9 Oct 2012

'He's a cheat!' - LFC legend contradicts Rodgers over Suarez. Weak management?

Last week, Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers claimed that Luis Suarez has an 'undeserved reputation' for cheating, and he followed this up last night with a statement defending the Uruguayan against 'unfair vilification' over his diving antics, which again took centre stage against Stoke at the weekend. Like Kenny Dalglish before him, Rodgers is making a grave mistake in publicly defending the Uruguayan against the indefensible, so it's good to see Reds legend John Aldridge tell it like it is today: Suarez is a cheat, and no amount of LFC spin is going to change that.

In his column for the Liverpool Daily Post, Aldo slammed Stoke Boss Tony Pulis for his hypocrisy over Suarez, and conceded that Robert Huth should've been sanctioned for his blatant stamp on the Uruguayan, but he also castigated the Liverpool striker for his antics. He said:

"What Suarez did on Sunday was wrong. Suarez was cheating to try to gain an advantage. I want Suarez to stop it because when referees see him do things like that it just reinforces the reputation he’s got for going to ground too easily and it costs him decisions. I hate seeing diving and something needs to be done about it"

Rodgers' statement defending Suarez against 'vilification' is, IMO, naive and arguably irresponsible. Yes, the press have basically ignored the Huth incident, but we're dealing with two separate issues here: Huth's challenge, and Suarez's dive, both of which are mutually exclusive.

Instead of just focusing on Huth's challenge, Rodgers made a misguided attempt to muddy the waters and deflect attention away from the real issue, which is - as Aldo highlights - Suarez's persistent cheating.

Suarez has been cheating regularly ever since he arrived at Liverpool, and instead of taking a hard line against the Uruguayan, Rodgers persistently takes the softly-softly approach, often indirectly suggesting that Suarez is somehow a victim (!)

Suarez is not a victim! He has brought this 'vilification' on himself with his constant diving. His reputation for cheating is deserved, and although it's wrong for referees to pre-judge/ignore blatant decisions, it's inevitable given Suarez's history. The dive against Stoke was ridiculous:

suarezgif The GIF Battle of the Dirty Divers: Gareth Bale (Tottenham) vs Luis Suarez (Liverpool)

In what universe can this blatant attempt to cheat the referee be justified? It is a deliberate, premeditated dive, and it's a total embarrassment to Liverpool FC. Additionally, such behaviour will also rile up opposition players, and I wouldn't be surprised if Huth stamped on Suarez out of sheer dislike for the type of player he is.

It's no surprise that cheating is rampant in football, especially when managers (like Rodgers) - and the fanbase - have such a blase, enabling attitude towards it.

I use the word 'enabling' because - indirectly - that is what Rodgers' Suarez statement achieves. Why would the Uruguayan stop diving when his manager basically defends him for doing so?! Rodgers goes on and about about 'protecting' LFC values; indeed, in his Suarez statement he says:

"I will continue to protect the values, spirit and people of this great club and game"

That sounds great, but in this case, Rodgers has done the opposite; he's fallen into the same trap as Kenny Dalglish, i.e. putting the individual ahead of the club. If Rodgers truly had the courage of his convictions, he would accept that Suarez dived, and resolve to do something about it.

Thankfully, ex-players like Aldo, Alan Hansen and Roger Hunt - all of whom are steeped in the 'Liverpool Way' of doing things - don't feel the same, and they've publicly criticised Suarez this week for his incessant cheating.

Suarez deserves all the vilification that he gets, and until he changes his ways - and he must change - then it will just keep on coming.

People will accuse me of not supporting Suarez (!), and they are right; he is a superbly gifted player, but I do not support cheats, especially when their actions reflect negatively on the club.

Football is a cesspool of cheating and 'gamesmanship', and things will never change until fans and managers start taking a zero tolerance approach. Unfortunately, the current poisonous trend, especially amongst 'fans', is to condone, justify and make excuses for cheating, and even encourage it if it gains their team an advantage.

Rodgers talks a good game, and he claims to have the club's best interests at heart, but, sadly, he has proven this week that - like most managers - he is part of the problem when it comes to the rise of cheating in football.



Jaimie Kanwar


87 comments:

  1. yeah like suarez is the only one that does it lmao ,such hypocrits , pulling on some ones shirt in the penalty area is cheating ,in every game there is some form of cheating , fck me just lookat the refereeing decisions lol

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  2. We need to stop the cheats, Suarez and Bale for example, who dive.
    We need to take more action against the players who do things out of sight of the referee. The stamp by Huth and elbow by Van Persie the FA will not do anything about it. Naismith got a two match ban instigated by FIFA over his off the ball elbow for Scotland.
    Rodgers should not of came out and said what he said about Suarez.
    I have said on this website from day one that Rodgers was not the manager for me and from what I have seen so far I have not changed my mind one little bit.

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  3. Your view is typical of enabling fans: instead of focusing on the issue, you make excuses, and bring in things that have nothing to do with it. Who cares what other people are doing? Just because other players dive doesn't make Suarez's diving any less repellent.

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  4. Jamie, this is why I come to this site, realistic unbiased content. BR is setting a double standard, by giving a blind eye to the diving he is in fact encouraging it.

