Suarez row rumbles on as Mansfield chief says sneaky striker shamed Anfield
Hold your hands up: The has been a furious reaction to Luis Suarez's goal for Liverpool against Mansfield
Watched the Mansfield's keeper's reaction. Poor feller, played so hard and got done by this kind of thing. For a non league side who may never play at the highest level, this must haunt them for the rest of their careers.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=9BBs8o6Ma-0
Mansfield chairman John Radford has ensured the row over the controversial Luis Suarez goal rumbles on by making the extraordinary claim that Liverpool’s own directors are embarrassed by the actions of the club’s Uruguay striker.
The Blue Square Bet Premier club are counting the cost of Sunday’s 2-1 FA Cup third-round defeat by Liverpool at Field Mill, with initial estimates suggesting a replay at Anfield would have brought them more than £600,000.
Comments from Mansfield’s owner and chairman - made after the full implications of the goal sunk in - will perhaps inflame a situation already so sensitive that ESPN felt moved to apologise publicly for on-air suggestions from commentator Jon Champion that Suarez had cheated.
‘To be honest the Liverpool directors felt embarrassed,’ said Radford. ‘That’s it. I would have been absolutely embarrassed had it been one of our players.
‘I’d have been embarrassed and the man should be embarrassed. Referees have a hard time but to do it deliberately then celebrate is the hardest thing.
‘To cheat, maybe that’s OK in sport. But to cheat and then celebrate cheating, that is the worst thing you can do. It’s always disappointing when things happen.
‘I’m going to be biased every time because I’m watching a Premier League referee in charge of a game between a non-League side and a Premier side and some of the decisions were hurtful.
‘When you get a professional player like Suarez and when they kiss the hand after a deliberate foul then of course it hurts.’
Asked if Suarez was gloating, he added: ‘Well, obviously he was. It was like, "Hang on, I can get away with this". If one of my players had done that I’d be embarrassed.
'I was looking for a fair and true competition and that was one incident in the game that made me feel like...well...'
No fuss: Suarez angered fans further when he celebrated the goal in trademark fashion
Regular watchers of Barclays Premier League football will know Suarez always celebrates a goal by kissing a tattoo of his daughter’s name on his wrist. Nevertheless, Mansfield’s ire will not subside.
As Liverpool look ahead to a Premier League game at Manchester United on Sunday — expected attendance 76,500 — and Mansfield prepare to host Kidderminster — anticipated attendance 2,500 — in the Blue Square Bet Premier, it is perhaps understandable Radford has been left rueing a 2-1 defeat.
With Suarez’s handball prior to Liverpool’s second goal proving decisive, Mansfield are reflecting on missing out on 45 per cent of replay gate receipts plus more TV money had the second game been shown live next week.
Radford, who bankrolls Mansfield with his own money, did not try to hide his frustration and disappointment as he widened his attack on Sunday’s opponents.
He said: ‘They have denied us a replay but it doesn’t matter. I know I’m big enough and daft enough to be able to stand up for the club and take us forward. It’s hurtful for the league we are in because we are playing at the likes of Luton and Grimsby. The profile would have been good.
Not happy: Mansfied's owner John Radford has hit out at the player, claiming he shamed Liverpool
‘Did you not hear our fans? Did you not hear how loud they were? Compared to Liverpool fans they are true fans. It’s not like Liverpool fans are not true fans, but it was proper fans that were there for us.
‘They paid their £20 for a ticket and they had queued up overnight to get them. Liverpool fans were probably all corporate because we outsung them at the game.
‘As Mansfield chairman, local club, local boy, born and bred, supporting the team, it’s not business. This is the team I love.
‘I’m here for the passion, as against Liverpool, where it’s all about business.What happened was a killer. It was a killer and a shame that a professional would do that sort of thing to a non-League team.’
Radford’s wife, Carolyn, the club’s chief executive, added in an exclusive column on Sportsmail Online: ‘We all have that "what if" feeling. With Liverpool playing Oldham in the next round, we could even have had a chance of getting through that one.
‘The goal was really frustrating for us. He got such an advantage and then kissed his hand. I think the reaction from Liverpool showed that even they thought it shouldn’t have been allowed.
‘It’s difficult to know if he is a cheat. If it was deliberate he should have owned up.’
Her husband’s view was more categorical. ‘One day, cheats will never prosper,’ he said.
