Former Liverpool defender Alan Hansen believes that Luis Suarez does not deserve to be criticised for not speaking up after handling the ball that led to the Reds' winner in their FA Cup tie against Mansfield Town.

The Premier League outfit were eventual 2-1 winners over their non-league opponents in the third round of the domestic competition last night but the victory was overshadowed by Suarez's handball incident, which was not spotted by the match officials.

While the Uruguay international has been criticised for allowing the goal to stand, Hansen believes that no player would ask for the goal to be disallowed in the same circumstances.

"Whatever moral high ground you take over Luis Suarez's goal, no footballer would ever ask for a goal to be disallowed," Hansen wrote in The Telegraph. "It has never happened in the history of the game. It will never happen in my lifetime.

"What exactly was Suarez supposed to do? Run to the referee and tell him it hit his hand? His teammates would go berserk, and his manager would not be too impressed either.

"The first thing to make clear is Liverpool's second goal in the third-round cup tie was not a deliberate handball. There is no way Suarez has moved his arm to control it. If anything, it looks as if he is trying to move his hand away when it has hit him."

Meanwhile, Liverpool will face a trip to Oldham Athletic in the fourth round of the competition.