Kenny Dalglish apologised for his post-match interview following Liverpool’s 2-1 defeat to Manchester United on Saturday .

Dalglish clashed with Sky Sports reporter Geoff Shreeves after the match, accusing him of blaming Luis Suarez for clashes that occurred at both half-time and full-time.

But following a critical statement by the club’s managing director Ian Ayre, Dalgligh has admitted that both his and Suarez’s behaviour was ill befitting of Liverpool’s illustrious history and reputation.:

“Ian Ayre has made the club’s position absolutely clear and it is right that Luis Suarez has now apologised for what happened at Old Trafford.

To be honest I was shocked to hear that the player had not shaken hands having been told earlier in the week that he would do.

But as Ian said earlier all of us have a responsibility to represent this club in a fit and proper manner and that applies equally to me as Liverpool manager.”

Yet Dalglish should surely also be applauded for doing what any decent manager does and supporting his players. Suarez had served his ban and however ill-advised (if not childish) his handshake snub of Patrice Evra, there is no law that forces somebody to shake hands with somebody he does not like.

Sir Alex Ferguson’s call for Liverpool to get rid of Suarez was ironic considering that Evra was stirring things up after the final whistle when his histrionic celebrations drew no response from a despondent Suarez.

Dalglish will always be an Anfield legend, not only for his magnificent career but also for the way that he dealt with the aftermath of the Hillsborough tragedy when Liverpool manager in 1989.

If anybody understands what is important in football and what is hyperbole, it is Dalglish. Suarez is at fault for being ill-informed but that to a great extent is imbued in his national culture. He can be educated whilst he plays his football in the UK but making him the subject of a witch-hunt debases the very idea of inclusiveness.