Gus Poyet, former Sunderland manager and Uruguayan midfielder, recently spoke about compatriot Luis Suarez’s impact at Liverpool FC and how it may have contributed to Brendan Rodger’s eventual sacking.
The current AEK Athens Manager had his say about Luis Suarez’s time at Liverpool, comparing his time there to Maradona’s stint at Italian club Napoli. He was of the opinion that his departure brought about a wave of change at Anfield.
“His (Suarez’s) departure has cost Liverpool a lot,” Poyet told Omnisport, [via: Skysports]. “Among other things, probably Brendan Rodgers’ job. Maybe if Suarez was still playing for Liverpool, Brendan Rodgers would be the coach today.
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“Some people misunderstood my words when I said that Liverpool almost won the Premier League thanks to Luis Suarez. I just wanted to demonstrate the significance of Luis Suarez on the pitch. I wasn’t going against Liverpool. It happens in any part of the world. Napoli won the league when Diego Maradona was playing there. This doesn’t mean that I am saying that Napoli is nothing without Maradona. It is still Napoli, a great team. But it has been demonstrated that with Suarez, Liverpool were a better team.”
The move to Barcelona
After the memorable 2013-14 season, Luis Suarez was sold to FC Barcelona for a fee believed to be in the region of 75 million pounds and Liverpool have failed to reach the highs of that season since. A lackluster 2014-15 season and a bad start to the 2015-16 campaign led to manager Brendan Rodgers being given the sack, in favour of Jurgen Klopp.
Poyet spoke about the strikers’ evolution into the player he is today saying, “Luis left Uruguay and moved to Dutch football, which has certain significance at a worldwide level, but his move to Liverpool put him on a higher level than many. Today he is playing a part in one of the most important trios in football history. That makes him very special.”