It’s getting more and more difficult to defend Luis Suarez these days. It’s becoming almost impossible.
This Saturday past was one of the few times I’ve actually felt he had been hard done by with his disallowed “goal” in the Merseyside derby. Yes, he wasn’t offside. That was clear for everyone who saw the replays. But that’s not my gripe though.
My biggest gripe started with Suarez in World Cup 2010. Before the infamous hand ball incident which, eventually, stopped Ghana from becoming the first African country to qualify for a World Cup semi-final. It started in the Group stages where Suarez threw himself to the ground at LEAST 20 times during Uruguay’s opening game. Constantly going down like he has been shot whenever he is touched, is somewhat upsetting in my books. It’s actually something that makes me (and most people who love football) angry. I hate it. I spit at it! *spits*
And then there was the hand ball against Ghana. I didn’t have too much of a problem with it in hind sight. Initially, yeah, I was pissed off as hell. But then thinking about it, I would have done the same for my country. So would many of you would have too. In fact, Thierry Henry “handled” France into the Word Cup in the play offs. Doing such an act for your country is fine in my books. So again, I don’t really have an issue with that incident.
Back to present day and Suarez in the premier league this season. As my opening line states, I am running out of words to defend Suarez. Just when you think he is “behaving” (there was even a pic with him and a black kid)… BAM! He gives EVERYONE a reason to start the “I hate Suarez” banter. We saw in the match against Stoke the most blatant “fall” so far this season. I won’t call it a dive. It was a fall. No contact. Nothing! Social media exploded. “Suarez is a cheat” rang out around the world. Some were calling for more punishment, others were calling for a ban. I put my head in my hands and cringed. “Here we go again” I thought. And it went on and on. In happened in the game against Anzhi also. He went to ground easily, most times without any contact. It’s getting difficult. Really difficult.
Suarez’s celebration for the opening goal this past Sunday was also met with a raised eye-brow by me. Yes, Moyes had come and said what he said about Suarez diving, but in honesty, he was asked about it. Now, the right thing to do (in MY books) was to avoid the topic completely and move to the next question. In doing that, there would have been no banter on the internet. He never did that, he was honest in his answer. So was Tony Pulis after the Stoke game. It shouldn’t have been said though. As a manager of a football club, there has to be some sort of respect for other team’s players. To come out and say these comments (irrespective if they are correct or not) about Suarez is unprofessional.
When I read Rafa’s rant online about Sir Alex Ferguson and Manchester United being “favoured” in a press interview, I cringed. Not because what he said was untrue. It was the fact that he HAD said it. It was unprofessional to come and say the things that he did. Let it go, win the league and THEN say something.
I digress, back to Suarez and the celebration.
I really feel that if you have a reputation as a “bad boy” or a “trouble maker” or even “A c_nt”… for goodness sake, try and fly under the radar! Personally, I understand as a player the adrenalin is pumping. You’ve just scored in a Merseyside derby. But to go and throw yourself in front of a manager of an opposing club, is asking for MORE trouble. I must admit, I really enjoyed it! I smiled, I laughed, I cried. I thought… I thought some more. And then I realised I had to pull out on my cyber boxing gloves. It was time to go and defend Suarez again. The celebration was a reaction to Moyes’ comments. But did Moyes make Suarez react the way he did in the celebration? No, it was Suarez. And he did it in front of hundreds of cameras. Although, if Moyes had shut his trap in the first place. This would have been avoided.
It is also some Liverpool fans who add fuel to this fire that is the Suarez debate. Whoever started the #BlameSuarez hash tag is an idiot. It just gave rival fans more ammunition.
Now before I get branded “Not a true fan” or before I get hate thrown at me. I do believe that Suarez is getting a raw deal at times from the officials. But, like I’ve mentioned before, he really only has himself to blame for his theatrics when “fouled”. If we look at the weekend past, Phil Neville and Antonio Valencia were both given yellow cards for simulation. Valencia is starting to get a reputation as a diver. It might be the first time that he has been carded for it. But it’s not the first time he has actually simulated a foul.
I don’t hate Suarez. I love Suarez. He is our best player by far at the moment. There is no doubting that. He is a world class player. Nobody can doubt that. Not even the most hard core Manchester United fan. All I am asking of him is to keep your head down chap.
Footie Corner 