http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUrcX6kpkU0
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ROBBIE FOWLER IS known for his goals, his goal celebrations and that rare piece of sportsmanship, above.
The then Liverpool striker admitted to the ref during a Premier League clash against Arsenal at Highbury in 1997 that he had not, in fact, been fouled by Gunners ‘keeper David Seaman.
He was awarded and missed a penalty anyway.
However, in a week in which Liverpool forward Luis Suarez has faced yet more criticism for his crucial handball against Mansfield in the FA Cup, Fowler insists he’d have done the exact same as the Uruguayan.
“If he has to tell the referee that he handled, do the defenders have to go and tell the ref every time they foul a striker? It’s laughable, it really is,” Fowler told Liverpool’s official website.
“Seriously, Suarez did nothing wrong, and I’m amazed at the reaction. I honestly don’t even believe he handled deliberately. The ball is smashed right at his hand from very close range, and he’d need some reactions to have calculated that one.
“You can see by the way his arm bounces above his shoulder after the ball hits him that he isn’t braced for it. That tells you something. I think the way he then knocked the ball in the net he assumed it would be ruled out, but if there’s any criticism, it should be at the referee, not the player.”
Fowler added: “I think the Mansfield manager and his players summed it up when they said Suarez was just doing his job, and they’d have done exactly the same thing. So would I. It was handball, but instinctive and not deliberate cheating, and you can’t criticise him for that.”
