Carragher explains why Liverpool must stand by Suarez

Liverpool veteran Jamie Carragher has written his view on the Luis Suarez “bitegate” and attempted to provide some perspective on the case.

Jamie Carragher

The Liverpool defender, always one to talk sense on football issues, rightly makes some excellent points in his column for The Daily Mail.

Carragher admits that it was “behaviour you would associate with nursery school”, but goes on to explain why Liverpool should support the player – who he describes as in the top 5 players in the World – and questions whether a bite on the arm is worse than a career ending tackle.

Carragher writes:

Luis knows he has done something seriously wrong, letting himself down. He has been told that a repeat of such behaviour will not be tolerated and the club’s stance has been different from how it was following his altercation with Patrice Evra.

But, rather than hounding him out of the country, shouldn’t we be helping him?

We have a top psychologist in Steve Peters who comes to the club once a week and he could have as big a role as our manager, Brendan Rodgers, for Luis.

Carragher also pointed out what many have said in the aftermath of the media hysteria, that surely a bite on the arm is not as bad as a potentially career ending tackle?

I know what it is like to have your leg broken by a reckless tackle. Lucas Neill cost me six months of my career in September 2003 when he played for Blackburn. Would I have preferred to have been bitten? Absolutely.

I suspect that Branislav Ivanovic, who has conducted himself with great credit in the aftermath, would agree. You can get up and carry on after a skirmish. If someone shatters your leg, you wonder whether you will play again.

After the predictable over the top media reaction to the incident, and the ill-judged comments even by Liverpool legends Graeme Sounness and Phil Thompson immediately after, some perspective has been provided in recent days; Brighton boss Gus Poyet, John Barnes, Gary Neville and even Martin Samuel has written a column with sense and balance – focussing on the FA’s role.

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