Suarez victim of FA inconsistency: Brandon Rodgers
26 April 2013 1:31 AM GMT
Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers criticised the Football Association on Thursday for punishing the man rather than the incident after striker Luis Suarez was given a 10-game ban for biting Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic.
The Uruguayan international accepted a charge of violent conduct following the incident in the 2-2 Premier League draw at Anfield on Sunday.
After Suarez disputed the FA’s view that it merited more than a three-game ban, an Independent Regulatory Commission met on Wednesday and added seven matches to the usual suspension for violent conduct. Rodgers compared the punishment meted out to Suarez to two other biting incidents, including one involving England striker Jermain Defoe.
‘It is the severity of the ban that has hurt most,’ Rodgers told reporters. ‘That is something we are bitterly disappointed with - not so much the ban because everyone has seen it and Luis was very open and honest to know it was wrong.
‘You can only compare it with similar incidents we’ve had. There have been two similar incidents both in 2006. One player (Defoe) received no ban and continued to be picked by the FA for the England team. The other player received a five-game ban.’
The Uruguayan international accepted a charge of violent conduct following the incident in the 2-2 Premier League draw at Anfield on Sunday.
After Suarez disputed the FA’s view that it merited more than a three-game ban, an Independent Regulatory Commission met on Wednesday and added seven matches to the usual suspension for violent conduct. Rodgers compared the punishment meted out to Suarez to two other biting incidents, including one involving England striker Jermain Defoe.
‘It is the severity of the ban that has hurt most,’ Rodgers told reporters. ‘That is something we are bitterly disappointed with - not so much the ban because everyone has seen it and Luis was very open and honest to know it was wrong.
‘You can only compare it with similar incidents we’ve had. There have been two similar incidents both in 2006. One player (Defoe) received no ban and continued to be picked by the FA for the England team. The other player received a five-game ban.’
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