Suarez proved to the footballing world that this is a man who possesses little intelligence outside the minutes of play, but most importantly, a complete disregard for his club and his manager. He hung Kenny Dalglish and Liverpool Football Club out to dry.

Suarez clearly feels victimised by the ban. Speculating the reasons why he refused to shake hands is difficult. Evra has been the victim of racial abuse yet he was dignified enough to hold out his hand and make amends with the person who aggrieved him. But it is certain Suarez wanted to make a point. He wanted to make a stand against the person who he feels wrongly accused him of indecency, who betrayed him by disobeying the footballing code.

Making amends

Kenny Dalglish, in a published statement on Wednesday evening, said that the club were looking to draw a line under the saga, and that Suarez would accept Evra's hand before the game. This suggests that Suarez was informed of his duty and agreed with his manager that the best course of action would be to shake hands and get on with the proceedings.

European football. For club sides from Spain and England to Liechtenstein and Andorra, there is no greater reward for domestic success than to compete against the very best that UEFA has to offer on a grand stage.

The opportunity to create a legacy for yourself and your side is unmatched, from the old Inter-City Fairs Cup, to the European Cup, the Intertoto Cup(yes, honestly), the Champions League and most recently, the Europa League.

Who will ever forget the Lisbon Lions of Celtic? Nottingham Forest's incredible ascent to glory in the mid-80's? Manchester United's last gasp heroics against Bayern Munich in 1999? Liverpool's comeback of all comebacks against AC Milan?

All of these moments and many, many more will always be fondly recollected by fans of a plethora of clubs throughout Europe. But more recently, the reputation of one competition in particular has come into question, namely, the aforementioned Europa League. Is glory in the format formerly known as the UEFA Cup really all it's cracked up to be? Or is this one continental brass ring that isn't worth grabbing?

Baby brother

There's always been a certain stigma attached to the Europa League, something it doesn't seem to be able to shake, and that's the fact that the competition is basically the 'baby brother' of the more glamorous Champions League. Sky Sports roll out their best line-up of pundits for their coverage - Channel 5 will give you Stan Collymore.

The recent events surrounding the death of Gary Speed were tragic, it is not for us to surmise what happened in his life to bring it to such an untimely and unfortunate end, but the whole affair is sad for football fans everywhere.  Many tributes were paid at the time, phrases such as, ‘model professional’, ‘consummate professional’, and from Sir Alex Ferguson, ‘true and honest professional’.  There is a constant theme, in the eyes of all who knew, played and worked with him, Speed was someone to be held in the highest esteem.

‘Model professionals’, how many of today’s players are worthy of that description?  These types of men are stand out players, those who inspire team-mates and give younger members of the squad something to aspire to.  They are the ones who provide a ‘role model’ to thousands of youngsters around the world so there is a lot of responsibility placed on sometimes young shoulders.  Onerous as it may be, it is a critical part of being a professional footballer, the world is a small place with global communication, people watch your every move including your off field activities.

As well as the stories of the majority of players involved in charity work, community projects and other good causes, there are also regular mentions of indiscretions and misdemeanours by players.  The drinking and gambling culture of yesteryear seems to have gone in the main; however there are still sex scandals, assaults, drink drive arrests, and players in the news for all the wrong reasons.  Players have far too much spare time, (and money), is the cry, but has the modern game created a beast in the wrong doers or is it a general decline in Society’s standards?  There are a lot of unsung heroes who when reaching the limelight are tremendous ambassadors for the game and fortunately, the players who attract negative headlines are in the minority.  Like it or not though, footballers are held to a higher standard as a focal point of the sport and as such wield much influence.

Sandro Rosell the Barcelona President, is also the vice president of the European Clubs Association, (ECA), a large group whose members include major Premier League Clubs like Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal.

The ECA have been discussing radical changes to the organisation of football around the world including the international calendar.  Closer to every day life at home, at a meeting yesterday Señor Rosell put forward a suggestion that the leagues around Europe including the Premier League should be reduced to 16 clubs.  He said, “The objective of reducing from 20 to 16 teams is to give more space to our players.”  “We want a bigger Champions League and hope one day we could play perhaps Barcelona versus Manchester United on Saturdays.  It’s something all of them, (the clubs), would have to agree to.

