Liverpool striker Luis Suarez risks reopening Patrice Evra racism row after claiming allegations were 'all false'

Suarez was reported to have claimed that he only regretted the two biting incidents he was involved in during his time with Ajax and Liverpool

Jack de Menezes
Friday 14 February 2014 10:53 GMT
Comments
Luis Suarez has claimed that the racism allegations Patrice Evra made against him in 2011 were 'all false'
Luis Suarez has claimed that the racism allegations Patrice Evra made against him in 2011 were 'all false' (GETTY IMAGES)

Luis Suarez has risked the possibility of reopening the 2011 racism row between himself and Manchester United defender Patrice Evra after telling a Uruguayan radio station that he does not regret the incident that saw him receive an eight-match ban.

Furthermore, the Liverpool striker insists that the incident was “all false” after claiming that he only regrets the two biting incidents that he was guilty of during his playing career.

The matter was made worse when Suarez refused to shake the United left-back's hand the next time the two sides met, with the Frenchman taking exception to Suarez's decision by grabbing his oppoenent as the two sides lined-up before kick-off. They have since appeared to put the incident behind them.

Speaking to Sport890 AM, Suarez said: “Let me tell you, I've made only two mistakes in my career. My first was when I was playing for Ajax and I bit an opponent. My second was when I bit [Branislav] Ivanovic [against Chelsea].

“The case with Evra was all false. I was accused without proof. But that's in the past. I was sad at that moment, but I'm happy today. I have grown up. I have thought more about things before doing them.

“Now people in England can't talk about me because I'm not doing anything wrong. They have to talk about me only as a footballer. I said I'm sorry [after the Ivanovic bite] and that was all, end of story. I've nothing else to regret. All the other things were like a movie that people in England believed in.”

Stressing that both incidents were in the past, Suarez was keen to move on to future matters, and primarily his return to South America in the summer when he leads the Uruguayan attack in Brazil at the 2014 World Cup.

The 27-year-old admitted that his biggest worry was getting injured ahead of the tournament that would scupper his chances of sparkling on the biggest stage, with Uruguay looking to improve on their third place finish in South Africa four years ago. With Radamel Falcao and Theo Walcott already suffering serious knee injuries that look to have ended their World Cup hopes, Suarez is determined to avoid a similar fate in the run-in to the end of the Reds’ season.

“The truth is that I am scared of what happened to Falcao and Walcott,” Suarez admitted.

“But you live in the present and you always give your best for your club - you can't be thinking about that all the time. It is a unique opportunity and we all want to be there but I prefer to focus my mind on the English league. The moment to think about the national team will arrive later.”

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in