    Suarez should be fined and banned for cheating, along with all other players that cheat I.E. Young, Rooney, Welbeck etc...

    How can BR state he will protects Liverpool Fc values if he is not rectifying the situation? He needs to look at the whole Suarez racism issue and how Dalglish wrongly handled it.

    He is a good promising manager (and I am behind him 100%) but I cant stand people who try to adapt their values to accommodate and please players.

    But this is how flawed the system is...

    Suarez- gets a 8 game ban for racism- Fair if not lenient
    Terry- gets a 4 game ban and the reason is because he only said a racist thing on ONE occasion... So that makes it okay doesn't it?! Once or 10x does not matter, it's the principle.
    Huth- Blatantly stamps on Suarez and gets away with it
    RVP- Elbows a players and "surprise surprise" gets away with it.

    Once again, cheating should be a red card offence. That would stop a high% of players diving since they would be fearful of being sent off.

    Ban and fine cheaters.

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  5. SMH ...Sir you have missed the point.

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  6. SMH...Sir you have missed the articles point.

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  7. "Diving and simulation is obviously a wider issue in football and one that we all agree has to be eradicated from our game but there were other incidents this weekend that didn't seem to generate the same coverage"

    Why are you putting more words in BR's mouth, Jaimie?

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  8. That is a general comment on diving. Where does he reference Luis Suarez? He should've admitted Suarez dived, and then made the Huth comparison.

    Rodgers' statement turns a blind eye to Suarez's infraction, and that is arguably enabling behaviour.

    Additionally, what do 'other incidents' have to do with Suarez's diving? It's the same old excuse used by everyone: 'X did this, but what Y and Z! They did some bad things too!', with the idea being to deflect attention away from X actually did.

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  9. I'm not sure if Suarez dives a lot. Its just that the way he moves makes him easy to be clipped and go down easily. In the Stoke game, frustration just got to him. But the media has already labelled him as a cheater and that's never going to change. Maybe Rodgers is trying to change that image with his comments. Behind closed doors, I hope Rodgers has a word with Suarez. Btw, what do you mean by Suarez's diving reflect negatively on the club? From what I've heard in the media, his diving has been affecting him only. Do you mean that because of him, we're not getting the decisions we should be getting?

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  10. Suarez should be told not to dive for sure, and I do think that will happen behind the scenes. But also he has been a victim of poor refereeing decisions. Suarez is the player who has been highlighted the most,what about that shagger John Terry? Did he get the same negative coverage as Suarez? The answer to that is no. The FA should stamp down on the divers whoever they are. They should also dish out punishment equally. Example of this is the treatment of Paul Scholes, how many times have refs been lenient with him over the years before giving him a yellow card? Off the ball incidents must be dealt with as well. Brendan Rodgers clearly doesn't want to loose Suarez that's why he will back him. We are playing better football under Brendan but we defo lack a killer instinct in front of goal.

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  11. Then why only Suarez is a victim?

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  12. When i played staying on your feet was was the name of the game .
    Now cheating plays a huge part in the game . Suarez with his low centre of gravity , leg strength should only go down when he has to , if he did he would score more goals . As far as
    rodgers is concerned he p----- me off more & more with his
    lies because half of what he says is not true . But i must say
    diving was introduced to this country by foreign players in the
    last 10 yrs . Taking a dive was only used in boxing .

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  13. Jamie who do u support?In the spanish league its a lot worse.

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  14. Who cares? That is not the issue. And the idea that he is 'victim' is nonsense. He is a diver; he has dived every since he arrived at LFC. You reap what you sow.

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  15. Sorry, I forgot that supporting a team means you always have to overlook cheating, or you're not a 'real' fan. My bad!

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  16. Suarez surely goes down easily and I don't like it. He sometimes dives and I like that even less. Yes, that is cheating. Having said that, it has to be pointed out that he is by far not the only one doing it. That doesn't make it any better, but I get the impression that he gets singled out for it by the media, some opposition managers and as a result of that by the public. That surely is not fair and Rodgers is right when he claims that there seems to exist one rule for Suarez and another for everyone else. The amount of headlines Suarez' dive on Sunday produced is beyond believe and doesn't put the media in a preferable light. Players like C. Ronaldo, Drogba and Robben went down even easier than Suarez and on a more regular basis, though that never produced such media frenzy.

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  17. Fact of the matter is you would struggle to find up to 5 times where Suarez has actually dived to con the ref. 99/100 he draws the foul and contact is made. Just feel the over exaggeration on those challenges needs to be cut out as its doing him or the club any favours.

    People just love to hate him!

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  18. Mr Kanwar, watch this video and be honest, I mean really honest!

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LeCZQ7nwD-Q&feature=player_embedded

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  19. Didn't you know? Jamie supports Man U and Everton hence why he runs a Liverpool site....

    -_-

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  20. I am so much against diving and stimulation in Football and I don't find it comfortable that Luis Suarez as a Liverpool player is having that reputation, he should be told to stop such things now, am very much for stamping that out especially if a Liverpool player is doing that. But your words - 'I wouldn't be surprised if Huth stamped on Suarez out of sheer dislike for the type of player he is', this one is so uncalled for. I don't know what you are trying to establish here????

