Luising His Head

It's not just a controversy. It's a storm. A whirlwind of terror and rage building up with the two instigators in the middle, infrequently bashing against each other in a spinning cataclysm that sends shockwaves throughout an entranced world. Yesterday a volcano erupted dead in the centre, with a botched handshake, a tunnel spat and an over-zealous celebration just a handful of the outrageous incidents.

It's a real mess of blame and shifted responsibility. It needs somebody reasonable to stretch out the situation like a wet towel, and point out exactly where each of the stains are and who's fault they were. What? Oh, did you just mutter "You should do it then". Well, that's extremely kind of you. I didn't expect that. Well alright then, I'll give it a shot if you really think I can.

Actually, I don't need to. Alan Green did a perfect job of diffusing the situation of 606 earlier, by consistently pressing forward the notion that Suarez had no obligation to shake Evra's hand whilst feigning condemnation of the very same act. He also started claiming that Suarez couldn't be a racist, because he shook the hands of a few other black people, which is akin to saying that Nick Griffin isn't racist because he ate curry once. People rightly came in to criticise Green, and as he began to backtrack on his comments, everyone became so confused about what his point was that I think they actually broke him. At the end he started saying "Oh, it's been a long day at work". It was utterly bizarre radio.

But either way, I don't think the incident is that hard to judge when you look at it. Let's put aside, for one moment, the original incident of racial abuse and whether or not Suarez's alleged comments did actually happen. Ignore that point for one second. Suarez really should have looked at how this whole incident has affected his reputation and the way he is perceived. Regardless of the incessant details of the incident a few months ago, Suarez must have been aware that a failure to shake Evra's hand was going to look tremendously petulant. It was really idiotic. Of course, Suarez has the right not to shake Evra's hand, but if he doesn't then not only is he an idiot, but he opens himself to any racially-charged perceptions people may see in his refusal. Just because you have the right to do something doesn't mean you want be correctly condemned if you do it.

Now this whole incident has led to people questioning the validity of the handshake at the beginning of the football match. I still think it's an important facet of a football game. It's good to have a showing of respect towards your opponent before the game, and it encourages gentlemanly conduct. People may renege on the handshake in severe cases but this is not something that incites a feud, it merely confirms it. Some have suggested that a handshake should take place at the end of the game, but I can't see that becoming a formal part of routine, and I believe this would be even more of a problem on occasions where things got heated on the pitch.

So Suarez not shaking Evra's hand was stupid. Really stupid. And all those people posting images and videos trying to prove Evra was actually the one who rejected the handshake are truly laughable. It's like a mini-faction of conspiracy theorists have infiltrated football, showing highly deceptive images and pointing out minute details whilst ignoring the bigger picture. I'm surprised they're not calling it an inside job, to be honest. Let's be fair though, Evra does seem to be a little hesitant about the handshake, but can you blame him? Suarez supposedly racially abused Evra, it's not as if Patrice is going to give him the firmest of handshakes. Either way, he was not the one who didn't offer his hand.

After a slow half of football came a little bit more anger from Suarez. Clearly riled up about something (I'm not exactly sure what considering it was him who decided not to participate in the handshake - seriously, what was he expecting?) he reacted very badly to a perfectly fair Rio Ferdinand tackle, and violently kicked the ball away in fury as the half-time whistle was blown. Little is known of what followed, but police and stewards were forced to break up a brewing rage in the tunnel. I'm going to go on a whim and say that Suarez and Evra were maybe involved in that, but the post-match comments don't seem to allude to what really happened there, so it's difficult to say. For all we know, it could have been Carroll and Berbatov having a lazy fight where they just exasperatedly pushed each other a bit before going off for a nap...

Thankfully, a football match pushed it's way out of the mud and took a deep breath of the cold wintry air, allowing itself to manifest as a 2-1 victory to Manchester United. It was a worthy result that meant a lot to the United team, but Evra's post-match antics were undoubtedly uncalled for. Though I wouldn't say the incident was of the severity of Suarez's (and almost certainly was instigated by the Uruguayan anyway), clearly Evra's only achievement was to antagonise the situation even further, which was rather reckless of him.

So that was the on-field action and it's tempting to say that had the managers both condemned their players' acts of foolishness and said little more on the incident, a significant amount less would have been made out of the nasty debacle. I use the word 'tempting' because that's almost certainly not true, but it's a nice thought anyway. Instead, Kenny Dalglish and Alex Ferguson both made controversial statements, although it's no doubt who's interview came across worse. King Kenny's interview seemed to be going smoothly enough, but when questioned about the handshake incident, Dalglish denied that he was aware that it happened (which I struggle to believe) and consequently got furious at Geoff Shreeves for blaming Suarez for anything, mumbling something about the fans and then ending the interview.

Alex Ferguson's comments were a little inflammatory as well. He suggested that Liverpool should sell Suarez in what was otherwise a fairly reasonable interview. It was a rash comment maybe, but nothing more than that. I know it seems like I'm condemning Liverpool a lot harder at the moment, but the truth is when you compare these things objectively, there's really little argument to be had. Whilst Ferguson was calm and addressed all the incidents, Dalglish became incandescent as soon as Suarez was in any way condemned. There's little way to justify it in any other light.

