PFA boss Taylor says Suarez ban sends out right message
Liverpool decided not to appeal against the eight-match FA ban imposed on their striker on Tuesday for racially abusing Manchester United defender Patrice Evra in a Barclays Premier League match at Anfield in October.
Professional Footballers’ Association chief executive Taylor said yesterday: “It’s a lesson to all of us... that all players coming into our game from different countries understand and accept what we are about — equality and diversity. We have got probably the most multi-cultural game in the world so it’s important to set the right example.
“We don’t want him [Evra] feeling a victim. We want our black players to feel comfortable that racism can be dealt with in football terms, as well as the law of the land. Some issues are bigger than a player, the club or the game and racism is one of those. We have to learn from it and there should be no misunderstanding or ambiguity in the future.
“You don’t want such issues to divide clubs or society. We’re all in a football family but we’re all under the law of the land. Once a penalty has been paid and carried out we move on in a positive manner to make sure the penalty acts as a deterrent. The educational process continues.”
Meanwhile, midfielder James Milner believes Manchester City have got their title challenge back on track by learning lessons from their disappointing Christmas results. City’s previously strong grip on top spot in the Premier League was loosened as they were held at West Brom and beaten at Sunderland over the holiday period.
But Roberto Mancini’s men put those frustrations behind them on their return to the Etihad Stadium, where they are unbeaten since December 2010, as they comfortably saw off Liverpool 3-0.
Milner, scorer of the third goal, said: “We had a couple of disappointing results over the Christmas period. We know it is a critical time over any season and [we needed] to get the momentum back.
“We set our standards very high and the first half [at Sunderland] was not good enough the other day. We probably still did enough in the second half to win it but it is a learning curve.
“We need to make sure we learn from those sort of experiences and I think it shows how much character and ability there is in the dressing room that we can come back 48 hours later.”
Milner added: “To win the game like we did, and pretty convincingly as well, down to 10 men, was good.
“That showed the quality and determination and what we are about as a team.”
Milner has impressed this season despite not being a regular starter and could be set for an enhanced role in the coming weeks as key man Yaya Toure departs for the African Nations Cup.
Toure and his brother Kolo are expected to join up with the Ivory Coast for the tournament in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea after this weekend’s FA Cup third-round clash with Manchester United.
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