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  21. Good points made. Huth is a thug and a very limited footballer. There simply isn't much more than his physical presence and dirtiness so he has to and will use it against any given player. Maybe he also has a sheer dislike for the type of player who can actually play football, like Suarez.

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  22. Who cares? Really? Even Ronaldo use to dive a lot, Young dives routinely, Bale does and only Suarez is victim but who cares? right. Hypocrites never do care.

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  23. In my opinion, Rodgers has been backed into a corner somewhat and has to defend Suarez for the moment at least. Think about this. Suarez is currently our top scorer and is the one player in the squad who is capable of scoring 20+ goals for the season. If Rodgers criticises Suarez now and his form dips because of it, where are the goals going to come from? We could end up in the bottom half of the table. I agree that Suarez dives and I wish he would cut it out becuase he is a class little player who is brilliant to watch but I honestly don't think Rodgers has much choice at the moment. Will be interested to see if his attitude towards this changes when we get someone to take the goal scoring burden off Suarez. He was definitely right to highlight the fact that other players are getting away with diving without the vilification. Bale being a classic example on the weekend. But he was only diving to amke sure he didn't get hurt, nothing to do wuth trying to con the referee. This is what Roders is trying to highlight. And lets face it, Bale dived at least 5/6 times last season as well so there are serious double standards going on here and the manager has to highlight that.

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  24. He won't reply to this coz he is blinded,

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  25. I find it hard to like most managers in the EPL. Especially after the comments by them after this weekends matches.
    Pulis castigates Suarez for his dive and does not mention Huth.
    No one mentions Bale at all.
    Moyes demands protection for Fellaini as refs think as he is a big gangly so and so its always his fault, he also says Martinez knobbled the ref by complaining about decisions going against Wigan to the chief ref.
    Pardew moans about RVP but does not mention the Tiote incident.
    Ferguson does not moan about time added because he was winning unlike the week before when he was losing.
    Rodgers defends Suarez and his diving.
    Wenger doesnt see anything at all, one wonders what he sees on the touchline as he never sees anything concerning an Arsenal player but always does concerning other teams if they foul an Arsenal player.

    In the meantime a Rugby League player plays half the Super League Final with a ripped bollock. No moaning no hype I think we are all following the wrong sport we should be watching real men not overpaid mercenaries acting like prima donnas.

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  26. I care Jaimie. Because the press in the UK is so hysterical. They´re always looking for a pantomime villain, and in many ways you do the same thing to be honest.

    Your view of Suarez is so black and white it´s unbelievable. It´s not his fault that there´s a media circus surrounding his every move, and if you think any individual deserves that I´m afraid you´re very wrong. You can only judge by what you see on TV, and we´re always very extreme in our opinions of what we see on TV. I´m sure you´d never be so obsessed about someone you meet each week.

    He´s not a criminal. By all accounts he´s a very nice person off the field, but he´s ultra competitive on the field. That doesn´t excuse cheating, but the bandwagon is well and truly out of control now. The thing over the "negrito" word was ridiculous and the British media whipped up a frenzy over something they don´t even understand, not to mention that he was prosecuted in something resembling a kangaroo court. I play football here in Spain and a South American fella said it the other day in a perfectly matter of fact way referring to another player who didn´t mind at all. He was also very offended by "sudaca" which is a word which is a big insult, and a racist term. There was just so much ignorance in that panel. The F.A. can do what they like. They´re not tied to any laws, nor is there accountability. Ashley Cole´s reaction was justified the other day. He felt they were calling him a liar. He could have chosen his words more carefully, but they are a bunch of muppets if you ask me. But of course Ashley´s another of the pantomime villains. It´s so easy to do. If only it was all so black and white and we could label people so easily...

    You don´t care that his reputation has been ruined by a panel who can do what they like. Do you really think Huth was justified in stamping on his chest at the beginning of the game? Poor Huth, he just got a bit wound up. Jeez a bit of balance here please.

    He is a victim, and he´s also a culprit. Just because someone steals a handbag doesn´t mean they should be hanged for a bank robbery they didn´t commit.

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  27. One more thing, if we cast our minds back to when this "diving" circus started, it was Ferguson´s comments in a match we played against them, where Nani was diving all over the place and acting up. If there´s balance in the media, how come Nani and Bale don´t get the same attention. Sometimes you´re just paranoid and sometimes everyone is out to get you. Brendan Rogers is right.

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  28. What is your point?! That video has no relevance to what's being discussed here. So Suarez gets fouled a lot? Welcome to the Premier League! All strikers get fouled, and in the majority of cases you highlight (outside the box), a free kick was given.

    None of this changes the fact that Suarez dives regularly, and did so against vs. Stoke on Sunday. You are doing exactly what Rodgers has done: trying to muddy the waters, and you're basically saying 'who cares if he dives - he gets fouled a lot so it's okay!'.

    Yes, there are times when Suarez should've got a penalty, but it's a 'boy who cried wolf' situation: Suarez has brought this on himself, and if he wasn't such a cheat then players, managers and referees wouldn't have it in for him.