However, today's apologies have been more than welcomed. Suarez has issued a statement admitting he 'got things wrong', and Dalglish accepted that he had not 'conducted himself in a way befitting of a Liverpool manager. These apologies, whether they are sincere or not, should be embraced by all fans, especially Liverpool supporters. Yesterday's incidents were an unfortunate mix of anger and bitterness that just happened to rear their ugly heads. They were mistakes, and it's good to see that both Suarez and Dalglish are willing to put their hands up to them. United also released a statement that looked to put a chunky bucket of water over the fire, meaning both clubs are happy to move away from the trouble.

So should Ferguson and Evra apologise? I don't think Ferguson should. Perhaps it would be good form If Evra admitted his celebrations were over-zealous, but I'm not sure it's necessary now. Either way, we have to move on from this tremendous farce. Not only does it not paint a good image of English football, but when other black players see the ridiculous furore that has happened thanks to racial abuse being reported, it will only serve to discourage them from alerting people to when they are racially abused themselves. If this sort of thing is allowed to drag so far in the future, complaining about racial abuse will just be seen as a hassle, followed by a long, unhappy grudge.

Furthermore, the faction of Liverpool supporters that are still showing ardent defence for Suarez need to start considering that their heroes may not just be honorable victims. Whilst the merits of an independent report can be disputed (if you're into that sort of thing), what happened yesterday was plain to see. I'm amazed that some people seem capable of upholding this victimisation view though - really, it's akin to spinning a helicopter in a beach hut, but the best step would be to understand that this was an unpleasant incident that doesn't need to be stretched on any further, and move on.

I haven't helped by talking about it again though.

Changing of the Guard

The seemingly innocuous retirement of Gary Neville begins a generational shift for Man United

Just what is it that brings the sort of relentless, unremitting success to a club that Manchester United have enjoyed for the last twenty years? Is it hefty wads of cash being injected into the team? Is it having one of the best managers in the world? Is it producing wave after wave of extraordinary talent from the academy?

Many would argue that it’s a combination of the three, but I’d like to think that having several players ready and willing to devote themselves entirely to the club, come rain or shine, is just as valuable and important. Indeed, three key players to Manchester United’s 20 years of unrivalled   success would have to be Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes and Gary Neville. Throughout the years they have never shown a hint of desire to leave the club. They have flourished when made key figures in the team, and diligently stood by on the few occasions where other players took their roles. They epitomise the term “one-club man”.

It’s hard to think of anyone who will have enjoyed their football career more than Ryan Giggs has. The early proclamation by the media of him being the ‘wizard of dribble’ does not fairly sum up the range of abilities that the Welshman has; some of which came naturally to him, but some of which he developed through maturity. His technical ability and range of passing has always been excellent, and as he’s slowed down over the years he’s managed to curb the ‘pacy winger’ side of his game for a more considered playmaker role.

He’s had his fair share of famous moments as well. Many will remember the FA Cup semi-final replay in which his mazy dribbling saw him cut through an entire defence, although more will remember the hairy-chested celebration that followed. Besides that, Giggs set up the first goal in United’s 1999 Champions League comeback, and remains one of only four midfielders to have scored 100 Premier League goals.

Another one of those four is Paul Scholes. Scholes may not have had the longetivity and adulation that Giggs has had in his career, but he has left an indelible mark upon many of his opponents and team-mates, who utterly admire his abilities. Zinedine Zidane once said that "Scholes is undoubtedly the best midfielder of his generation.", whilst United legend Bobby Charlton labelled him “the embodiment of all that I think is best about football”.

His media-shy demeanour undoubtedly endears him to the game’s insiders, but this unfortunately means he sometimes gets overlooked by journalists and fans. Without question though, Scholes is one of the best English midfielders of all time. His talent of picking out a pass from practically anywhere on the pitch was phenomenal, and it’s an ability he still possesses to a great degree.

And of course, some of his goals have been absolute corkers. He has a methodical precision to direct a 25-yard volley exactly where he wants it to go, and yet he maintains a superb power in the shot that allows the ‘keeper no opportunity to get anywhere near it. His goal against Aston Villa in 2006 was the perfection of this talent.

Goals however, are not the forte of Gary Neville. In his 400 appearances for United, he only managed five. But Neville’s style of play was built on resisting the spectacular. Pure consistency was the reason he was able to act as a great servant for both club and country, becoming an integral part of many different United and England defences. With today’s full-backs like Glen Johnson and Ashley Cole, there is an expectance that they will support the attack by flying forward. Not to say that Neville never did this, but he knew his main priority was to defend and he stuck to that task with an admirable assiduousness.

Unfortunately, the past few seasons have seen a rapid demise in his performances. Despite Ferguson’s faith in Neville as captain, it had been clear for a while that Neville could no longer cut it at the top level, and he rightfully hanged up his boots, left to contemplate his steady, successful career.

Despite not being a United fan, I still have a feeling of sentimentality about Giggs, Scholes and Neville, and I believe many will feel the same way. A whole new generation of supporters have grown up with these three players making up part of the furniture at Old Trafford, and now that Neville has retired and will surely soon be followed by Giggs and Scholes, it really does mark the end of an era.