FC Barcelona and Liverpool today announced that a fee had been agreed for Luis Suarez to move to Camp Nou in the coming days. Here, CaughtOffside writers offer their thoughts.
Are Liverpool better off without the Luis Suarez circus?
Adam Davies: Sort of. He wasn’t exactly the most endearing character to non-Liverpool fans, and thus made Liverpool occasionally tough for neutrals to like. On the pitch, it might be a different matter.
Jordan Chamberlain: No, frankly. The supposed ‘circus’ usually involved opposition fans criticising Liverpool for having such an unpleasant chap on board – but when he was on the pitch, his presence was solely positive. He got himself banned twice – but this was a small price to pay for consistent genius.
Steve Green: From a PR standpoint – yes. But on the field only time will tell. It’s all dependent on who they sign to replace him.
Tom Seymour: Brendan Rodgers showed last season that he could deal with a biting fiasco and it was proven that if a player is performing well then they can pretty much get away with anything.
However, if they can cope with the departure then having a player who isn’t suspended every other game is definitely a bonus.
Jacob Daniel: As a team, obviously not. In a footballing sense he’s one of very few players on the planet who are irreplaceable. As a club, though, definitely – there’s only so many things that can happen before it starts to make the club look ridiculous.
Rob Summerscales: Organically, yes. However, the damage has been done. By sticking by Suarez after he racially abused Patrice Evra (those shameless tee-shirts) and then bit Branislav Ivanovic, Liverpool have made it clear that winning games is more important to them than the reputation of their football club.
They are very fortunate that the morals of Barcelona are equally loose, allowing the Reds to get an excellent price for the twisted genius. Liverpool will remain a circus though, because their pandering to Suarez has set a dangerous precedent.
Liverpool are, of course, not alone in this – successful football clubs are seldom respectable these days.
Can any player replace Suarez’s contribution at Anfield, and who do you think would make a good replacement?
Adam Davies: I’m not sure Rickie Lambert or Wilfried Bony are players Liverpool fans had in mind. Karim Benzema would no doubt go down a treat, but no one on the market can both create and score chances like Luis Suarez. However, on a positive note for Liverpool, Daniel Sturridge continues to improve and can shoulder a lot of the goalscoring burden. The sky is the limit for Raheem Sterling too – I still can’t believe he is just 19 – and if he adds more goals to his game, he could be incredible. Lazar Markovic could be extremely exciting too (presuming he signs).
Jordan Chamberlain: Suarez registered 31 goals and 12 assists in the Premier League last term, despite being banned for the first five matches. In answer to the question – No, nobody can – apart from a Messi/Ronaldo type, and one of those is not forthcoming. Marco Reus or Karim Benzema would be dream targets, but both are highly, highly unlikely.
Steve Green: Wilfried Bony’s record has been great, his stats show that he would be the best value for money, but he lacks the star name to lead Liverpool’s front line. Ideally they’d be looking at someone like Radamel Falcao or Karim Benzema.
Tom Seymour: The simple answer is no. Liverpool’s tactics revolved around the Uruguayan and replacing him is impossible. However, Rodgers is tactically smart and changing his style is probably the more likely option, with Daniel Sturridge as the focus in attack and a unit of exciting attacking midfielders being him.
Signing more players who operate like Raheem Sterling and Philippe Coutinho would be more useful than another striker. Suarez essentially played as a ‘false nine’ in any case.
Jacob Daniel: There’s no one player who could do it, beyond someone ridiculous like Messi. The challenge for Brendan Rodgers is not going mental like Spurs did last year but taking his time and thinking of a new approach. Markovic would be a fantastic start.
Rob Summerscales: No. Gareth Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Neymar are the only men on the planet who are capable of matching Suarez’s incredible contribution from last season. It goes without saying that none of them will be heading to Anfield.
Although he is still not in Suarez’s league, Alexis Sanchez would have been an excellent signing for the Reds. Liverpool, who were interested in the Chilean, will not enjoy watching him tear defences apart with Arsenal next season.
Where would you rank Luis Suarez amongst the Premier League’s best ever attackers?
Adam Davies: In terms of raw ability, only behind Thierry Henry and Cristiano Ronaldo. In terms of legacy, not particularly highly. He didn’t once claim the Premier League title, and only boasts an FA Cup and League Cup winner’s medal.
Jordan Chamberlain: Greatness is an ambiguous term in football, because it normally implies trophy wins, and Suarez only managed a League Cup. In terms of talent though, he’s right up there with Cristiano Ronaldo and Thierry Henry, and had he stayed with Liverpool until the end of his career, he could have even surpassed the pair.
Steve Green: In the top ten definitely, but where exactly is hard to say. His trophy cabinet from his time at Liverpool isn’t the fullest. However, he has proved to be one of the modern game’s most effective marksmen in front of goal.
Tom Seymour: He would have to be up there, with a scoring record in three-and-a-half years in England that ranks among the best. Unfortunately peoples’ judgement of him as a footballer will be clouded by his misdemeanours, but since the turn of the century only Thierry Henry, Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale match up.
Jacob Daniel: He’s up there, definitely. As an all-round forward he’s up there with the likes of Ronaldo and Henry, one of few players who both score absurd amounts of goals and have a superb all-round game.