    Additionally, just because other players do it does not mean Suarez should be treated leniently. Here is an analogy using your logic: X is charged with murder; he did it; there is video footage proving he did it. In court, his lawyer's argument is as follows:

    * X has been charged 12 times before with attempted murder but was never convicted!

    * X is not the only one who kills people. There have been lots of murders this year; what about them? What about Joe Bloggs who got acquitted last week?

    * Due to X's past charges, you are treating him in a harsher manner!

    It's ridiculous. X's lawyer would be laughed out of court if he came up with such arguments, and the same applies here. Suarez is guilty of incessant cheating, and the fact others do it, or he's been fouled a lot, doesn't change that.

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  29. Padraig, I agree the FA is a kangaroo court from the bottom up
    my daughter played for a high profile local ladies reserve team in Liverpool, I wont mention their name but they play in Blue. Wherever we went in Northwest England we were called all sorts of names due to the fact we were Scousers, thieves, whingers you name it the girls were called it.(expletives deleted)
    I lost my rag in a game in Penrith and I called an abusive man calling us all sorts of names on the touchline an effing sheep shagger, he reported me to the ref who reported me to the FA. The team were fined £60 because of what I said and the FA would not accept my mitigating circumstances as the local Cumbrian FA ref had not reported the offensive comments of the local people.
    The FA is probably the closest thing you have to the Soviet Politburo.

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  30. You reap what you sow, and Suarez has created this situation with his behaviour, not just with cheating, but with the Evra incident; failing to shake his hand; making Dalglish look like a fool; giving Fulham fans the finger etc.

    Other players get similar attention from the media for cheating. Drogba definitely did, as did Ronaldo, and the idea that Suarez is somehow targeted more than them is, IMO, nonsense.

    My view is black and white because this issue *is* black and white. Muddying the waters like Rodgers has done, and fans do, is the problem.

    Suarez created this situation. If he didn't cheat, there's be no reason for the press to be on his back, would there?

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  31. Jaimie,

    Why don't you read exactly what Rogers said before giving your verdict ? Rogers never defended Suarez's diving. He said it is a problem but he is not only one in league with that problem. He is saying people are ignoring a bigger problem but want to attack Suarez.

    Unbelievable you want to hide a bigger problem behind the curtain of a separate issue. It is not separate. You get stamped on your chest. Two Referees see it and still do nothing. How would you feel for rest of 80 minutes of game while you are playing ? Suarez is not a machine, he is human. I wonder, how he feels when week after week, defenders physically abuse him and referees turn blind eye.

    First address a bigger problem of the game. That is physical violence. Diving may not kill someone but kicking and stamping can. Player's career might be over forever.

    You may block me but I feel your argument is pathetic. Probably you want to have more readers for your blog!
    Don't call yourself Liverpool fan mate!

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  32. I think Rodgers was right to defend Suarez to a point. If people are going to go out of their way to point out Suarez being a cheat, then you have to look at all the others that dive also. He is terrible for it, but so are so many other players. The FA just need to man up and start doing something about it. Stop being so precious about someone calling you names and actually pay attention to the things that matter i.e. getting the right decisions on the pitch, and taking action agaisnt those who try tp exploit them.

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  33. Because the FA are biased towards British players. And the media too.

    This article was focusing on Suarez. He does not do himself any favours by diving. However the punishment should be made to all and not just him.

    But I agree with some of the things u mentioned. The media loves to demonize players.

    Regarding the racism row with Suarez... He lives in the UK therefore a saying that might not be offensive in his country can very much so be offensive here. But translation from negrito to blackie so very much incorrect. Blackie sounds very bad, but negrito in lating countries depending on the context are use often.

    I feel the club should educate foreign players over these matters.

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  34. so why the big fuss ONLY about Suarez, WHY ? can you answer on that? CAN YOU? of course not , cause press is full of hypocrisy , and you're not an exception ...

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  35. Indeed.

    Why he keeps doing it is beyond me. If he was not so "precious" to the club he would have been sold in August.

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  36. Great analogy.

    If BR wants Suarez to be treated fairly then he needs to tell him to stop diving. Simple as.

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  37. jaimie the rodgers love in looks like the cracks are begining to appear

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  38. We know its the Premier League, we know strikers get fouled, we also know that where a free kick or penalty can be won most managers would encourage and expect their players to win them. This is evident in players getting their bodies in the way and drawing fouls on themselves, players diving, and players feigning injury. This is football nowadays in general. Win at all costs.
    The video is relevant because actually in the majority of the cases highlighted a foul wasnt given, especially in the box. Suarez makes the most of it sometimes I agree but that doesnt mean he isnt being fouled, and as shown in the video, most of the time he isnt being treated by the rules of the game but by his 'reputation'.
    You confirm that other players do 'it' but claim Suarez shouldnt be treated leniently because of it, so why dont you highlight all players that are doing it instead of one?
    My logic says that if you are against diving give me a list of all that are guilty, not just one. You seemed heavily focused on Suarez for some reason. You seem heavily focused on diving but make no argument agaisnt violent conduct or tactics.
    Suarez has dived, there is video evidence to show it.
    We should charge him but then make sure we are there to 'highlight' and charge each and every offence by any player thereafter.
    Suarez gets no decision 12 times he is fouled, but when seen diving once we automatically decide the other incidents were also dives and therefore irrelevant and he is a 'cheat'!.
    You need to highlight the incident because it is Luis Suarez and you ignore others because they are not Luis Suarez. You ignored violent conduct in the game because I assume simulation in youre mind is more 'serious' for our game than the health and well being of any individual player on the pitch.
    The FA, referees and the media are guilty of incessantly highlighting and vilifying 'one' player among a host of others due to his reputation.
    When you can come forward and give a balanced argument against the issue and not the individual I will truly respect youre views as a commentator on them. However we know that this is not going to happen in youre court Mr Kanwar.

