on> Quite interesting …
Haha….
Bullshit, I disagree! Support our players all the way. Do not let them walk alone!
Well done with that
Remember the word Evra used to the WORLD and FERGIE it was the highly offensive N word !
Which has now been changed to the Spanish word for black negro.
If Evra had used the correct word in the first place and not used the N word to the world a word he says he doesn’t like using but used it in front of the TV cameras we might not have the mess we have now.
Great article, can’t understand how a club of this calibre can take a stance like this. As a nation we were disgusted at Blatter’s comments on racism, yet when one of our own clubs is found guilty we haven’t condemned them with the same enthusiasm.
A man is found guilty of racism by the FA and liverpool fans are up in arms.
John Terry is ACCUSED of racism and he gets the backlash of a nation.
I agree with supporting a player but the tshirts and the comments made have basically just skimmed over the actual facts about what Suarez did.
I’m not defending Terry, I’m criticising the fickle nature of English football fans here.
at least Suarez can bring someone or an academic well versed in his native language to defend himself, then the veracity of Evra’s claim he was intentionally kicked in his knee previously injured. hve tried to view a recorded of the match, cn’t be sure evra was kicked so the element of doubt
I agree with muonicman, there is a lot of speculation as too the hearing and I think that there are a couple of discrepancies in the case. Also I think it would have made a huge difference if Liverpool had asked the board to review Evra’s credibility even though an reasonable person would have assumed the board would have done so with out being asked too… which would have in my opinion changed the outcome entirely. I think that there is more to this case than what has been laid out on the table, and I think that I wont make a hasty decision until I see the courts decision…
I mean its Evra, everything he says is doubtful. Im not saying that he’s lying but I also have a feeling he might be, as he has done in the past.
Still dragging this story out… wow… boring! Evra should apologize for not being man enough to handle the situation on the pitch… rather cry to FA, about a situatiion he instigated. The whole thing is farce, an embarrassment to football and England. Makes footballers look even more like a bunch of pansies than they already are.
Personally, reading everything and having everything explained to me, Suarez was found guilty with evidence that held a little less weight than Evra. Suarez was guilty no doubt but the first part of the report shows that most of it was “He said, She Said.” She being Suarez… The one thing that I found conclusive, was that Suarez changed part of his report half way through.
Another Man Utd fan obsessed with Liverpool with an article full of nonsense. “Save the club”! Get a grip.
The FA and their Kangaroo court wanted to ‘make a statement’ and got it through a foreigner who wasn’t articulate enough. Evra has been there before and was not credible the last time. He obviously polished up his ways.
I hope the mixed race Suarez fights the charge.
Obviously in a court of law there would be no case to answer to, but within the FA where Ferguson has so much manipulative power Suarez has fallen victim and probability is enough to condemn him without proof. Ironic how he has previously been described not credible but this time his word is taken as gospel.
You got it wrong. Its not LFC damaging Evra’s name but Evra himself, e.g. with the comments like “concha de tu hermana”. And obviously, the FA with David Gill sitting on its board trying to pretend impartiality. btw is it good for the future of your game to make derrogative comments about other players’ contry/region of origin?
i’m sure kids wearing evra t-shirts would look up to him and start insulting each others’ sisters during a kickabout
Throwing bananas at Barnes! Were u on drugs! Looks who is being racist now! How can you expect Kenny to apologise for someone else mistake(if there is one)! Respecting to FA’s decision by all means is a justification of clubs attitude towards racism! So u idea of making a King kneel to a Sir will never happen!
The only thing worth printing out the whole of this article is that you refer to Mr Dalglish as King Kenny. The rest of it is total one-sided drivel that you would expect from this website. Mr Evra’s comments were far more inflammatory than Mr Suarez’s and as such he should be punished if not as much then even more. In my opinion, the whole “racist” issue in this country is massively out of hand. I mean, Alan Hansen getting fined and called to quit because he referred to someone as “coloured” is NOT racist. If anything it’s just not PC – there is a HUGE difference and it’s high time everyone started to understand that.
Dalglish : I want eo apologize to Evra from telling Suarez that he’ll **** his sister.
Go suck your daddy’s cock you smug manc bellend.
You are a deluded Man Utd fan !!! Try reading all 150 pages of the FA report son !! Dalglish has every right to defend Suarez !!! Was suarez guilty beyond any resonable doubt ?? NO !! The FA say the POSSIBILITES are that he did use a racist slur but thats as far as it goes !!! Im sorry but that just doesnt justify an 8game ban and 40.000 pound fine !!!
Are u trying to say Barnes didn’t have bananas thrown at him?
What utter rubbish! As a black man myself, I am quite amazed at the blatant hypocrisy on display here and at the FA! Is it really racism to call a black man black – or a white man white? After all, noone is actually white, black, yellow or red….. The FA decision clearly states that Suarez has not been proven to be racist. Evra’s more inflammatory claims were not corroborated at all. Of course, Liverpool FC MUST appeal to clear Suarez and the club of this undeserved slur.
