On happier news.... Craig is signing of the season http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/news/latest-news/craig-is-signing-of-the-season
Suarez gets 1 game ban for Fulham finger + 20K fine. LFC also get 20K fine for failing to control their players after the Spearing red card. Apparently LFC is the first team to ever surround a ref after a terrible decision.
and meireles NOT banned for his middle finger in the recent arsenal match... and in years past, neither was neville, ashley cole, et al...
are you saying that the FA is treating Suarez differently than many other players? I don't believe it!
'He is not proud to be black' – Porto’s Alvaro Pereira slams Manchester United’s Patrice Evra The British press response and rival fans have pretty much guaranteed that the FA are unlikely to back down on the ban but its good to see that Luis is still being backed.
Hmmm ... Cole on Hodgson, very interesting. From 3:20 onwards. [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cAwyLLhzF4&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL"]Joe Cole On Hodgson, Dalglish, Mourinho, Liverpool & Life At Lille [Part 1] - YouTube[/ame]
http://www.thefa.com/TheFA/Discipli...Written Reasons of Regulatory Commission.ashx A joke. Absolutely, side-splittingly hilarious.
(5) Mr Suarez's evidence was unreliable in relation to matters of critical importance. It was, in part, inconsistent with the contemporaneous evidence, especially the video footage. For example, Mr Suarez said that he pinched Mr Evra's skin in an attempt to defuse the situation. He also said that his use of the word "negro" to address Mr Evra was conciliatory and friendly. We rejected that evidence. To 113 describe his own behaviour in that way was unsustainable and simply incredible given that the players were engaged in an acrimonious argument. That this was put forward by Mr Suarez was surprising and seriously undermined the reliability of his evidence on other matters (paragraphs 235 to 267 above). There were also inconsistencies between his accounts given at different times as to what happened (paragraphs 282 to 318)
Powar has his knickers in a twist too... http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/s...-group-slams-reds-over-suarez-support?cc=5901
Is Suarez an ethnic minority himself? Did Evra insult him based on his origin and ethnicity? Has Suarez subsequently been treated fairly and equitably? So in what way is a Liverpool appeal against the principles of anti-racism? Just amazing, all this. Amazing.
I've given this a lot of thoughts and I think that an attack on the conclusions will not work on appeal. The FA will hear the appeal and they will not reverse the panel. But an appeal to have this treated as a simple first offense with a 4 game ban and a treatment of less than a permanent ban for the next offense would be something we might prevail on. Even an appeal to the European Sport panel will not result in a reversal since the FA panel will argue that their decision resulted from a judgement of face to face testimony and the arbitration court will not reverse such a judgement since they won't do a de novo review and therfore will only reverse if the FA panels decision is inconsistent with their own rules and precedents.
agree with this... and i think that the club will feel that a reduced 4-game ban, while still standing behind our player, is an outcome that they can accept, at this point...
I don't think that will work, and unfortunately, admission of "guilt" in using the word negro has worked in reverse to actually help the FA (and other organizations) brand Suarez as a pariah in order to make an example out of him. To be fair, I think this will help Suarez in the long run, because he will get a good amount of rest, and the team will learn to manage without him in his absence.
One can disagree with a judgement but only appeal the penalty. They are not mutually exclusive. A gentle we understand that our understanding of the events is not the panel's but ... the penalty is too severe for the following reasons would suffice.
From a legal point-of-view, I understand that. From a social perspective, It's clear they want to hang us from the lamppost in the town square. It won't matter what they do. Everything will be an opportunity to rake us through the mud even more and make an example.
Jonathan Wilson's The Question: "Why are Liverpool Struggling at Home" To explain our struggles, Wilson, based on stats, figures that we are trying to cross the ball too much at the expense of just playing through the middle and shooting on goal.
I know you are joking, because this is obvious. But, there's a difference between saying something and backing it up in a concise thesis backed up by statistics. Just because we (as fans) are right some of the time, it doesn't mean we are right all the time, and it never hurts to actually have someone show a deeper analysis than just watching and blurting comments out. As you well know, we have enough journos saying dumb shit about our team that probably seems obvious to them to. (EX: "Rafa's team is shit at set pieces, because they are zonal marking", etc) Let's not poke too much fun of someone that actually takes it serious and comes to the right conclusion.
Well I am not poking fun but it's as plain as the wart on the ugly teacher's face that "wif out Stevie G we hain't got nofing coming through the middle."
Well, the article also mentions that last year we did much better through the middle, and we didn't have Stevie G, so maybe it's not as obvious as a hideous birthmark?