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  39. A to the men!

    Haha! The last paragraph got me in tears lol!

    The FA are very inconsistent. Why Martinez got fined is beyond me.

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  40. Billy, yep, I´m not one for conspiracies, but I´m glad the FA don´t have any real power to prosecute people.

    Jaimie, did Lady Diana create the situation with the media by using them to publicise events or would you say she was unfairly targeted for reasons that were beyond her control? There needs to be balance in journalism and unfortunately when it comes to football emotions get the better of people in the media. As you pointed out yourself some of the journalism in the wake of the Suarez Evra scandal was just so bad. It was clear half of the journalists from reputable papers such as the Guardian had not even read the report. I´ll give you that, you do your research well.

    I think it´s telling that in Britain a player is much more highly thought of if (like Huth) he goes in hard and sometimes fouls players (cheating?) and gets away with it, sometimes tackles in a dangerous way (in the real world, it could be considered a criminal act), but apologises, leaving a player out injured for 6 months or worse, because he´s a good honest player, i.e. he doesn´t dive. When a player takes another player down outside the box cynically that´s just as bad, but diving is getting all the attention, and it´s the very worst thing you could do.

    If you´re denying that Suarez i being treated unfairly, then just look at the reactions to a very dangerous stamping incident at the beginning of the game, and the anti-football played by stoke in comparison to the coverage Suarez is getting. I think that´s all Brendan is saying, give the guy a break. He´s being targeted by referees, managers and press, booed by fans etc. This is not the first player to have dived. I agree diving should be stamped out, but can we have a bit of balanced reporting please? I´m repeating myself.

    Yes, Suarez is a culprit and yes he is a victim. That´s possible. They´re not exclusive. If you think there may have been slight justification for Huth to stamp on him, then by the same token, he may feel justified in diving if he´s been judged unfairly time and again when it comes to fouls in a match. I´m being devil´s advocate there, but it´s similar to the argument you used above re: Huth.

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  41. I don´t think it´s right for managers to defend players regardless, but unfortunately in their position, they´re not always bound by right and wrong. Part of their job is to defend their players. Look at the two most successful managers of today. Pains me to say it, but Fergie and Mourinho often come down in a very biased way on the side of their players, and they´re considered great managers. And that´s a part of their make up, what has made them successful. Us against them. I wouldn´t be a fan of their attitudes. Fergie winds me up no end, but there´s more to being a manager than just being honest in your appraisal of what happens on a football pitch.

    You could go through almost every manager in the league and find an example of them being biased, Wenger never sees what happens when his player is at fault, does he? Pulis somehow forgot to mention that little stamp. And it happens with fans too. "The ball crossed the line." "No it didn´t." That´s the nature of the beast. You can´t take bias out of football. It´s a part of it.

    Still, I agree, it´s essential to have objectivity in the media, and regardless of how I might (often) disagree with you, I still value that, and I think you strive for that, in general. However I do think the treatment of Suarez is out of hand, and I think you have a blind spot there. That´s not a club bias. That´s a media bias, and it´s another thing to watch out for. Just my two cents.

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  42. I think Brendan has told him to stop that in private. He doesn´t like any of his players to do that. How he deals with it in public is a different matter. You can see Brendan sends his teams out to play football, and he´s very focused on fair play, as he´s said in the recent Being Liverpool series. He wants his players to respect the laws, but that doesn´t mean he has to criticize his player in public. Pulis was clearly fanning the flames of this, and trying to divert attention from the stamping incident. Suarez is an easy target.

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  43. Keep seeing the same comment Huth challenge ignored. No itw as not FA confirmed Ref saw it and made a judgement, so FA looked at the incident again. Who looked at Suarez dive again? Nobody and that is what TP is calling for, retrospective action, just like others face for incidents during a game.

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  44. Yes, the sun shines out of Brendan's house. Man can do no wrong.

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  45. oh dear,you could make a video of any attacking player and you would get similar results....sad

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  46. About time Martinez got done, too many managers of the lower profile clubs get away with it because there is hardly any spotlight on them. Martinez, Pulis, Big Sam, etc, the lot of them are just as bad as Wenger and Ferguson but don't get the spotlight. The same with the difference on the spotlight between Bale and Suarez.

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  47. 'The FA.....incessantly highlight and vilifying 'one' player....'

    I get the complaints about the media but beyond the Evra case and the swearing incident, I don't see how the FA have incessantly highlighted and vilified Suarez. Certainly haven't been over the top with their attention on him, the FA. Rather over the top that claim about the FA, me thinks.

