Luis Suárez

[Norbs]

Suarez's name was in all three envelopes

[TheElephantMan]

Deleted

[Norbs]

As opposed to?

[peekay]

The first thing to understand about Luis Suárez's interview with the Guardian is that he came to us. There was no pursuit this side. It was Suárez's idea, impatient that he was not getting his own way, aggrieved by some of the things he was hearing, increasingly starting to think of that red shirt as little more than a straitjacket.
You wonder, does he realise how rich it is that he has turned to one of the newspapers he previously blamed for everything? Or whether he particularly cares now it is increasingly transparent how far he is willing to go to get his move to Arsenal and that, next, lawyers will be involved andLiverpool face the ultimate indignity of being reported to the authorities by the player they have cherished and protected and defended, often to the point of ridicule.
Suárez being Suárez, the story is littered with imperfections. It does not seem to register that Liverpool, after the battering their reputation has taken, might deserve better than this kind of mutiny. There is no apparent shame, or even recognition, of all the times when he has expanded on why he will be staying at Anfield come what may, or any form of appreciation that some people actually believed it.
And it boils down to this: can we actually trust a single damn thing he says? That is the difficult part here. Can we put our faith in a man with his previous for bluff and spin and downright deception when, at the heart of his complaints, he wants us to believe Brendan Rodgers promised he would be let free if Liverpool did not qualify for the Champions League? Or will it transpire that it is just another Suárez con-trick, more evidence that morality does not even come into it, and we are talking about someone who operates in a world where it is fine to play dirty, just as long as it means getting what he wants?
"I spoke with Brendan Rodgers several times and he told me: 'Stay another season and you have my word if we don't make it then I will personally make sure that you can leave,'" Suárez says. "I just want them to abide by the promises made last season."
If that is true, Suárez has legitimate reasons to be aggrieved. Yes, he appears to have forgotten, with alarming haste, the phenomenal support Rodgers and Liverpool have provided but a broken promise is a broken promise and, before anything, his manager surely has to clear up whether this is truth or fiction, on the record and with no incongruity.
Bucking the modern trend, there is also something to be said about the fact Suárez has at least had the gumption to say what he thinks, the old-fashioned way, rather than hiding behind an assortment of men in suits, in the style of Wayne Rooney and Gareth Bale, and employing people to get his information out, drip by drip, but with nothing attributed.
He also makes a valid point about the Champions League because it is true that a player of these gifts, in his prime years, should crave a place in Europe's premier club competition. For Liverpool, this is the cold reality of modern life. Suárez is just bringing it home what it is like to be permanently playing catch-up. And this, unfortunately for one of the great bastions of the sport, is what can happen when a club is approaching a quarter of a century since their last championship and finished 28 points and a country mile from the summit last time around. The best players want more. They don't remember the days when Liverpool ruled. It's history, another century.
What about loyalty, you might ask. Yet only if you had missed the fact that the modern-day football man does not share the same characteristics of the fan. The truth – and it appeals to nobody – is that it doesn't work like that, whether we like it or not, and there is little point expecting it to be different because doing so brings only one thing: disappointment.
Rodgers has talked of the need for Suárez to show loyalty and nobody has reminded him that in 2009, as Watford manager, he provided some of the answers himself. "People are questioning my integrity and one thing I have mentioned is I always have integrity," Rodgers, asked about the fact bookmakers had slashed the odds on him taking over at Reading, said back then. "I am loyal and find it disloyal when I am asked about other clubs when I am the Watford manager." Within two weeks, he was Reading manager.