First you have to prove your accusations. You prove your accusations publicly and Dalglish will apologise to you publicly as well. So far, you failed to prove your accusations. We all know man u’s executive Denis Smith who was in the independent commission made this verdict a BIASED 1. For now, Dalglish will not apologise to cry-baby Evra. Yeah, but Steve Kean will apologise to utd fans tomorrow for the ugly thrashing at old trafford.
As a South African, i know what racism is… and this is total nonsense. Dont you find it ironic that the people who take action and get offended by racism, is people that are never directly affected by racism… Generally, its white people that throw their toys out the cot when it comes to racism. Also, imagine if you will, these two comments .. “You white idiot” …. “You black idiot” …. which one of these statements is more racial? Yeah, they both hint of racism, but most people will look to the black comment as being worse.. why is that?
really wondering abt all those folks supporting LFC (including ‘non-whites’) who insist on condoning racial taunts (not amt to racism?) … esp their American owners (home of democracy and equality?) what price defending tribalism or ‘loyalty’ to Suarez. what will they think they next time their kids get taunted for their race, color, gender or physical outlook … wld that still be ok?
ok you whinging scousers who like to defend a racist in red (good song title) lets put the boot on the other footimagine if you will, patrice evra had turnrd around and said to that racist saurez, i dont talk to a boy who plays for a team that condoans the murder of juventas fans, the whole city of liverpool would be writing to their MP, so stop your crying and stop worshipping a racist who will leave liverpool as soon as comes to his senses.
I dn’t see why natural justice and the fair rule of justice should not follow its course. It’s the right of anyone to appeal a decision. so i cn’t understand the hypocrisy: why suarez shouldn,t appeal? he had been honest to admit he used whatever he used> without him admitting dn’t think the Fa would hve been able to come to whatever decision it came to. Besides the previous conclusion of FA in the previous case in which Evra was involved wouid hve made things tough for Evra.
you are so ignorant its not funny, the issue here is not about football clubs its about the individual and what he has done, would see what you have to say if barca or real came in for him because i can assure you he would walk alone out of anfield! so stop showing that you intelligence level is that of a fish!
first off, the std needed in a civil proceeding wld be balance of probabilities not beyond reasonable doubt (google this rather than watch those courtroom dramas) … secondly, the evidence was provided by statements recorded by LFC staffers (almost carbon copy whether in Spanish or Dutch) … finally, it does not matter if Joe Smith is ‘black’ and was not offended but Evra and fact that its said in UK not Uruguay. Suarez can appeal but if he shd lose that appeal than the ban shd be extended further in line with the treatment accorded other failed appeals. either way , hope LFC takes a dignified stand rather than a purely emotive (and frankly fairly embaressing one so far) whichever course is pursued. hope this is fair comment …
i will still maintain it’s his right to appeal
From what I heard he called Suarez a derogatory word for South Americans, and I also heard he said this word initially… but I’m not sure this is just what I heard. All things being said I would say that Suarez as stated in the report is not a racist just a controversial footballer, that doesn’t give a f***. I think that Evra is blowing this up too much and I think Suarez and Liverpool took it too easy intially thinking that the FA would judge fairly, but after the hearing and seeing how the FA responded they knew it was biased and after that spoke their mind.
I’m a Lpl supporter, I go back to the old 2nd Div days and can remember sitting down with family in Lpl and supporting Man Utd in their 1968 EC final v Benfica. Younger fans, including my sons, cannot understand/believe there was a time when the Lpl-ManU relationship was based on fierce footballing rivalry but not offensive hatred. Just as I despise the Hillsborough stuff chanted by the ManU fans, as one who actually remembers the Munich air disaster I simply cannot understand the appalling mindset of those who sing that dreadful ‘runway’ song. I have been at OT and heard ManU fans ask Keegan “How’s your Dad” less than a week after his father had passed away, I have sat and listened to the Kop chant grossly offensive stuff about Gary Neville and his mother, and I’ve sat horrified in a Lpl coach in Turin prior to a match against Juve as ‘fans’ of my beloved Lpl sang their Heysel song about 39 Italians sitting on a wall (and got told to f**k off when I objected). Sharp and/or crude creative wit is one thing but there are many fans of both our clubs who are, in my opinion, shallow-minded scum (or become so when in a crowd). Like most of us I rarely succeed in being totally fair-minded during a game but do a lot better after it’s over. All this is to try and persuade you to not immediately reject my opinions on the Suarez-Evra affair.
If Suarez insulted Evra in the way the FA has decided he did, then we (Lpl) should shut up, take the ban on the chin and get on with life and football – no-one has died, for God’s sake. But I also believe that if someone makes a serious claim, that claim cannot be accepted on the basis of one person’s word against another. I’ve read the FA report and the number of times the word ‘probably’ arises cannot be ignored. (And I really would be saying this if a ManU player had been accused by a Lpl player).
