Patrice Evra must choose whether to shake Luis Suárez’ hand this weekend after the Football Association insisted that normal matchday protocols would be in place for the Premier League fixture between Manchester United and Liverpool at Old Trafford on Saturday lunchtime. Suárez returned, against Tottenham Hotspur on Monday, from an eight match ban imposed by the FA for racially abusing Evra in the meeting between the two sides last October.
Unlike the recent meeting between Chelsea and QPR, where the FA abandoned the usual pre-game meet and greet between the teams “in an attempt to further defuse tensions,” Evra is likely to be offered the Uruguayan’s hand on Saturday. This comes just a fortnight after Evra was widely jeered at Anfield, with one fan caught making a ‘monkey gesture’ towards the Frenchman.
However, manager Sir Alex Ferguson recently suggested that Evra should “rise above” any temptation to ignore the Liverpool striker this weekend. “He should be applauded for what he did [reporting Suárez], standing up to it,” Ferguson said last week. “There is no shame for him. The matter is over. He can rise above that.”
News of the FA’s stance comes on the same day Ferguson has urged football to clamp down on racism in the game.
“I don’t understand at all where it’s coming from,” Ferguson told CNN. “This is a moment where we have to take stock and we should do something about it if it’s surfacing again, and be really hard and firm on any form or shape of racism. There have been a couple of examples recently which is not good. In 2012, you can’t believe it.”
[poll id=”73″]
Yes. Be the better man. Let us fans give him hell.
I agree, he has the opportunity to prove that he might forgive and be the better man.
suarez will be a sub, so handshake wont happen.
not a chance he will be a sub
Shake his and look him in the eye….then we can give ol buck tooth and the idiot of a manager a welcome they will never forget. Wait till they hear what 74,000 voices sound like…
That idiot did not and dare not even apologise to Evra and worst of all, he got a manager who is a bigger moron than he his, claiming that his player should not be banned in the first place. It’s back to square one, only this time, the manager should be ban for 8 games and additional 8 for saying the FA was wrong which for this occasion, I would like to admit was spot-on. (not usual though)
If Dalglish, Suarez or LFC had been in any way conciliatory then i’d have voted yes but their persistent self portrayed martyrdom and continued victimisation and absolute failure to realise their responsibility then for me its no…. i certainly wouldn’t and would have made further complaint after Dalglish’s recent deliberate stirring this week.
MUFC Defending Champions, Liverpool; Defending Racists, Dalglish making Liverpool easy to hate!!!
I’ve always found hating them very easy
I have a real problem with this.
I would like to see the end of all this shit, so we can get back to talking about the football.
But not as long as Liverpool, and especially Dalglish continue with the snide comments, and the outright refusal to accept that Evra was the victim and not the villain…
^^^ exactly right.
I don’t want this swept under the rug, as long as Dalglish keeps talking shit.
I want that fucker brought to heel… or run out of the game… either one will suit me.
I hope Fergie gives Dalglish a Glasgow kiss.
Why not do what we did to Viera; shake his hand and give him a lingering stare
Or just grab his hand, pull him close and ‘butt him – then start on Kuyt
But Evra shouldn’t really be playing in this game because his form is shite and he hasn’t had a rest
I know he’s had a lot of shit to deal with, but he’s going through a spell of not being able to defend as often happens with him, and Liverpool will exploit it with their boring route one bullshit
But we didn’t sign a left back in Jan and Fabio is nowhere to be seen as ever
They’re gonna target De Gea too, probably with some success
It doesn’t matter. Suarez should quit England an come to Carnival in Uruguay where blacks and whites participate together in black festival traditions. By the way do your Lords and Sirs participate in black parties and said “Hi Negro” to black people. No. Different cultures. Your is better of course.
Its up to him. I dont think anyone should tell him what to do, or criticise him for what he does. Totally a personal issue.
And I dont really understand why it is being made into such a big issue by the media. Its just a handshake ffs, who gives a shit.
I would love to have voted yes but, how can we expect Evra to shake the hand of a racist that can not appologise for his mistake. Dalglish isn’t helping and the whole club wether they like it or not is being portrayed as racist, and even though this is liverpool we are talking about noone should be hated for racism becaise there should be no racism.
Just let the handshakes pass and get on with the game afterall this game is bigger than a great player and a racist.
Yes, occupy the moral high ground. We’re a bigger club than them in every way, let it show. Then let the fans & players have their say over the 90mins.
And, until he publicly washes his hand in antiseptic, scalding water and a wire brush, nobody shakes hands with Paddy.
Interesting that Suarez’s latest feeble line is that ‘what happens on the pitch should stay on the pitch’. Which would be fine if players were allowed to settle their differences with fists like they do in ice hockey and rugby. Imagine if Evra had so much as raised a hand at Suarez, the scumbag would have collapsed to the ground clutching his face and rolling round and round till the ref red carded Evra.