    -------

    This is a LFC-focused website, so JK is bound to focus on Suarez somewhat, as he plays for LFC. So I don't see why it is so disagreeable for this site to focus on a LFC player

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  48. before he dived, and yes he did, huth and others that guarded him should have got at least three red cards. and there was contact before he dived, he just didnt fall on time. didnt you noticed that he doesnt argue with ref any more even when he is right(vs norwich and stoke) he just wanted to make it right, i understand the guy, he was stamped for christ sakes!

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  49. Hmmm interesting. I was coming more from the point that what he said wasn't actually bad. The FA act like a little girl sometimes, getting offended about every single criticism.

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  50. Na I don't think so...this is minor for now.

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  51. Always nice to see such lectures/concerns about the media, FA, society, etc, but it is a pity such concerns of yours seems to come about when LFC get hurt in the process. As there have been many non-LFC examples over the years and I bet you weren't piping up then, as your clan-like mentality wasn't offended by it (that many football fans suffer from). Amazing and petty what one's support of a club & rivalry can do to cloud a person's mind.

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  52. Lets not get into a debate on the FA, the less said the better.
    Luis Suarez is a great player, probably in the top 5 players in the league.
    If people want to focus on him, so be it.
    We have a great footballing talent at our club who gives everything fighting for the cause. There is not a single team in the world who wouldnt have him. Thankfully the club, the fans and the players are behind him 100%, and thats all he needs.
    He will continue being a world class talent for Liverpool FC for years to come and no one can do anything about it. Nothing affects his game, nothing...

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  53. You mentioned and criticised the FA, I replied to that part of it. 'Less said the better' is apt I agree as there isn't much to back up your claim about them and I think you are wrong to put the FA in the same group as the media, in terms of the treatment of Suarez. Fair enough, lets not get into a debate on the FA, in relation to your claim/slur in the earlier post.

    As for the rest of it, that has nothing to do with my reply or the post I was replying to initially, so no need for it. So I have nothing to say that, even if I agree or disagree with the superfluous content.

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  54. if that was the case then why was nothing said about the fact john terry only recieved a 4 match ban when suarezwas given 8 , ....or that hands were not shaken between terry and ferdinand, why was nothing said over bale diving or valencia or huth stamping..... I agree with you totally about stamping out all forms of cheating, but it has got to be takled about in mor general terms rather than singleing out suarez ,all your doing then is signing up to the daily mail agenda !

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  55. Unbelievable. Why don't I highlight all the players diving instead of one? That is exactly what I've been doing for years through my 'football cheats' series:

    http://www.liverpool-kop.com/search/label/football-cheats%20series?max-results=100

    I highlight diving of other players (probably) more than any other site. Plus, your assertion that I 'ignored' violent conduct during the game is nonsense. The first thing I posted after the game on Sunday was a condemnation of Huth's challenge:

    http://www.liverpool-kop.com/2012/10/video-robert-huths-disgraceful-stamp-on.html

    With respect, get your facts right before sounding off. Thanks.

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  56. If you were capable of even rudimentary objectivity you would see that it is not only Suarez who gets barracked for diving. Amongst others, Ronaldo, Drogba et al were constantly attacked by the press for cheating. The only hypocrisy here is Liverpool fans trying to make out that there is a conspiracy against Suarez, whilst ignoring how other players have been treated.

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  57. He just wanted to make it right? So, your argument is that Suarez has a right to dive because he got stamped on?

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  58. I agree it is a silly argument, JK. Just as silly as your argument and just about everyone else's that he shouldn't get penalties because he has a reputation.

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  59. And YOU have the gall to call yourself objective. You have been out to get Suarez out since day one. I'm not saying the guy is a saint, but he's no better or worse than any other fotballer out there. In my book, stomping on someone's chest is much worse than throwing yourself on the ground, especially after being kicked up and down the pitch by the Stoke THUGS . The first act is CRIMINAL and should be prosecuted by the police. If anyone did that outside a football pitch, they would probably end up in jail, but of course nobody things that's a big deal- all the so called press focuses on is Suarez falling - Oh, and by the way, he never
    attempted to claim a penalty for that.
    I think Suarez should leave England and English football for his own sanity and go play where the media don't go into hysterics at the mere sound of his name.

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  60. Suarez should leave England asap. The discrimination and mistreatment he has received from the FA, the media and fans is reprehensible. It is Suarez's unrecognized loyalty and the support of the club that keeps him in Merseyside. If I were him, I would have been long gone to a place where they value skill and positive play over cynical clattering.

    Was it a clumsy dive? Yes. He did get clipped on his right foot and that destabilized him. Could he have stayed up? Yes, but at the cost of losing the ball, so he let himself fall in a very pathetic way. Can I blame him? Only for the poor dive, but not for letting himself fall. There is no way he would have gotten the call if he did not fall.

    In English football, cheating by defenders is rewarded. This is a fact. Calls are not made and pundits barely mention the plethora of infractions committed by defenders. For every dive by a forward, there must be 50 shirt grabbings, nudges, blocks, pushes, etc. Suarez was pushed last Sunday as he was going for a ball. That should have been penalized. It wasn't. The Stoke defender was rewarded for his cheating. Bloggers like JK seem to be completely OK with that.

