Will Liverpool See Suarez In His Peak Years?

By Akarsh Sharma
12 years Ago

While Luis Suarez has been brilliant for Liverpool in intangible terms, he hasn’t fulfilled the parameters that measure the performance of a striker. Liverpool will struggle to retain him before his peak years.

Luis Suarez has been a figure of controversy like no other in the past twelve months.Ai??To most, he is a racist, diving man-eater whose mere presence on the pitch is unacceptable and who takes levels of annoyance to heights even Craig Bellamy could only dream to reach. Ai??To others, he is a hero like no other. Such is the nature of the divide that Suarez brings with himself everywhere he goes.

You’re either willing to put your everything on the line for him (as the whole of Ajax, Liverpool and Uruguay will tell you) or stand as one to hurl at him, whatever you can find at an arm’s length (as the rest of the world will tell you). There is hardly any middle ground with Suarez, where you’ll find people being indifferent towards him.

But he reckons he is only a little child.

ai???I go to the field with the maximum illusion of a little child who enjoys what he does.ai???

It seems there is a case for his aforementioned quote to be vindicated through his generalAi??characteristics. He doesn’t accept any decision against him without throwing a child-like fit, which was in full flow against West Brom. His petulance still makes him put his own desire for vengeance over the team’s cause, which was visible in the racism row and the handshake-gate.Ai??The cheek with which he conducts his game – sneakily nicking the ball, putting it through the defender’s legs at will – Ai??makes you feel he is still joyously plying his trade in the streets of Uruguay. And his expressions of unconfined joy in celebrating goals are a breath of fresh air in the world of Balotelli-like expressionless arrogance.

But most significantly, Luis Suarez’s finishing hasn’t matured yet. His unrefined finishingAi??lacks the composure of a striker whom Liverpool can rely upon for goals. So, while Andy Carroll has been blamed for not sharing the burden of goals with the Uruguayan, there is a strong case for applying the vice-versa logic as well.

Suarez arrived at an age of 24 an year ago and if we go by the rule of thumb that players peak at around 27, there are still around two years to go before the Liverpool forward starts banging in goals with some regularity. It is easy to misinterpret Suarez’s Dutch record (81 goals in 110 matches for Ajax) but he isn’t a poacher like van Nistelrooy or Inzaghi. The majority of chances he creates for himself is because of his own trickery and movement outside or inside the penalty area. This is in stark contrast to a poacher, whose share in the build-up is usually minimal but the ability to be in the right spot and provide the most important final touch is exceptional.

While he did seem to be an incredible goalscorer at Ajax, perhaps his scoring record in England shows the gulf in quality between the two leagues. Not only does Suarez have less time on the ball to look up and get his shot away in England, he has less space around him to find a proper opening. He is often hurried into dragging shots well wide of goal or forced into taking a shot from a poor position due to the general Ai??hustle-bustle of the English league.

The physical nature of the league has also taken its toll on him. After numerous bursts of energy to make runs, fend off defenders and go past them, it leaves him visibly tired when the move reaches the point where he needs to shoot accurately.Ai??This is something he’ll get wiser to when he spends more time in England but due to this energy drain, his influence on a match also reduces significantly in the latter stages.

Liverpool’s last forward signing from the Dutch League came with a reputation of scoring heavily too, but it was clear from the offset that Kuyt won’t be a 20 goals-per-season man.Ai??But unlike Kuyt, Suarez is the creative force behind today’s Liverpool. He is the sole spark that has lit up the greens of Anfield this season. His unpredictability on the ball, quick turns and ability to find space where there seems to be none are unique characteristics in the Premier League.

Ruud van Nistelrooy, a trademark poacher, was 25 years old when he joined United from the Dutch League and unlike the Liverpool forwards, he found immediate success in scoring 20+ goals in the league from the first season itself. Ai??Robin van Persie has recently been named PFA Player of the Year for his incredible scoring year. His best run has come at 28, from the back end of last season to the whole of this season. Had he not been injured so often, he would’ve probably started peaking around the age of 26-27.Ai??Newcastle’s dynamic duo of Ba and Cisse will turn 27 each in less than three months. Wayne Rooney has just tied his best scoring season in the league at an age of 26.

So, while Suarez – who is 25 now – has been extremely wasteful in England, dominant trends reveal he is due to find his scoring touch in a couple of seasons. Currently, he is burdening the responsibility of creating the majority of Liverpool’s chances and he desperately needs a poaching partner who can burden the responsibility of scoring goals. Andy Carroll, albeit with a price tag of someone who should deliver instantly, is only 23 years old andAi??is unlikely to go on a scoring frenzy anytime soon.

This problem of scoring goals does pose a major dilemma to the club. Liverpool may need to buy an experience head like Schalke’s Raul, who can deliver goals immediately. But this will mean Andy Carroll will be benched for large parts of the season, thereby hampering his long-term growth.

The club needs to act fast. Luis Suarez is perhaps two seasons away from finding the net with regularity and when he does combine better finishing with the creativity in his repertoire, he is likely to be the best striker around. Unfortunately, that also means he is likely to be the target of many clubs in the next two years.

Real Madrid and PSG were already reported to be lining up massive bids for him this summer, with the number of clubs looking for his signature bound to increase exponentially with time.Ai??The one positive out of the whole racism saga is the attachment Suarez has developed with the fans and the club. This may prolong his Liverpool career.

But if Liverpool keep up this trend of finishing in poor league positions and missing out on Europe’s elite competition, neither the club nor the player will be able to fend off interest from elsewhere. It is vital that the brilliant Suarez, even with all the baggage he comes with, becomes Liverpool’s focal point of a five-year plan.

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Categories: COVER STORY, Editor's Pick, English Premier League, Liverpool FC
Tags: Luis Suarez

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