KopTalk.com Forums Football Liverpool FC Forum Suarez files finally released...

one of the reasons i think the club have to be seen to do the right thing is because i can remember only in the 1980's the kop chanting "ello there man" to the black players and in 1987 when liverpool played coventry at highfield road we had to go to the team hotel to pick up tickets before the game , liverpool had just bought john barnes and as we were having a drink at the bar the players were having lunch and my dad knew sir john smith very well and we were talking to him , for him to talk about the clubs board being very wary of signing a black player (barnes) because he was worried about the crowd reaction , so i think we all have to be careful on this issue .

Sometimes you have to stay the course, forget Liverpool, the football, this is a man being deemed a racist for the rest of his life.....YNWA is our theme no other team states this....we have to stay the course

That was a very long time ago and almost everyone in the country has moved on from those sort of remarks! you cant account for certain types of people of course but to compare what most think now to the way people said/did in the 80;s isn't a good comparison really IMO, especially when the the names we use to refer to the different peoples has changed so many times since then anyway.

i have over the last two days read the report and frankly it is a well thought out and decisive report(highly unusual for the FA). The crux of the matter is that Evra was more convincing than Suarez, there was in sufficient evidence from both players on what exactly happened.

Unless we can offer new evidence to suggest otherwise the statements of both players is what the judgement is made on. We cannot turn back time and make Luis more covincing so effectively we have no grounds for an appeal. Clearly the report states that a racist comment was made but they do not believe he is at all racist(comments backed up in fairness by Evra).

I personally think we should let it all go and take the ban, the club and player do not need this. He would be back for the Man U game in early Feb. I think it is a battle not worth fighting and fundamentaly we have no support from te press or elsewhere. lets move on, Luis have a holiday.

I think we will appeal - but the wise thing to do is to do it in a non-confrontational manner. i.e appeal for a reduction in the ban on grounds that suarez made the remarks without full knowledge of the seriousness of the meaning of 'negrito' in the UK. At the same time, appear to be apologetic and eat the humble pie. The FA will be happy to look at the appeal and reduce it to close the matter. It'll be a win-win situation for all parties.

That's provided there still an ounce of sanity and decency left within the FA.

i know how you feel but it is not our fight. The FA are responsible not LFC, we need to move away from publicity not get more involved, we made our point. Terry will take the headlines soon enough and believe either way there will be an even bigger stink.

I like the idea, no need to go to war with the FA

Did anyone read the Back of the papers today? The F.A. want Suarez to make a public appology and the club to stand down on the appeal??

Piara Powar, executive director of Football Against Racism in Europe, has told Liverpool they risk further damage to their global reputation if they appeal Luis Suarez's eight-match ban.

Powar, also a former director of the Kick It Out anti-racism group, believes the Anfield club have already sullied their image because of their militant stance in support of a player found guilty of racially abusing Manchester United defender Patrice Evra in a match on October 15 and banned for eight matches.

He said: "Luis Suarez and Liverpool FC have the right to appeal, however we would call on the club to think again about their public campaign to dispute the charges and contest the principles involved in the case.

"As a club with a good international standing, the vehemence of their campaign is unquestionably causing them reputational harm."


The Football Association on New Year's Eve published a 115-page report listing the reasons behind the judgment of an independent commission, in which they said Suarez had used the words "negro" or "negros" seven times in a two-minute period of the Anfield clash.

The finding is potentially embarrassing for the Anfield club, who have been unwavering in their support of the 24-year-old Uruguay international, who was also given a £40,000 fine.

The Liverpool players wore T-shirts showing their support for Suarez before last month's game against Wigan the day after he received the ban, a gesture which was heavily criticised at the time, while manager Kenny Dalglish tweeted that fans should not let him walk alone.

The FA's case, according to the report, was that Evra asked Suarez why he had kicked him, to which the forward replied: "Because you are black."

When Evra challenged him to repeat the answer and said he would "punch him", Suarez said: "I don't speak to blacks."

According to the report, Evra then told Suarez he was going to hit him, to which the Uruguay international replied in Spanish: "Dale, negro, negro, negro." That translates to: "Okay, blackie, blackie, blackie."

Powar believes racial abuse between players remains an "unspoken taboo" in the English game, and hopes the Suarez case will prove to be a watershed moment.

"The Football Association's published judgment from the Suarez-Evra incident is welcome," Powar said.

"It appears the FA have taken their time to initiate a process that was both fair in its implementation of football rules, and in accordance with the principles of British justice.

"As an international non-governmental organisation we think the investigation and judgment sets the bar for governing bodies globally.

"Racial abuse between players on the field of play has been an unspoken taboo for too long, an area that has been unsatisfactorily dealt with by English football despite many cases over the past 10 years."

Liverpool have been given until January 13 to respond, meaning Suarez will be free to play in their next three games, including their Carling Cup semi-final first-leg trip to Manchester City on January 11.

I think the ban is a disproportionate and inappropriate response.
Standing by Suarez is probably the best line from here on. I posted, a few days ago to say that I thought Suarez’s comments were less naive than portrayed by his supporters, and I still hold that view. However, I really don’t think there was any ‘racist’ angle to the comments and the FA are out of line in their reaction.
As others have observed, the hypersensitivity of some members of our society is a big problem. I really wonder if the target group (black people, apparently) are best served by the stance that underpins the FA’s position. The sensitivity seems almost to imply that to be black is somehow inferior and that we should be more sensitive towards black people (ie not to refer to their colour) out of consideration for their unfortunate position. If I were black I think I would be annoyed with Evra for making such an inconsequential exchange into such an issue. The fact that Suarez is of mixed race himself has to considered when judging the sentiment he intended to express but it seem s to have been disregarded. If Evra had been Chinese and Suarez’s comments had been made about yellow skin etc, would we be still discussing this?
I think the hectoring tone of so many anti-racist campaigners inadvertently maintains hostilities that would evaporate if allowed to do so. If racism is a problem, and it probably always will be – on the strength of what history has to say on the matter, then presumably, it must apply from black to white etc in equal measure unless there is something especially evil in white people. To hear anti-racist campaigners in this country, you’d think that there was more racism from whites to blacks. I’m sure I’ll be advised in strong language, by some, that my views are not supported by evidence but I’d argue that the manner in which the FA have sought to protect Evra whilst disregarding the well-being of Suarez is a typical example of the way that an anti-racist agenda leads to racism against the non target group. It’s an irony.
Given the way that the FA have chosen to ignore evidence from one direction and amplify that from another, I’d imagine that an appeal to the FA isn’t going to get anywhere. How can they climb down? Their stated position is unequivocally condemnatory of Suarez, albeit on the flimsiest and highly contestable evidence. They’d look ridiculous if they reduced the ban to 4 matches because we asked them to.
LFC might announce that they are unhappy with the manner in which the investigation has been handled and unhappy with the ban but equally doubtful about the merits of wasting time appealing to such a biased tribunal. They could then pursue the matter through the courts where a more balanced judgement might prevail. It would be one way forward.
One way or another, the club has to make a stand. The length of the ban is ridiculous and, critically, I’d have thought, does nothing at all to improve the perception of the FA in regard to race relations.