Suárez, however, is a particularly spectacular example when you think back to those days when he talked about vendettas, mistranslations, miscarriages of justice, a media "controlled by Manchester United", and there would be a stampede of fans running to his defence, like ants, lapping it all up and blindly attacking anyone who saw him for what he was (incidentally, it will be a pretty bleak day when the Press don't criticise someone for using racist language).
Maybe, without wishing to generalise too much, this is just the psyche of the football fan. Just watch how many Arsenal supporters will start to use the same old lines about Suárez – you know the ones: "misunderstood," "victimised," etc etc – if that unlikely marriage with Arsène Wenger happens. Not all of them, granted. But there is something particularly revealing about the reaction the Arseblog website has experienced after it dared oppose the move on the grounds of morality.
"Objecting to the signing of Suárez has led to some of the most virulent abuse I've ever received," Arseblog's Andrew Mangan wrote recently. "There have been veiled threats of violence because I'm honest about the fact I'd prefer if we didn't sign him.
"But what I find most dismaying is the revisionism that's gone on since our interest has become public knowledge. I don't remember too many Arsenal fans defending him when he was banned for eight games for the Evra incident. I don't remember too many Arsenal fans saying that biting somebody isn't really that bad when you think about it. I don't remember too many Arsenal fans who said anything other than Suárez, for all his talent on the field, was a pretty despicable person whose antics, cheating and nasty play made him one of the most loathed characters in the game. Yet now, people are falling over themselves to make excuses for him."
At Liverpool, all the brainwashing, the blind loyalty, the partisanship – call it what you will – is fast wearing off. Liverpool's supporters had, for the most part, liked to think that Suárez saw Anfield as more than just another workplace, that there was a special bond, that he was one of their own. More than anything, they believed in him. Suárez has made it incredibly difficult now to imagine him playing in front of the Kop, where pride is everything, again. Perhaps that was all part of the plan.
"I have to put my career first," Suárez says. "People say Liverpool deserve more from me but I have scored 50 goals in less than 100 games and now they could double the money they paid for me. It is not as if I am asking to move to a local rival."
Yet Arsenal are just that if Liverpool have serious aspirations about clambering back into the Champions League. And everything Suárez says – a mix of ambition, frustration, selfishness and that familiar persecution complex – is contained in the threat of an impending legal battle.
The clause in Suárez's contract, leaked to Arsenal and resulting in them going a pound over what they believed was the £40m release fee, is clearly ambiguous to some degree. What is absolutely clear is that Suárez is going to be as proactive as he can to make sure he gets his way. He is "happy" to go to the Premier League if a formal transfer request does not do the trick. He has already enlisted the support of the Professional Footballers' Association. These are statements that must make Liverpool's fans yearn for the days when everything was so much more simple and innocent.
Arsenal, in the meantime, can sit tight and see how it plays out. They will deny it, of course, but they may have known what Suárez was planning in advance. And if it was all part of a strategy – strengthen Arsenal's position, weaken Liverpool's – it has probably worked. Rodgers, until this point, has argued that Liverpool are bigger than any player, then repeatedly acted in a way that completely contradicts that view. Now it must surely be about trying to extract as much money as possible and rushing through a replacement before the transfer window clanks shut.
In one way, it would represent a wretched episode for the modern Liverpool because of what it says about their place in the order of English football these days, and the knowledge that players of this ability, like rare butterflies, do not come along that often. In another sense, it might be a blessed relief when Suárez becomes someone else's problem. If "problem" is the right word for someone who can score goals from any distance or angle. "My record shows that I'm not the kind of player who wants to change clubs every season," Suárez says. No, this would be his fourth transfer in eight years. So, to clarify, every other season. That kind of player.