    Most of the rest of world football, beginning with FIFA, has acknowledged that talented players must be protected. Mason protected the thugs, pulling yellow cards only for those who hadn't been booked already. Until the FA figures out that fans want to see the Suarezes of the game as opposed to the Huths, and that the Suarezes need to be protected, English football will continue to be mediocre in the international scene.

    Why the hysteria from the media and bloggers about the occasional dive but nothing is said about the CONSTANT cheating by defenders? Can anyone answer this?

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  61. Chirag all yours posts reek of oh were the victim, get over it, LFC and their fans have used that card too many times!!

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  62. Nani is british? Suarez said negrito? The report says he admits to saying negro. This is confusing. It all must be that pesky fergusons fault, nothing is ever lfc's fault of course.

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  63. Oh playing the victim card, why always us!! Boo hoooo!

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  64. So whats everyones bottom line here?? Regardless of what ever other play in the world does. DOES SUAREZ CHEAT? YES/NO

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  65. But if it was Wenger, Mourinho or Ferguson saying it, would you be so forgiving. I doubt it.

    Smaller clubs sometimes complain about inequality on certain issues. Well equality comes in different positive AND negative ways and this is one of those ways, in my eyes. Got no sympathy at all for Martinez as he has been it for ages and is on the same wavelength as Ferguson, Wenger, Big Sam, Pulis, Mourinho, Rafa, etc, but manages little Wigan, so who cares eh(!)

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  66. Next time you lose your balance think about whether you can hold your position on all fours or just think what the hell, I'm going nowhere and so fall flat on your face! Footballers are performers and sometimes...things just go a little weird. It wasn't a dive, he didn't mean to go down as if he was tripped and I'm getting a little worried that referees, pundits and the deluded are all acting out a pantomime that suits those who like to stir things and sell papers and spin out the transition that a great club are going through. Jealousy after all this time, well, it's a fact isn't it? Why obsess? Of course, it's great that Huth can stamp on Suarez and that should have no effect on the rest of Suarez's game, that he gets no protection from the referee and that should have no effect on his game, and that we all forget stamping and Stoke's anti-football, and that should have no effect on the rest of his game. In short, Stoke don't play football they are spoilers and the really upsetting thing is that violent play is being tacitly condoned in every comment that suspiciously wants to take it out on Suarez. Brilliant player - yes. Ask yourself what values you are promoting and Tony Pulis must be laughing himself to the Fergie club of kidology.

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  67. One of the most cringeworthy posts I have ever read on here. Must think angels are born out of Suarez' a**e.

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  68. Falling is despicable, but stamping on somebody's chest is not. Funny world the English live in.

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  69. Yawn... So what if he's dived. Skretl and Agger hold opposition in our area at just about every corner. Players intentionally block markers during corners "a la NBA style", look at the blatant rugby tackle in the Udinese game! All players at some time look to gain an unfair advantage. They shouldn't but they do. The media frenzy around Suarez is unfair, deserved to a point yes, but not the amount that it is getting to.

    Give it another week and our tabloids and the intermerweb will have this boiling over more than Maradona's "Hand of God". Just out of interest what is your opinion of Maradona as a player?

    Without wanting to appear rude, and please Jaimie don't think I mean any offence, but are you of Ghanian descent? If you are then I can understand your dislike of Suarez from day one (If I was I'd absolutely hate him). If not and you only dislike him as a cheat then there can't be a player on the planet you do like. This isn't meant to be a tirade directed at you, I know it appears that way, but for how much longer do you need to be overly critical of Suarez? He cheats yes, but so do the rest of the team from time to time. I don't condone it, but I also don't obsess about it.

    Just one last question. Why is Suarez's dive the "real issue" and not Huth's blatant, intentional, attempt to INJURE another player by standing on his chest with studs on?

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  70. Big surprise, one of the two plastic paddies has something negative to say about the club. If Lawreson and Aldridge couldn't moan about everything that's wrong at Liverpool all day I swear they wouldn't know what to do with themselves. All we can do now is for Nicol to open his big mouth on the other side of the Atlantic to jump on the bandwagon. These guys seem to think that just because they were lucky enough to play for us at a certain time in their lives, that their opinion on all things Liverpool actually matters. Give me Alan Hansen any day.

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  71. There was an incident in the first half where Suarez could have gone down in the penalty area under a challenge from Wilson. He stayed up, Wilson was appealing that he hadn't touched Suarez even though he hadn't gone down, this suggests that Wilson must have thought he had fouled Suarez.

    Suarez also stayed in his feet when challenged in the box v Norwich, again he stayed on his feet.

    The Physical abuse that he was taking from Stoke at the weekend probably caused Suarez to revert to simulation. Again Wilson caught him, causing him to stumble, he tried to stay up, then realised that he should.d have gone down and dived pathetically.

    Is stamping on an opponent and cynical, dangerous fouling not a worse offence?

    Also, leaving it to the match referees to adjudged if he made a mistake is a joke?

    Hopefully Suarez tears it up in next match and gets in the headlines for the right reasons

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  72. Fully agree with NAC. Values have been turned upside down.

