Lets get one thing straight. It is not the length of this ban that it is wrong it is the FA bans that have preceded it that are the major problem. I am a United fan so I am going to try and put this across as unbiased as possible.
There is no doubt Luis Suarez is an incredible footballer and will be a huge loss to Liverpool over the next 10 games. I personally don't think that he should be thrown out of the game as some have suggested but helped with the clear issues he has with containing his anger. In fairness he isn't the only player with anger issues. As many people are quick to point out United have had Cantona, Keane and to some extent Rooney who have committed acts of aggression that have shocked football.
The problem here is that Suarez is a repeat offender. He has already been banned once before for biting an opponent and seemingly has not learn from his mistake. Therefore this ban has to be harsher in order to really drive the point home.
But I do understand Liverpool fans' frustrations. When you see other players like Defoe getting off for the same offence with a yellow card, it can be a bitter pill to swallow and would leave you feeling hard done by.
Then there is the racism bans. These are what have really escalated the issue. They should have been longer in my opinion for both Suarez and John Terry and I do think the FA have been corrupt in their handling of Terry's case as he should have at least served the same suspension as Suarez did for what essentially is the exact same offence.
For years now the FA have been bungling up their disciplinary processes and I can even see why Pepe Reina launched his tirade against them for having double standards. It is true that the FA have appealed against bans that are correct against Wayne Rooney just so that he can play in a major tournament.
There seems to be a huge problem with football's governing bodies. Whether it is Sepp Blatter at FIFA and his suggestions of settling arguments that have involved racism with handshakes or the FA and their complete inability to get things right on any issue.
One thing that certainly needs removing in my opinion is this ridiculous 'if the referee has seen it and acknowledged it we can't act on it' stance that they take. Sergio Aguero produced one of the most disgusting tackles I have seen on a football pitch for a long time yet has not received a ban and there are other instances where the FA have decided to play dumb to obvious punishable offences.
Eden Hazards kicking of a ball boy is another example. Admittedly there was minimal contact and some would argue the ball boy deserved it but in all honesty there should have been further sanctions for the offence.
The truth is the FA's inconsistency has provided the fuel Liverpool FC's fans need to complain about the ban on Suarez. If they handed out these sort of bans on a more consistent basis then few could complain when a repeat offender receives such a high ban. The buck stops with the powers that be and until they get their act together this sort of outrage will continue to rumble on.
The light at the end of the tunnel for Liverpool is by taking the example of Cantona. He used to play on a similar edge as Suarez before the infamous kung fu kick. He was sensational to watch but at times a real liability when it came to ill discipline. When he returned from his 8 month ban he was by far a better player and at times single handedly dragged us to the league and cup double in 1995/1996.
The only way to really punish a footballer of Suarez's or Cantona's stature and ability is to take away the one thing that means the most to them and that is not £200,000 of their money, which has gone to a fantastic cause by the way, but the right to play football, the game they love, for a sustained period of time. As Suarez has said already, he is destroyed by the ban so hopefully this will sway him from committing similar offences in the future through fear of ever losing time on the football pitch again.
As for the FA, well one of the things that I think will help their public image regarding their disciplinary process in the future is the release of guidelines which show what offences constitute what length of ban. Racism in my opinion, and this is at the very harsh end because I truly detest it, should be a life ban. If a fan racially abuses a player at a game, they would be banned for life from attending games. I don't see how you can enforce that and not issue the same punishment for the player regardless of who that player is or who he plays for.
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