LUIS SUAREZ made a big mistake at Old Trafford but the Liverpool striker isn’t walking alone. The Uruguayan and his club paid a heavy price for his failure to shake Patrice Evra’s hand.
Sticking the boot into Liverpool Football Club has been a national pastime in recent months and infuriatingly Suarez handed an army of critics an open goal.
Of course much of the stick was justified but when you’ve got a failed politician like George Galloway calling for Suarez to be deported it’s fair to say a row over a handshake has gone way too far.
What Suarez did was inexcusable and the club’s public criticism of him underlined that he has been castigated for his conduct.
Suarez made the error of putting his own interests above those of the club. Last Saturday wasn’t about his sense of injustice at his eight-match ban. It was supposed to be about moving on.
Unquestionably, Evra’s hand was withdrawn slightly as Suarez approached, but that was even more reason for the striker to go the extra foot, clasp the Frenchman’s palm and be the bigger man.
Having been handed the moral high ground, Alex Ferguson didn’t waste the chance to twist the knife. Forget race rows and handshakes, Ferguson wants to see Suarez banished from English football because he knows he’s a threat. He remembers that memorable afternoon last March when Suarez tore his United side to shreds.
Ferguson only snipes at Liverpool when he senses the gap between the clubs is going. It’s why when Roy Hodgson was taking the Reds towards the abyss, Ferguson paid a glowing tribute to the tough job his old pal was doing.
Suarez won’t be sold this summer. He’s under contract until 2016 and Kenny Dalglish will continue to build a team around him. Interest from Paris Saint-Germain will be spurned.
Having apologised, it’s been business as usual for the frontman at Melwood this week. Now he must stop looking back on a past he can’t alter and focus on the future.
Suarez remains a hugely popular figure at Anfield. On Thursday he took to Twitter to thank Liverpool fans for standing by him in the wake of last weekend. There was also praise for Ajax and Nacional supporters, who chanted his name at their games this week.
Few players continue to command that kind of respect after leaving a club. Why do those fans love him? Because his breathtaking talents are supplemented by a burning passion and will to win. It’s a rare combination.
At times that hunger for success means he oversteps the line.
The controversies have been well documented. He has made some poor decisions and shunning Evra was another one for the list.
Suarez must get back to doing what he does best, terrorising defences and scoring goals.
A damaging saga is now over. He has to ensure the next chapter is his career is trouble free.
