Suarez apologises as PM calls football race summit
Liverpool striker Luis Suarez apologises for snubbing Manchester United’s Patrice Evra at Saturday’s match, as the Prime Minister calls a Downing Street summit to tackle racism rows in football.
In an official statement on Liverpool FC’s website, Suarez said he had spoken to his manager Kenny Dalglish after Saturday’s game at Old Trafford and had realised he “got things wrong”.
Suarez was widely condemned for appearing to refuse to shake hands with Evra following the eight match ban that Suarez was given as a punishment for racially abusing the Manchester United defender.
Suarez said: “I’ve not only let him down, but also the Club and what it stands for and I’m sorry. I made a mistake and I regret what happened.
“I should have shaken Patrice Evra’s hand before the game and I want to apologise for my actions. I would like to put this whole issue behind me and concentrate on playing football.”
He was wrong to mislead us and wrong not to offer his hand to Patrice Evra. He has not only let himself down, but also Kenny Dalglish, his teammates and the Club. Liverpool MD Ian Ayre
Liverpool’s manager Dalglish and managing director Ian Ayre also both released statements the latter said the Club was “extremely disappointed” in Suarez, given that the player had assured them ahead of the match that he would shake Evra’s hand.
Ayre said: “He was wrong to mislead us and wrong not to offer his hand to Patrice Evra. He has not only let himself down, but also Kenny Dalglish, his teammates and the Club. It has been made absolutely clear to Luis Suarez that his behaviour was not acceptable.”
Meanwhile, Dalglish said: “To be honest, I was shocked to hear that the player had not shaken hands having been told earlier in the week that he would do. But as Ian said earlier, all of us have a responsbility to represent this Club in a fit and proper manner and that applies equally to me as Liverpool manager”.
Race summit at Number 10
His apology follows the news that David Cameron and Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt are to hold a “round table discussion” with the sports authorities and players’ representatives over racism in football.
Mr Hunt said the failure of Suarez to shake Evra’s hand at the match was “incredibly depressing”.
He told the BBC: “It was very unsporting behaviour and I am sure the Football Association will look to see if any rules were broken.”
The Number 10 event, scheduled for later this month, comes amid growing fears that high-profile incidents are harming the image of the game in England.
I should have shaken Patrice Evra’s hand before the game and I want to apologise for my actions. Luis Suarez
At a charity reception last month, Mr Cameron said many people had been “concerned by recent events” in the sport.
“My message is clear: we will not tolerate racism in Britain. It has absolutely no place in our society and where it exists, we will kick it out,” he said.
“Our football governing bodies, clubs and footballers themselves have a vital role to play as role models in this respect.”
Mr Hunt added: “The lesson of the last couple of months is that you can never be complacent and the Prime Minister is very, very concerned to make sure that we don’t go back to the bad old days but also that we are absolutely on our mettle to make sure that the football authorities and the government continue to do everything we can to stamp out this problem.”