Suarez issue a disaster for Liverpool
BY JAKE LEWIS - FAN FUEL BLOGGER
The disaster that was Saturday's handshake fiasco at Old Trafford, started months ago, and many parties have made mistakes and missteps along the way, but when all is said and done it is Liverpool football club that will count the real cost.
By continuing to fight and deny what may very well be a genuine misrepresentation and injustice, Liverpool found themselves isolated, giving off the distinct impression of being ambivalent to the issue of racism, even tolerant of it. It is clear that once this issue became a worldwide story, John Henry, the club's American owner, stepped in and Luis Suarez and manager Kenny Dalglish both apologized for their parts in Saturday's debacle.
Have your say: Do you have a great idea for a blog and want to write for Fan Fuel? Email us here. | Tough job for Capello's replacement
Henry must finally have realized that the clubs leadership could no longer be trusted to make the right decisions, and the value of the club, in a very real way was being eroded.
So where did Liverpool go wrong? Firstly they failed to recognize that the media would always present the story as a "racism" issue. The reality of the nuanced interpretation of Suarez's choice of words in a trash talking exchange, conducted in Spanish, between a Uruguayan and Patrice Evra, a Frenchman born in Senegal, where intent and perception became mixed, was a far too complex message to communicate. So the media of course focused on "what did he say," never concerning itself with what he meant.
In its judgment on the matter, the FA went to pains to include its view that Suarez was "not a racist," and included a quote from Patrice Evra, stating that he "did not believe Suarez to be racist."
However the FA had painted itself into a corner by lambasting its nemesis at FIFA, Sepp Blatter for some ill chosen, and outmoded suggestions on dealing with racism on the field. After slating Blatter, they had no choice but to take punitive sanctions in the Suarez, case, choosing to ignore the very real question of cultural difference, and intent.
There can be little question that the perception of most observers is that Suarez made racist remarks intentionally to Evra, and is therefore a racist. The evidence and the judgment do not point to that, but the punishment does. An eight games suspension and a $65,000 fine, surely could not be for a mere "misunderstanding?"
Liverpool needed to change the message, but they kept fighting the issue. Even if they had some justification to feel unfairly tainted with the sordid label of "racists," staying on that subject merely hardened perceptions.
Liverpool should have come out, with Suarez upfront and centre, apologizing for any offence the exchange had caused Evra, appealed for understanding while Suarez adjusted to a different culture, and offered strong support for anti-racism groups.
Instead they argued the judgment, they argued the punishment then failed to ensure that Suarez lived up to his promise to shake hands with Evra on Saturday. Even Sunday's apology, failed to cover the original incident not to mention the victim, Evra.
Many reading this will lose interest in the details, and see the issue as a very simple one. Liverpool should have realized that from day one, had they done so they may have come out of this ahead, instead, today, they could very well be the most reviled football club in the world.
Related read:
More Soccer: Time running out for Villas-Boas?
Want to write for us? Email us at fanfuel@sportsnet.ca and follow us on twitter @SN_FanFuel
Fan Fuel is a blog with content supplied entirely by our passionate sports fans, plucked from our own Communities to write about the sports, teams and players that matter most to them.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by the Fan Fuel bloggers and those providing comments are theirs alone and do not reflect the opinions of Sportsnet, its parent, affiliated companies or any employee thereof. Sportsnet is not responsible for the accuracy of any information supplied by the Fan Fuel bloggers. See Sportsnet terms of use.
