Despite pronounced support of Luis Suarez in the aftermath of his being found guilty of racially abusing Manchester United's Patrice Evra, Liverpool will not be appealing the eight-game ban the Uruguayan striker received, the FA announced on Tuesday.
Had Suarez appealed the decision, he could have received a lesser ban, but he also would have been subjected to an increased punishment if the FA had seen it fit to do so.
As a result, Suarez will miss Liverpool's next eight games, starting with Tuesday's crucial match against Manchester City. He is also on the hook for a £40,000 fine. Suarez will be eligible to return on Feb. 11, when Liverpool plays Manchester United at Old Trafford. In between, he'll miss five Premier League games (against City, Stoke City, Bolton, Wolves and Tottenham), an FA Cup match against Oldham Athletic and the two legs of Liverpool's Carling Cup semifinal tie with City.
Suarez just sat out Liverpool's match last Friday against Newcastle, serving a one-game FA ban stemming from a separate incident following a match at Fulham in early December.
Even without appealing the punishment, Liverpool and Suarez maintain their stance against his guilt. Both the team and player released statements saying as much.
Among what Suarez wrote was, "I am very upset by all the things which have been said during the last few weeks about me, all of them being very far from the truth. But above all, I'm very upset at feeling so powerless whilst being accused of something which I did not, nor would not, ever do.
"In my country, 'negro' is a word we use commonly, a word which doesn't show any lack of respect and is even less so a form of racist abuse. Based on this, everything which has been said so far is totally false.
"I will carry out the suspension with the resignation of someone who hasn't done anything wrong and who feels extremely upset by the events. I do feel sorry for the fans and for my teammates whom I will not be able to help during the next month. It will be a very difficult time for me."
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What do you think of this development? Surprised Suarez and Liverpool are accepting the ban? How do you see the Reds faring without him?
Share your thoughts below.
If you read the full report rather than the excerpts you’ll see that there is dispute over what was actually said and what Suarez meant. There also seems to be Evra’s lack of understanding Spanish, which didn’t stop him from engaging Suarez in Spanish and then misunderstanding what he said. The panel sounds completely confounded by what actually happened. Yet, that didn’t stop them from rendering a verdict.
I feel the need to point out yet again that Suarez’s grandfather is black. Do you really think he’s going to tell another player he “doesn’t talk to blacks”? I don’t.
Waaaaaahhhhhhhhh ! he called me what i am… Waaaahhhhhhhhhhhh !!!
I better go drink some more of that liberal cool aid so i can further occupy myself with school yard b.s. all the while im losing my job, house, savings, and retirement to the men behind the curtain…. Waaaaaahhhhhhhhh!
well, while they take care of suarez, let me put my headphones back on so i can hear tupac/littlewayne/50cent refer to his homies as “pillars of the african american community”
what a crock of $hit
So where’s the ruling about that other racist player from a big club? Swept under the rug?
GOOD MORNING! I just shot coffee all over my desk from reading your Barton comment, lmao THANKS!
I have conflicting feelings about this. I don’t know if making racist comments is worse than physically threatening someone as Evra did in return.
I admit that extra penalties for hate crimes don’t make sense to me. I think it’s just as bad to kill a man for his wallet as it is to kill him for the color of his skin.
I don’t normally attack ideas for being PC, but what are we trying to accomplish by these means? Be great if we were colorblind, but few are in this world.
Steve asked above »So the plan here is to get us to stop SAYING racist things so that eventually we stop THINKING racist things?«
GREAT question.
So the plan here is to get us to stop SAYING racist things so that eventually we stop THINKING racist things??? Is that why the word police are out in force all around the soccer world? Whatever happened to “sticks and stones will break my bones but NAMES will never hurt me!” Ignoring this garbage seems like a MUCH better way to handle this crap. It makes the “talker” out to look like an idiot and makes the one being talked to seem like a better person who deserves respect. Show you could care less and it will stop. Make a huge federal case about it, and while people may stop TALKING, it will fester inside more generations of people as we get pulled further and further apart along racial lines. Who cares what someone says in the heat of battle anyway. None of it matters. I’m thinking that cases like this are further proof that heading balls kills brain cells.
I also think Patrice Evra should be commended for not whacking him. Joey Barton would have killed him and made a drinking glass out of his skull.
Interesting that he was talking to Evra when he said that….
Argentina and Uruguay are the most racist countries in South America, most of their population is white and most feel superior. Using the word “negro” is not racist but the way is used it is.
Remember guns don’t kill, people do.
Nice try, Mr. Blatter.
Exactly. Regardless of the words that were used, it’s clear from context that this was in no way meant to be friendly or jocular. It was racist, pure and simple.
It’s cool to say “African-American” in the United States. It’s not cool to say, “I don’t speak to African-Americans.” Right? I mean, I don’t see how this can be disputed by anyone.
