Luis Suarez. Love him or hate him, the man gets attention. Between alleged racist comments to Patrice Evra, and now flipping off Fulham supporters at Craven Cottage; he certainly knows how to keep the spotlight on himself. The question is whether this behavior is detrimental to his teammates and his club, as well as himself.
The Premier League is full of over the top characters. There is Wayne Rooney and his outburst at the Boleyn Ground. Or John Terry and his alleged racist comments at Anton Ferdinand. Or Mario Balotelli and his personal foibles. Or Ashley Cole and his air rifle. And those are just the recent ones that made the news.
Suarez’s gesture continues a run of ridiculous vulgarity in London. And continues his own streak as a marked man by the Football Association. Love him or hate him, his presence and charisma is undeniable. He is definitely a leader on the pitch. He is currently the leading scorer for Liverpool. He is also their leader in assists. And strangely, he has only managed to be booked twice. Both of which were yellow cards.
Suarez is considered, by many, an expert at gamesmanship. He is notorious for his practice of the art of simulation. He also stopped, what could have a goal for certain, with his hands for Uruguay in the 2010 World Cup. Not to mention biting the shoulder of a PSV player, while he was at Ajax. Obviously, he is no stranger to controversy. In fact, I think he welcomes it.
With Kenny Dalglish attempting to revamp and build Liverpool into a powerhouse again, it is feasible that Suarez could prove a distraction. With his disciplinary problems, Dalglish may find that Suarez’s presence to be counter-productive to the vision he has for Liverpool Football Club.
Suarez is not Graeme Souness. Nor is he Emlyn Hughes. Nor is he Robbie Fowler. In a lot of ways, he has not defined his presence on the squad, to be seen in the same light as those various Livepool legends. Souness was a notoriously hard tackler. Hughes was a physical force who helped lead Liverpool to European glory. Robbie Fowler was a fantastic goal-scoring forward, who has been repeatedly accused of diving on numerous occasions. With these three randomly chosen legends of Liverpool as a point to contrast against, Suarez does not stack up. At least in his current state. Maybe if he tempers his zeal and learns how to play football in the English way, he could see his name added to a future list of favorites of the Kop.
I personally think that Suarez is a dynamic player. One who I can enjoy watching, when he is not resorting to gamesmanship. He has fantastic vision, and can set up just as much as he scores. He is fantastic on the ball. He is always looking to create space, or to find space when off the ball. There is something to be said for someone who has can do that. But I see his discipline problem being the one mitigating factor to his success. I cannot seem to avoid going back to it. In fact, I think he will be remembered more for his shenanigans, than he will be for his attacking prowess.
Currently, he is the target of two investigations by the Football Association. He has not received any punishment, as far as I can find with a bit of research. All I can find is that he is being charged with improper conduct. I have read ample comments on Twitter, Facebook, and the various blogs that are calling for Suarez to be banned from English football for his alleged comments to Evra. I do not know the full extent of how Liverpool supporters feel about him. But I know that friends of mine who support other top flight English clubs would prefer he did not play in England, and especially against the teams they support. And if that is not a resounding endorsement of Suarez’s abilities, both positive and negative; I could not tell you what is.
Suarez is a talented footballer. He is perpetually a threat on the attack. He has the potential to be remembered for the dynamic player that he is. Unfortunately, his decision-making, in the heat of the moment, tends to undermine his talent. Because of this, I do not see him ever truly living up to his potential in football.
