Patrice Evra has revealed that his handshake with Luis Suarez paled in significance to the occasion yesterday, thus out of respect for ‘the club’s stories’ he felt obliged to do so.
There was uproar when Suarez, having been found guilty of racially abusing Evra, refused to shake the left back’s hand when the two sides met in February.
It was feared there would be a repeat of the incident yesterday but after assurances from Brendan Rodgers and Steven Gerrard, Evra and Suarez shook hands with no incident.
Speaking after United’s 2-1 win over Liverpool, Evra said that he had to respect the day so he put any quarrel with Suarez behind him:
“The most important thing today was respect.
“It was a game between two big clubs.
“There was a big tragedy. People were talking about a handshake but the stories of the clubs is bigger than that. If I hadn’t shaken Suarez’s hand, I would not be respecting the stories of the clubs.
“In the end I am glad this time he shook my hand. More importantly, it was important to respect the families. It was not an easy day.”