After magnanimously accepting Suarez's quotes, the guardian and telegraph are taking turns at screwing him.

[MrMichael]

A friend of mine, a Newcastle fan, sent me an email in the afternoon saying we are going to be screwed without Suarez.

Sent him a response with the highlights of the 6-0 drubbing and a photo of Joe Kinnear as an attachment.

Haven't heard back from him in three hours

Ahahaha

Most of the Geordies I know wouldn't even dare start something like that, they're fully aware of their current status as joke club of the Prem and are mostly just hopeful that a Mark Hughes inspired Stoke can take that label away from them next season.

[Leyton388]

Would have loved to have seen Bellamy's reaction to Suarez effectively dissing his team mates if he was still here.

[MrMichael]

Ian Herbert's take on things...

Luis Suarez left to rot in the reserves by Liverpool

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/transfers/luis-suarez-left-to-rot-in-the-reserves-by-liverpool-8751148.html

Liverpool have banished Luis Suarez to train away from the first-team squad until he is ready to show respect to his club and team-mates – a move which underlines their refusal to be cowed by a player whose contract leaves them under no obligation to sell.

The club, who are already deeply unhappy that Arsenal were apparently made aware of the confidential clause in Suarez's deal allowing him to speak to any club who offered £40m this summer, suffered the further indignity of the Uruguayan publicly accusing his manager, Brendan Rodgers, of reneging on a verbal agreement that he could leave. But Liverpool have moved rapidly to seek the moral high ground by ostracising Suarez and they do so from a position of strength, as the Professional Footballers' Association has also warned the striker that any legal action he launches to force an exit from Liverpool looks doomed to fail.

Suarez's claim, that a release clause written into his contract allowed him to leave if Liverpool failed to reach the 2013-14 Champions League and a side competing in it offered £40m, does not appear to stand up to legal scrutiny. The PFA chairman, Gordon Taylor, who has viewed the document since his organisation was called in to arbitrate in the past fortnight, said last night that the significant clause compelled Liverpool only to let Suarez talk to such a club.

"There is a clause in there that if Liverpool do not qualify for the Champions League and then they receive a minimum offer of £40m, then the parties will 'agree in good faith to discuss and negotiate in good faith' and see what transpires," Taylor said. "It is not a straightforward buyout clause and the contract is open to different interpretations. It doesn't say there is an automatic trigger for a move."

Suarez suggested that there had been a verbal agreement with Rodgers, though Taylor also told The Independent that an informal conversation carried no legal weight. "Never mind what has been said previously or verbally, it doesn't say you've a right to leave," he said. "If there was a gentleman's agreement, the manager may well say it is down to that but the owners of the club may feel differently. That is quite crucial."

Opinion sought by The Independent made it clear that Suarez's threat to seek legal arbitration through the Premier League will not secure him a move before the transfer window closes early next month. Ian Lynam, a sports lawyer with the firm Charles Russell, said such a case could drag out for months and also stated that the "entire-agreement" clause in all Premier League contracts prevent any verbal agreement carrying weight, if not contained within the contract.

Liverpool's decision to send Suarez to work with the reserves also reflects their feeling that he has shown no respect for Rodgers' training sessions, the last of which he limped out of with a foot injury on Tuesday, hours before giving voice to grievances about the club's refusal to let him join Arsenal. The PFA is also aware of Liverpool's deep discontent that Arsenal were able to discover details of the £40m clause, thus enabling them to bid a pound more than that sum and trigger talks last month. Suarez will have signed a confidentiality clause when concluding the contract.

This issue may muddy the waters if Suarez now seeks legal redress. Middlesbrough's case against Liverpool over Christian Ziege dragged on for months, when the Teesside club argued that the Merseysiders had profited from confidential information to bid at Ziege's exact £5.5m release clause in 2000. The two sides settled out of court. A Premier League panel ruled against Gabriel Heinze in 2007 when he claimed Manchester United had given him written permission to pursue a transfer to Liverpool.

Taylor indicated the PFA believes Liverpool might not have been in the position in which they find themselves had they consulted the players' union over the controversial clause, which is relatively rare. His organisation has also told the Premier League it is concerned about such clauses, which threaten rifts between clubs and players which are bad for the image of the game. "These 'buyout' clauses can lead to ambiguity when there is English law and the laws of another country. The clauses need to be as clear as daylight and they are not," Taylor said.

Though a formal transfer request had been anticipated, Suarez was said to be awaiting Liverpool's reaction to his public statement. "I can only see that the best way round this is get round the table and sort out a valuation that is acceptable or we say give it another year," Taylor said.

[Hemingway]

I don't see the correlation though mate. If we force him to stay he's not guaranteed to give a **** and might only get a handful of goals. We're not guaranteed CL football if he stays, just as Arsenal aren't guaranteed it if he goes there

That's entirely true. But there's a gap between us and them right now of 12 points that needs closing. Whether you're of the don't-sell-to-Arsenal-at-any-price or sell-at-£51m camp depends on how you see that gap changing after we reinvest those funds. If he goes to Arsenal, that gap grows, and it'd take a hell of a lot of good reinvestment to shrink it back down to a level lower than it is now - never mind replacing Suarez, we'd have to replace Suarez plus improve enough to compensate for Arsenal strengthening. After Mkhi and now possibly Costa, are we really that confident that's possible? The club are discovering attracting that quality of player isn't easy. The £51m might not even make up Suarez's impact, let alone cover Arsenal's strengthening.