When the 8 match ban was announced, I felt it was a bit harsh, but now I think the FA should ban Suarez until he is prepared to say sorry for the offence he has caused, irrespective of how inadvertent he thought it was.
Of course.
Part of me think ‘yes, be the bigger man’. However, the actions of Suarez, Dalglish and their fans makes a much bigger part of me think ‘Not a fucking chance’. In fact, I’d quite like it if not a single one of our lads shook his hand. Leave I’m walking down the line looking like the twat he is and take away the focus from Paddy. You’ll never walk alone? Oh yes you fucking will sunshine.
no chance…fuck them…scum cunts….a carnival of cunts they are…
shake him warmly by the throat…scum cunts!!
If there was an option to vote ‘however Evra feels’ then I would have clicked that. To be honest I’m not sure I like Ferguson coming out and saying this… it’s unfair for him to pressure Evra.
And I don’t subscribe to the notion that shaking the hand of a proud racist is being the bigger man. Everything about that club sickens me to my stomach.
The similarities to Germany circa 1930s is growing day by day.
Yep,
Maybe the whole question is irrelevant: maybe Liverpool will not allow Suarez to shake Evra’s hand even if the latter extended it first — because that handshake would be seen as `contamination’.
Forgiveness requires remorse. There hasn’t been any, only further denial and insults.
I hope someone runs onto the pitch and smashes suarez’s face in.
Do you still have a spare ticket?
When you are big and in a bigger club with great tradition,and in front of 80 thousand,you can’t mind with a kid who plays for a small club.Evra can shake his hand coz he is a kid,but the boo boys should keep their trumphet ready for vengeance. GGMU.
Don’t care about the handshake I’d just want to win at all costs and stick it to the scousers, rub it in their faces. Wind them up royally, kiss the badge, line up the Prem league medals, actually fuck it give the Prem trophy an airing. How many years has it been 21-22? Get a banner the size of the Stretford End reminding them. A treble winning banner laid out on the pitch before the match whatever it takes to show and remind these fuckers who we are. Bigger, better, more successful current champions and chasing a 20th. Scousers a total spent force. Without the infrastructure, money or the talent to mount any kind of a challenge on the title or get into the UCL in the foreseeable future.
United>liverpool FC a straight forward fact. Lets remind them Saturday.
I’d do this. Hopefully the guys preparing the match programme have this idea too. That would royally pump up the crowd.
Suarez will play and get sent off. He’s a top player but can’t control himself on the pitch. HEck, his first game back and he should have seen red for his karate kick and eye gauge on Parker. I think the pressure and the crowd at OT will get to him and I’ll love every minute of it!
Evra should give him a traditional French handshake, with a kiss on each cheek
See how that bitey, headbutty, nasty piece of work likes that
I’m not sure he’d react well
Biting, eye gauging, kicking in the groin, flippin’ the bird, racial abuse… what hasn’t he done/ Perhaps he’ll whip down his shorts and take a huge crap right on the field. Who knows with this baffoon?
Of course CaptainEvra should shake his hand BUT he should give him a sly kick in the bollocks, too.
When the two lines pass and Evra stands in front of Suarez… how great would it be… with Suarez hand extended… Evra just loaded one up and knocked him spark out?
I’ll be happy with whatever Pat decides to do, ultimately it’s up to him. I personally would shake it, if Suarez had offered a proper apology. He didn’t though, did he….
So Patrice went for the shake, but Suarez suprised nobody with his refusal and attitude. Another example of Dalglish talking rubbish.
Originally, I voted yes. Evra should try to be bigger than Suarez and show more maturity, humility and humanity. If I was Fergie, I would have told Evra to stand up to Suarez, offer your hand and show him that you are the better person for standing up against racism, but more importantly, that you can forgive the mistake of a ignorant person. However, with Suarez’s refusal to even offer his hand in redemption and show some acknowledgement of his offence I could almost change my vote. I am appalled by Suarez’s blatant refusal to offer some sort of mature gesture to Evra. I am afraid that Liverpool have perpetuated this affair with their ridiculous behaviour in the immediate aftermath of the original incident. I thought Sir Alex was fully justified in his criticism of Suarez and the effect that this will have on Liverpool football club. I agree with his criticism of Evra at the end of the match too – his celebrations went a little too far. Suarez has denigrated Liverpool’s reputation. Kenny Dalgleish is culpable in this matter too. A simple “sorry” from Liverpool would have gone a long way to rectify the matter. I only hope the words of Suarez’s agent ring true now – that he is forced out of English football, because quite simply, great player though he is, his attitude stinks and this behaviour should not be allowed in our beautiful game.