European ‘Super League’

There is also some sabre rattling going on from the ECA.  Rosell stated, “We want to have the Champions League under the UEFA umbrella but we want UEFA to hear our demands.  We are asking for more revenue.  We are asking for governance, transparency, insurance.  We would like to have a Champions League with more teams.”

His English is not what one would term 'Shakespearean poetry', and his doughy complexion can be compared to a character out of Wallace and Gromit. But, don't be fooled by Mr Capello's unassuming looks. Not just anyone gets selected to be England manager (bar Steve McClaren). And who knows what exactly goes on behind the scenes at the FA headquarters, but, as manager, one would expect that Capello has the final say on the much debated England side.

Weathering the Spanish Storm

Too much reliance has been put on the old favourites. Under the wrath of media pressure, Capello made a bold stand. Question marks hung over the heads of some of the English players, and their capability to play against the current European and World champions. But there were some traits that could not be contested by the many critics - passion, desire, fighting spirit, to name a few.

Yes, it was only a friendly. But when playing at the highest level, in a close to full capacity Wembley Stadium, against a full strength Spanish side, and when witnessing the Spanish players rushing to take a throw-in or a corner in the closing minutes, you know it's much more than that.

Today we take a look at three of the most interesting games taking place this weekend. Here's what you should be keeping an eye on...

The final international break of 2011 has come and gone, leaving us with England being hailed as world beaters after their victory over Spain and the Republic of Ireland finally heading back to a major international tournament for the first time since the 2002 World Cup. With that wackiness aside, it's probably a relief to most that the domestic fixtures are back.

Manchester City vs. Newcastle United

Hands up all those who predicted these two would be the last two sides with unbeaten records in the Premier League come the middle of November. Anyone? Didn't think so. While City's recent dominance is not such of a surprise given their enormous resources, Alan Pardew's efforts at St. Jam- I'm sorry, the Sports Direct Arena, to turn United from mid-table battlers to European hopefuls has been nothing short of amazing.

Harry Redknapp stated yesterday that he was bemused by the level of abuse Mike Ashley was receiving from Newcastle United fans as Alan Pardew called for some respect to be attributed to his employer.

The draw against Tottenham yesterday proved that Newcastle are well equipped to take on the larger sides with questions of their previous opponents raised before the game.

After four wins and four draws: the undefeated streak has left Newcastle in a very comfortable fourth position, ahead of Liverpool and Tottenham with a better goal difference. It is perhaps time that Ashley deserves some credit for the recent transformation, stability, form and finances at the North East club.

The mission statement released yesterday by managing director Derek Llambias declared some harsh realities for the club but many positives can be taken from the document. A clear sense of direction is highlighted throughout while he alludes to the fact that long term stability and financial control remain the key objectives for the future. With Newcastle on course to breaking even in the next couple of years: Ashley is ensuring that the frivolous spending under the stewardship of Freddy Shepherd is a thing of the past.

So it’s happened again. Beckham did it in 98, Rooney did it in 2004 and now Wayne has destroyed England’s chances of lifting a major trophy, again.

Although this time at least he’s given us all a chance to prepare for this disaster having committed his petulant act almost 12 months before a tournament.

Rooney’s red in Montenegro last Friday has forced UEFA to award the England striker with a three-match ban. Three matches means Rooney will play no part in England’s progress through the group stages of Euro 2012.

Classic Wayne

Rooney isn’t exactly known for being the best-behaved lad on the pitch, either in an England shirt or when playing for his club.

His jibe at fans booing the team after England’s woeful draw with Algeria at World Cup 2010 earned him little love from fans and press, while his stamp on Ricardo Carvalho in the 2006 World Cup quarter-final, disgraced the England number 10 in the eyes of the whole country.

His elbow to the face of Wigan’s James McCarthy last season gave his critics more firepower, while his general temperament on the pitch, and sometimes reckless challenges, have seen England’s golden boy in hot water for much of his career.

This incident in Montenegro is just another one to add to the list, much like a badly behaved kid at school will have his misdemeanors tallied up and stored away on his permanent record.