I CAN think of few more uncomfortable situations to find myself in than being lectured to by Alex Ferguson.

Generally speaking, the less I hear from this gentleman the better; it’s all the more galling when you have to admit that he’s right.

For when the Old Curmudgeon called Luis Suarez’s behaviour last Saturday a ‘disgrace’, he spoke the truth. And while he may have been stepping over a line himself by expressing his opinion that Suarez should never play for the club again, it’s a view that should be heard and considered by the Anfield hierarchy.

Just quite what Suarez was thinking of when he passed by the proffered hand of Evra we may never know.

Did he think it would be seen as some brave gesture, a continuing protestation of innocence in the face of widespread condemnation?

Could he not bear to lose face by grasping the hand of someone he had gratuitously insulted, regardless of any cultural nuance?

Whatever the reason, you can be assured that he was thinking solely of himself and not the impact on football in general, Liverpool Football Club in particular and his manager specifically.

His failure to understand the wider import of his actions on such an occasion must cast serious doubt on his judgement and his ability to control himself in the future.

The torrent of apologies that cascaded out of Anfield on Sunday afternoon, and the strong words they contained, have been widely attributed to our owners finally putting their foot down to limit reputational damage to the club.

Well, it’s come to something when we have to rely on Americans with just over 12 months’ experience of Anfield to remind us what our club stands for, and take the kind of action that should have been forthcoming several months ago.

In our rush to circle the wagons and defend one of our own, we’ve adopted an indefensible position which has appeared to value a foreign striker of less than 40 games above our traditional cherished values of humility and integrity.

While it saddens me to see Kenny Dalglish humiliated by having to make a grovelling apology, it has to be said that he has played a full part in bringing us to this point.