He said, she said. Completely pointless and has nothing to do with the game. Get on with it.
This is FA’s version of what transpired in the 115 page report on this incident:
“Evra asked Suarez during the Oct. 15 Premier League match why he had been kicked, the striker replied in Spanish: “Porque tu eres negro.”
That translates as “because you are black.”
Evra then responded, in Spanish: ‘Say it to me again, I’m going to punch you!’ to which Suarez replied: ‘I don’t speak to blacks.’
Continuing in Spanish, Evra said: ‘Okay, now I think I’m going to punch you.’
Suarez responded: ‘Dale, negro, negro, negro.'”
Whether this is in English, Spanish or any other language, this is racially offensive. Probably the reason why Liverpool is not going to appeal the 8 match ban. The FA deemed Suarez version of what happened as unreliable and inconsistent.
It’s true that in some circumstances terms like ‘flaco” and “mono” can be considered friendly (like when friends speak to each other) but that is not the case with Suarez and Evra. They were in a heated clash and Suarez was not trying to be endearing.
I was born in South America and have traveled extensively. If you say negro, negro, negro repeatedly or even say “negrito” in a mocking manner… you are clearly slighting the other person. It doesn’t matter whether you are in England, the U.S. or South America. It’s about the tone, not just the word.
My fingers are as fat on the keyboard as Luis’s mouth is foul. Better?
No, probably not. However, if that’s actually what was said, I’d think Suarez was being a bit facetious.
Racism implies prejudice or discrimination. You really think that’s the case?
Suarez used a word that was construed by someone else as racist. Whether or not he’s actually racist is the judgement the FA made, (based on unsubstantiated evidence) and I don’t believe that’s accurate.
What about, “I don’t talk to blacks”…can that be lost in context?
This is the real issue. It is not his use of the word negro or black that got him in trouble. It is saying something negative to another player by using their race. That is racist. It has nothing to do with being from South America or not. Suarez can think that what he said was ok, but as the FA said in their report his defense is ludicrous and unbelievable. Racism should not be a part of the sport and he deserves his punishment. Liverpool as a club also needs to make amends for their handling of this situation.
In English form like that, sure.
This ruling will make it much tougher to sweep the John Terry issue under the rug now. If the FA is going to put out a tough line on the issue (as they should), they better be consistent with their rulings.
I’d expect the FA to say, “listen we can’t have you running around saying that,” and give him a 2 or 3 game suspension.
6 games is a very serious punishment which should be reserved for cases of explicit racism, not in a case where (as the FA put it) he was “probably” guilty.
“I don’t tslk to Nergoes” is racist whether you’re from, or in, Montevideo, Uruguay or Montevideo, Minnesota.
So you want the FA to say “Nah. It’s cool he’s from South America”? What if a player from Russia or Spain (wherever) had said to to Evra?
Yeah, but he never said “hey blackie…” Tranlations are never 1:1. Linguistic context is lost, and in this case, misconstrued.
I understand that adaptation is necessary – and I think he made a mistake. But, taken in proper context, it doesn’t mean he’s a racist, and the 1/4 season suspension would indicate the FA is pursuing an agenda, rather than finding a punishment to fit a crime.
Combined with Evra’s history of exaggeration, I’m shocked it’s ended up this way.
And from out of left field…
The word is used without any sort of racist undertones? “Hey Blackie” Do you think that would fly in 2012? Naw man, come on, last time I checked, Afro Latinos are looked down upon as 2nd class.
Except Suarez isn’t playing in South America, he’s playing in England. You have to adapt to the social norms, on occasion, when you move into a foreign culture.
You think an Iranian Holocaust denier would be well received in the Bundesliga? Or that Suarez could say what he did if he was an NFL football player?
This
Ha ignorance?
From a South American perspective, this case has been marked by racist hypersensitivity over the usage of a word that, in South America, is frequently used without any sort of racist undertones.
For example, on the Uruguayan National team, Maxi Pereira’s nickname is “El Mono” (The Monkey). And it’s meant in the same way as Alvaro Fernandez’s nickname “El Flaco” (Skinny).
Suarez is simply the scapegoat of the FA’s overzealous attempts to take the absolute-highest-possible road against racism.
Suarez is a racist, diver that did not see anything wrong when he used his had to steal a game in the world cup….bit a guy while at Ajax….racially abused an opponent and then left his club/team mates on the line by not owning up to it……but other than those things he is a supremely talented footballer that I am sure many children adore.
I hope my future children grow up to be just like him….minus the racism, cheating, boorish behavior, ignorance, selfishness and false bravodo.
Sure doesn’t make it look good for Suarez denials. Either this was a who’s word is more believable issue with the FA accepting Evra’s or the linesman or some other neutral (who else is possible?) heard this so that there is no disputing it. Big loss for the Reds!