Teammates Right to Jump to Suarez's Defence

Luis Suarez has been defended by some of his Liverpool teammates and manager, Brendan Rodgers, after claims that he does not get free kicks or penalties because he goes to ground far too easily.

In the past, the Uruguayan has irked plenty with his 'ability' to go tumbling in the box after the slightest touch - or sometimes the lack of it - but, in recent weeks, the forward has had at least two legitimate penalties waved away. 

It is about time that referees judged each incident on its own and forget about his past misdemeanors. 

Plenty of other top players have managed to win penalties by going down under the slightest contact without too much criticism but, for some reason, Suarez is a marked man, and appears to have no chance of getting a spot kick at the moment, unless he is blatantly hacked down.

It is true that sometimes Suarez has been guilty of looking for penalties but, again, in only the same way plenty of other players, past and present, have done so. However, Suarez appears to be being singled out by refs who are deliberately ignoring his just appeals because of who he is.

The striker was somehow booked for simulation at Sunderland last week when he went down after clearly being caught in the area and, to compound the Reds' striker's misery, he was then denied a spot-kick against Manchester United at Anfield, when Jonny Evans clipped him.

Again, it is true that Suarez did throw himself down a tad too excitedly but, again, it was a legitimate foul - no more or less than when Antonio Valencia stumbled at the other end but, this time, referee Mark Halsey did point to the spot.

It has been an extremely frustrating start to the season for Liverpool, as results have failed to match plenty of positive, attacking performances. Against both Manchester clubs, Rodgers' side did more than enough to win after dominating last season's top two at Anfield but ended up with just a point out of both games.

But refereeing decisions have also gone against them at crucial times this term, with penalties and sendings-off hitting Rodgers' side hard. Daniel Agger and Jonjo Shelvey have both been rather harshly shown straight reds while three spot-kicks in five league games could all be placed in the 'soft' category.

Liverpool's luck must surely have to change soon. Suarez, regularly one of the most fouled players in the league, will hope his does too.

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McDermott not worried by controversy

Reading boss Brian McDermott insists that everyone at the club is behind him despite the recent controversy surrounding his decision to drop goalkeeper Adam Federici.

The Royals have struggled since their promotion to the Premier League and have so far earned just a single point from their three games, a run that has left them languishing in the relegation zone ahead of Saturday's trip to West Brom.

One of the reasons for their slump has been the form of Federici, who despite making a number of fine saves, has also made a string of errors, most notably spilling a late equaliser into his goal on the opening day against Stoke.

This inspired McDermott to look for alternatives to the Australian and he opted to start with youngster Alex McCarthy for Sunday's 3-1 home defeat to Tottenham, a result predicted by most experts from within the sports betting community.

The decision prompted Federici's girlfriend to take to twitter to criticise the coach for dropping the 27-year-old, a move that caused outrage amongst the Royals' fans.

However, the unflappable McDermott says he's not too concerned about the incident, or the latest odds that suggest the Royals will struggle to avoid the drop, insisting that everyone at the club is pulling in the same direction.

"I've had many issues at football clubs that have been kept very quiet, we've dealt with them and moved on,” he said. "Sometimes these become public for whatever reason.

You see it every day at other clubs, but generally you don't see it here. If it's out there then that's a shame.

"I would understand the fans could think there is unrest, but there is no unrest around here, it's very simple.

"Adam Federici has done fantastic for me and I know him really well as a person and player. He works really hard, but things haven't gone his way so Alex has come into the team,” he added.

Celtic Now Have it all to Do

Neil Lennon’s Celtic have a tough task ahead of them to qualify for the knock-out stages of this season’s Champions League, after drawing their opening match 0-0 with Benfica this week.

Celtic Park was the scene of jubilation just three weeks ago, as the Scottish champions qualified for their first European Cup campaign in three years, defeating a despondent Helsingborg.

Maybe it was seen as ‘job done’ then, with Champions League qualification top priority, yet as soon as Wednesday’s game kicked off suddenly a new challenge arose: escaping the group stage.

Fan expectation was high, yet Lennon’s men could not force any momentum into the game while Benfica were happy to sit back.

The betting tips for football had suggested that the key to Champions League progression from the group stages is to win your home games and hope to pinch a point on the road.          

Benfica have certainly got their campaign off to a good start with this point earned in Glasgow. Brazilian goalkeeper, Artur, was barely tested in the opening froes and, as the game went on, the Portuguese side looked increasingly comfortable in the middle of the park.

Neither team deserved to win, yet Lennon will still be disappointed about the result. Celtic are notoriously bad on the road in Europe and so home form is critical in escaping a difficult group that also incudes Barcelona and Spartak Moscow – two treacherous away trips.

Their fans will not be expecting much from the Nou Camp and so they will have to find three points in either Moscow or Lisbon. Celtic don’t yet need a miracle to qualify from this group but they do need to eke out a win on the road.

They travel to Moscow next to take on a Spartak side determined to take second place in Group G, and Lennon must instruct his team to go for it if they are to progress in the Champions League this season.

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