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  73. The real question is: why do we focus on Suarez when everybody "cheats", and I mean everybody. From goalies who will slap the ball out from inside the goalline, to defenders who literally grab and pin down forwards on corner kicks, to midfielders who make professional fouls to forwards who dive.

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  74. JK,

    I have a comment "unapproved". I am sure I didn't say anything inappropriate for the website. Is it a technical glitch?

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  75. Very constructive sarcastic comment. I believe he is quite idealistic and I do think he goes for fair play and clearly likes his team to play football, clearly doesn´t encourage them to go out and foul people, as you could see against Stoke at the weekend, but you know, make a sarcastic comment and don´t bring your own opinion to the table. Why not, it´s fun. P.S. I never said that.

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  76. Crass misrepresentation of Aldo's comments.

    Rodgers will publicly back Suarez for ever. He is Liverpool's best player and one of the best in the league.

    Bad man management would be to alienate Suarez and risk losing him before we secure top 4 again.

    Suarez has said tonight that once he has his managwr's backing he will fight for Liverpool. That's all we want.

    Let's hope the FA do something about simulation. Racism / discriminatory behaviour was ok before Suarez did it, Maybe this will tip the balance.

    The new scourge that Suarez has invented. Let's ignore Platini's comments regarding diving 30 years ago

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  77. JK, this whole issue of cheating is so idealistic it's ridiculous. The players' job is not to referee the match, but to win the match. If the FA was so concerned, they would institute proper rules that would discourage diving and it would be over. Would you also expect players to refuse a penalty kick and inform the referee they couldn't accept it on the grounds that they were not fouled? Is a failure to do this cheating as well? How do you draw the distinction of cheating / not cheating? This is not a player issue, but a league issue - don't blame the players for trying to win a game - let the FA get serious and it takes care of itself.

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  78. Rodgers was right to publicly defend suarez, although he would be wrong to support suarez behind closed doors. Never in a team environment should someone be publicly lambasted no matter how deserving. If he had publicly chastised suarez than that would lead to unrest within the team. Rodgers has been quite diplomatic, but i hope he has had a word with suarez behind closed doors telling him to change his ways.

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  79. Eric, I think you can make comments about Lawro and Aldridge without being derogatory to an entire nation. Is there really any need for the plastic paddies comment. If you go to Anfield, I am sure you have noticed that the ground is almost half full of those plastic paddies you refer to and from my experiences, they are the ones who try to start most of the singing to create an atmosphere. Maybe we should all switch allegiance to another club and then see how dead Anfiled is on match days.

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  80. no, just sayin i understand him.

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  81. w3efy wudnt be a man u supporter by any chance? get a life u sad prick!

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  82. Jaimie and many here will agree with me that this write-up is very tactical and controversial.Whenever he(Jaimie) castigate Liverpool or the manager or a player and notices the displeasure of the majority who have time to read it,his next article will be worth reading and motivating and tries to convince ;some; that he is of Liverpool.Jaimie's last article condemning Rodgers on Suarez and writing just a small paragraph on Huth stamping on Suarez;s chest while the rest of say 10 paragraphs of the same article were based on labelling and condemning Suarez showed all of us here that he is bias.I as well as many here were expecting Mr. Jaimie to dedicate one of his particular article writing only on Robert Huth;s stamping on Suarez;s chest and condemning it in totality and equally asking the FA for sanctions and also asking Pulis to talk to Huth,castigating Huth as a disgrace to football,but as obvious as Jaimie has been,he has written more than 8 articles on Suarez dive and only a paragraph on Huth stamping on Suarez.
    According to Jaimie diving is life threatening to a player health than stamping on someone;s chest or I see no reason for him forcusing on DIVES than STAMPINGS.
    Jaimie is just playing games with us here.This article is just trying to buy fans eyes here and for blind eyes to think he is a REAL Liverpool fan.I can categorise Liverpool and ManU fans here in two distinct categories and ask if Jaimie belongs to or not to any.
    1)All ManU fans do not like to hear anything good of Liverpool and will condemn any slightest wrongdoing from any person having link with them.Jaimie is good in this.
    2)Likewise any Liverpool fan do not want to hear anything good of ManU and will condemn in greatest terms any form of cheating by ManU or Fergie or any person linking with them.Jaimie hardly criticise ManU or criticise Fergie;s cheating of the game or hardly talk about Webb;s officiating many ManU matches or criticise Welbeck dives,Young dives van Persie's elbowing etc. but can write many articles on Suarez;s dive
    Jaimie over!!!!

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  83. Guess it's about time we started hounding Rodgers out of a job, the same way Kenny was, eh?

    The dinosaur.......

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  84. They're plastic paddies because they're not really Irish. I am half Irish myself mate. Relax.

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  85. For me, it's not a 'love in'. I still support him, but that doesn't mean he's above criticism. I don't believe in untouchabl favourites.

    Sent from Samsung Galaxy Note

    -------- Original message --------
    Subject: [liverpoolkop] Re: Bravo! LFC legend contradicts Rodgers over 'cheating' Luis Suarez. Who is right? | Liverpool-Kop.com

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