Rob Summerscales: It depends how you chose. He is the best of all time if you are ranking players solely on their best season. However, Thierry Henry is the Premier League’s best ever attacker in my eyes. He surpassed the 20-goal mark in five successive seasons.
Liverpool received between £60m and £75m from FC Barcelona for Suarez – depending on whether you believe British or Spanish press. What would you consider a fair valuation, and why?
Adam Davies: If £60m is correct, Barca are getting a good deal. They’ll probably make that back in shirt sales, and if Suarez performs and keeps himself out of trouble, they’ll be laughing. I do think £75m is probably a bit much for a player who turns 28 in January, so £65-70m would be about right for me in the bizarrely detached world of football valuations.
However, there are two things worth bearing in mind. Firstly, the money is useless to Liverpool unless spent wisely, and secondly, Barca have effectively sold both Cesc Fabregas and Alexis Sanchez to finance the purchase of Sanchez. I’m not sure that is brilliant business.
Jordan Chamberlain: £75m for a 27-year-old seems like good value for the Reds, but £60m for the player that almost dragged them to a title last season seems a bit cheap in this day and age. Anything nearer the £75m mark is fair, for me.
Steve Green: A fair valuation would be much less. I don’t believe any player is worth the kind of money that gets quoted these days. But for argument’s sake, probably around the £60m mark. He’d make that back in revenue alone during his four months out.
Tom Seymour: The loss of Suarez is bound to be damaging, but Liverpool have done well to get so much money for a player who will turn 28 next birthday and is currently serving a four-month ban.
All they have to do now is avoid Tottenham Hotspur’s trap and reinvest that money wisely.
Jacob Daniel: I think somewhere around £70m would be fair, but once you get to that kind of fee it becomes difficult to consider the difference £5m here or there makes. Slightly less than Bale is probably right – he’s possibly a better player but the circus that comes with him has to count for quite a lot.
Rob Summerscales: £75m seems ridiculously high considering it is almost as much as Real Madrid paid for a 24-year-old Bale, who is equally talented and much better behaved. All things considered, it sounds like Liverpool’s negotiators have played a blinder. Arsenal’s £40,000,001 valuation seemed more reasonable to me.
Is there a better strikeforce in world football than Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez?
Adam Davies: On paper, no. Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema is a formidable trio, but they are all scorers rather than creators. Barca’s trio can each do both effectively.
Jordan Chamberlain: In terms of brute physicality and dynamism, Real Madrid’s ‘BBC’ trio (Bale, Benzema & Cristiano) are stronger – but in terms of pure genius, this Barcelona side could do truly special things. Although Rickie Lambert, Wilfried Bony and Daniel Sturridge could run them close next season…
Steve Green: Yes – Bale, Ronaldo and whoever Madrid sign to replace Benzema.
Tom Seymour: No. Messi has proven he is among the best ever and a World Cup winners medal will only confirm that. Neymar also showed at the tournament that he can deal with huge amounts of pressure and is a special talent, whilst Suarez was the only player last year to match Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo’s ludicrous scoring records.
If Luis Enrique can get them functioning together then opposition defences will be in trouble.
Jacob Daniel: On paper definitely not, but as Neymar’s mediocre first season in La Liga showed, it’s tough to fit three such massive superstars into a team without there being a bit of friction.
Rob Summerscales: Real Madrid’s attack still has a slight edge in my eyes because it is more powerful and versatile. Saying that, if Ivan Rakitic settles well in midfield, Barca could be unstoppable.
Will Luis Suarez succeed at Camp Nou?
Adam Davies: Probably, but it depends of course how well Suarez works with Messi, Neymar and the midfielders behind him. Gareth Bale shone at Real Madrid last season because he was willing to accede that Cristiano Ronaldo was the main man – as did Neymar with Lionel Messi, though with slightly less success. Suarez will have to hit the ground running, and stay away from controversy – particularly in the high intensity setting of El Clasico.
Jordan Chamberlain: Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thierry Henry found it difficult to reach their individual bests at the Nou Camp, because of one reason: Lionel Messi. Rightly, Messi is the focal point and the star of the side, while Suarez (and previously Ibra) seem the type to really thrive when given the role of ‘main man’. Suarez will do well at Barca – but he’ll be a cog in the wheel, and no more.
Steve Green: Most likely. Alongside Messi and Neymar how could he go wrong?
Tom Seymour: Almost certainly. He has shown at Liverpool that with a few decent support members he can achieve great things, so with Messi, Neymar and Andres Iniesta alongside him Suarez could go onto be considered one of the greats
As long as he stops biting people.
Jacob Daniel: He’s such a good player that it’s hard to see him not succeeding. The only thing is that, at Groningen, Ajax and Liverpool, he’s always been the piranha swimming amongst tadpoles, so he will have to do some adapting to being one star in a constellation.
Rob Summerscales: If he stays there for the duration of his five-year contract, he is very likely to win at least one La Liga title and perhaps even the Champions League. He will score a bag full of goals in Spain, pick up a few trophies and make a heap of money for his young family. I’d consider that a success.