I strongly suspect the “Suarez is not a racist” statements from the FA and Evra were inserted at the insistence of the respective legal advisors to avoid possible further defamation-based legal action but the effective result of the FA report and exemplary punishment has been to brand Suarez as a racist – headlines in this country and across the world have shown that. I do not believe that this is justice in action – a person should not be so branded on the basis of probability. And, I repeat, I would defend Evra in the same way if the accusations had been made against him.
Once Evra had made the accusations, the FA could not ignore them but because the issue was clouded by claim and counter claim, none of which could be proven) and because legal procedures were not strictly followed (e.g. the transcripts/tapes of October FA interviews with Evra were not provided to Lpl) I think the conclusion should have been more circumspect – a statement on how serious the FA took the matter, an acknowledgement of the impossibility of reaching a definite conclusion, a warning to Suarez (and every player) of what the punishment would be if such an offence were proven and to reinforce the warning perhaps the imposition on Suarez of a ??-match ban suspended for 2 years.
No doubt I will be accused of bias and/or not taking racism seriously but I really do not think such a serious punishment (with the implied message carried with it) should be imposed on anyone based on opinion, on probability.
Thanks for listening if you’ve got this far. I’d appreciate it if you didn’t publish my email address as unfortunately expressing a different opinion can (and has) bring a large volume of abusive mail. Cheers.
Many thanks for your balanced assessment Tony
Evra is not exactly innocent in this by calling Suarez a “Sudaca” in this… Liverpool have conducted themselves pretty bad, but Evra used a derogatory term than ran to the ref when one was used in his direction. Both should have been banned.
Fuck of you biased prick. Zero evidence… not one tv camera angle, no lip reading specialists, not one witness statement – all signed and agreed on the ‘balance of probability’, not on hard evidence. Evra’s word Vs the word of Suarez. A proven Liar and somebody who can not speak Uruguayan Vs somebody who can hardly speak English.
What about the fact that Evra admitted to racially abused Suarez ? Where’s his 8 game ban? Which is one of the reasons why LFC will appeal, and the ban will no doubt it will be over turned at the end of the day- and then we will be looking for an apology from the FA, Evra and Man Utd.
If Evra was perhaps not a internationally renowned bull-shitter it would be easier to swallow. Its not as if he hasn’t played the race card on a number of occasions in the past is it? And it was proven that he made that up as well. In fact – as stated in the FA report – he even lied about the toss of the coin at the beginning of the game.
Save Liverpool football club? You fucking retard… We will stand by our boy until somebody proves that he did something wrong. Until then you can all go and fuck yourselves.
its great because this is the sort of response and attitude my article was eluding to. Thanks
Evra doesn’t believe Suarez is racist.
Tell me, how is it possible to claim racism from someone you say is not racist? Are there part- time racists?
And why in all decency would you want someone to be scarred with the tag of racist if you don’t believe he is one. What a righteous prick.
All depends on whether you believe Evra. No place for racism in football. I agree with you, but the reason why Liverpool have stuck so steadfastly by Suarez is because they believe he hasn’t said it. I’m not a fan of Evra and it wouldn’t surprise me if he had made the comments apart from the one admitted to, up. After all de Gea didn’t hear it and he was right next to him, Spanish ears open. If the boot was on the other foot I bet we’d be right behind Wazza. Although after the weekend maybe he’s a bad example. Can I change that to Chicharito? 😀
I think this is a good article and I can have no complaints with it except one minor quibble. It’s factually incorrect to say “Now it has been proven that Suarez said “I kicked you because you are black” and “I don’t talk to blacks” directly to Evra”. The true facts are that Suarez has been found guilty on the balance of probabilities. We’ll never know with 100% certainty what was said because there were no first party witnesses. This is not to say Suarez is innocent. Just that the calm tone of your piece is undermined by what reads like a wilful inaccuracy.
Suarez admitted to saying the things I quoted. Read the report
From BBC Sport:
Liverpool continue to insist that they “fundamentally do not believe that Luis” was or is racist.
But the club say they fully support moves “to stamp out racism in every form, inside and outside the sport”.
And the club added: “It is for this reason that we will not appeal the eight-game suspension of Luis Suarez.”
So LFC think their player is innocent, but won’t appeal because it backs the FAs racism mandate. Funny juxtaposition that…Not appealing a miscarriage of justice…or maybe just realising the evidence points towards guilty as charged
Good luck with that.
With your reasoning Evra should apologize to the rest of the planet for being such an awful race-baiting cunt.
Why should Evra get off scot free after admitting in his statement that he used insulting and aggresive language towards Suarez. Yes Suarez should be banned but if it had been a united player would the ban have been for 8 matches, I think not. The FA has to ban Evra or risk being ridiculed for double standards. Before you ask I support The TOON by the way 3-0 and back to back defeats Merry Xmas ho ho ho