There’s not much more left before Luis Suarez returns from his 10-match suspension and can spearhead the Liverpool attack once more. However, it’s worth considering the fact that his attitude, desire a will to do well for the club aren’t at the same level that they were before the summer that has left him frustrated.
Suarez has accepted the fact that he’s staying for another season with Liverpool, although you never know what might happen in January. Still, it’s rare to see huge transfers and world class players changing teams during winter (even if Suarez himself was a January transfer), so we’ll leave that option off the table.
Liverpool have done well without him up to this point. They haven’t play exceptionally well – Philippe Coutinho is struggling to show his passing skills when closely watched, while Iago Aspas seems to be playing in the wrong position or simply for the wrong caliber of team. But Daniel Sturridge always finds a way to score a goal, while Simon Mignolet has got the place on lockdown, among the other players doing an excellent job when it comes to defending.
There’s no doubt that Suarez – a motivated version of him at least, is necessary for Liverpool to carry on at the pace they’re going at right now. They won’t be winning forever, and they won’t be healthy forever (Sturridge has already picked up a knock). Not using a world-class forward like Suarez when your squad is quite thin compared to the other clubs Liverpool are trying to emulate is simply something they can’t afford.
But the question regarding Suarez is how will he be back. Rusty? Sure, and there’s a good chance Rodgers bring him back through a couple of bench appearances before unleashing his unpredictability once more. But even a rusty Suarez is better than almost any other forward in the Premier League, not matter where Rodgers uses him on the pitch.
It’s a known fact that Suarez has an group of agents, led by Guardiola’s brother, that is working hard to get him out of Liverpool. If decreasing his value to the team is a way to make it easier, who is to say Suarez will simply do a lot less than they’re used to see from him, or even organize another moment of insanity and get himself suspended again so Liverpool will really have no use for him, and won’t be able to keep on demanding £50 million?
Suarez seems like a complete professional, and someone who’ll play to his best ability even if he isn’t happy with his place of work. But you can never count out “sabotage” when the game of football has reached this point – where money is a lot more important than anything else, and one bad season isn’t something that stops a player from getting his dream job. However, if Suarez wants to remain available for English clubs as well, going down the lengthy suspension route once more might not be the best of ideas.