Rio Ferdinand has commended Jamie Carragher for apologising to Patrice Evra after Liverpool backed Luis Suarez amid the racism storm between the Frenchman and the Uruguayan in the 2011/12 season.
Suarez was handed an eight-game ban by the Football Association in December 2011 for using insulting and abusive language at Evra, including a racist remark about the former left-back’s skin colour earlier in the season.
After the ruling, Liverpool wore t-shirts with a picture of Luis Suarez on them in a match away to Wigan.
Carragher was one of the players who wore the shirt, which also had Suarez’s name and number on the back – the version also being sold to fans and regularly seen in the terraces at the time.
The whole episode led to huge criticism at Liverpool and Carragher took the opportunity of working as a pundit alongside Patrice Evra for Sky Sports on Monday night to apologise.
Carragher said: “Apologies, we got it massively wrong. There’s no doubt we made a massive mistake.
“I’m not lying on that and saying I wasn’t part of it, because as a club we got it wrong and I was vice-captain.
“I’m not sure who was actually behind it.
“What I would say is that maybe I, as an individual, lacked the courage to say I wasn’t wearing it.
“I don’t think everyone at Liverpool thought what we were doing was right.
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“Your first reaction – no matter what someone does – is to support them even if they are wrong.”
Evra’s former team-mate Ferdinand, who played in the game at Anfield where Suarez was punished for abusing Evra, was asked about Carragher’s apology.
And while Ferdinand praised the Liverpool legend, he claimed that he is still waiting for Liverpool Football Club to say sorry.
Ferdinand said: “Testament to Jamie Carragher for apologising eight years after the incident.
“But at the end of the day it’s bigger than Jamie Carragher, it’s the club.
“Liverpool let themselves down that day by wearing t-shirts in support of someone who’s been accused of a racist comment.
“Eight years on and the apology hasn’t come from Liverpool.”
Racism is a prevalent issue in football at the moment, with one of the latest incidents seeing Manchester United banning a fan for allegedly calling Liverpool full-back Trent Alexander-Arnold a “f****** black c***” during the Red Devils’ clash with Jurgen Klopp’s men on Sunday.
And Ferdinand suggested the authorities are not any closer than they were back in 2011 to finding a solution to kick racism out of football for good.
He added: “The game’s moved on from then in terms of the narrative now and what’s on the edge of people’s tongues and that’s racism.
“At that point it wasn’t and people were startled into thinking ‘what do we do?’
“But we’re still sitting here now saying ‘what do we do?’
“It’s not a t-shirt that’s going to change it, a day in a season, it’s more than that – education definitely.”