He may well pitch a fit, to which I say let him. Arsenal (with no Suarez) and us (with Suarez back in Uruguay) are closer than Arsenal (with Suarez) and us (with Suarez replacements), I think, and increasingly it seems like the club thinks as well. Not to mention that it's become something bigger than a pure footballing matter - the reputation of the club is on the line. We saw what the selling club stigma has done to Arsenal losing their best players to Prem rivals, and it's very definitely in our interest to avoid going down that same path.

That said, I doubt we'll have to make that decision; we'll shop him around Europe and someone will come in for him. He'll hope for Real or Bayern, but Zenit or Monaco or Galatasaray throwing money at him may well look more attractive than staying at LFC. Suspect it's all a stepping stone to Real/Barca for him anyway.

[peekay]

: haha:

Ahahaha

Most of the Geordies I know wouldn't even dare start something like that, they're fully aware of their current status as joke club of the Prem and are mostly just hopeful that a Mark Hughes inspired Stoke can take that label away from them next season.

Felt a wee bit bad for him especially with the Kinnear pic. He is a good egg. Apart from loving Newcastle, there is nothing wrong with him. Respects Liverpool.

[peekay]

Uruguay are in fifth place in the world cup qualifiers from the South American group. They still have to play Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador - the top 3 teams in the qualifiers right now and then Peru away.

Peru are only two points behind Uruguay and have to play - Bolivia, Venezuela, Argentina, and Uruguay.

Venezuela are on level with Uruguay but have played one more game. They still have to play - Paraguay, Peru, and Venezuela.

The fourth place team Chile is five points ahead of Uruguay and there is no way Uruguay is going to catch up with them.

So it is not 100% guaranteed that Uruguay will go to the world cup. Their form generally has been very poor since the Copa America. They need Suarez to be in top form which could work well for us. If we refuse a transfer anywhere, I dont think he can afford to mop around and be lackluster in training. He needs to be in great form to make it to the next world cup.

[Fosterbloke]

Maybe this is all part of a setup/masterplan - whereby Suarez goes undercover as part of a ploy, with the end result being one of our main rivals gets points deducted

****ing hell I was thinking exactly that! But then it doesn't help the team in the short term so doubtful.

[Norbs]

Uruguay are in fifth place in the world cup qualifiers from the South American group. They still have to play Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador - the top 3 teams in the qualifiers right now and then Peru away.

Peru are only two points behind Uruguay and have to play - Bolivia, Venezuela, Argentina, and Uruguay.

Venezuela are on level with Uruguay but have played one more game. They still have to play - Paraguay, Peru, and Venezuela.

The fourth place team Chile is five points ahead of Uruguay and there is no way Uruguay is going to catch up with them.

So it is not 100% guaranteed that Uruguay will go to the world cup. Their form generally has been very poor since the Copa America. They need Suarez to be in top form which could work well for us. If we refuse a transfer anywhere, I dont think he can afford to mop around and be lackluster in training. He needs to be in great form to make it to the next world cup.

I'm so glad I didn't shell out £70 for a Uruguay top

[Rowan]

Uruguay are in fifth place in the world cup qualifiers from the South American group. They still have to play Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador - the top 3 teams in the qualifiers right now and then Peru away.

Peru are only two points behind Uruguay and have to play - Bolivia, Venezuela, Argentina, and Uruguay.

Venezuela are on level with Uruguay but have played one more game. They still have to play - Paraguay, Peru, and Venezuela.

The fourth place team Chile is five points ahead of Uruguay and there is no way Uruguay is going to catch up with them.

So it is not 100% guaranteed that Uruguay will go to the world cup. Their form generally has been very poor since the Copa America. They need Suarez to be in top form which could work well for us. If we refuse a transfer anywhere, I dont think he can afford to mop around and be lackluster in training. He needs to be in great form to make it to the next world cup.

I wonder if he'll argue that there is a clause in his birth certificate stating if Uraguay don't make the world cup he becomes an Argentinian.

[Norbs]

[Fan65]

Maybe we should inform the FA that Saurez is not available for selection due to internal disagreements.

Then his remaining six match ban will only start counting down when we say so.

This would force Suarez to think again as his lack of match fitness would affect his world cup chances with Uruguay