All summer Liverpool’s managing director Ian Ayre has been insistent that Suarez is going nowhere, showing surprising loyalty to a player who in recent seasons has dragged his club’s name through the mud with controversial incidents, embarrassing fans who stick by his side, only to repay that loyalty by privately asking for a move to a rival team.
If only Liverpool showed such loyalty to Pepe Reina, an honourable servant of the club for the past 8 years, hitting out at the club he loves for sending him out on a surprise loan to Napoli.
The Liverpool owner, John W. Henry, recently took to Twitter to mock Arsenal in their attempts to sign Suarez.
The man clearly has a short memory, insulting the transfer business of a club who are known for being frugal with players, when Liverpool are widely thought to be a laughing stock as a result of their deals for players such as Andy Carroll (arguably one of the worst purchases in English history), Jordan Henderson and Stewart Downing.
Trying to purchase the prized asset of a club run by such a delusional owner was always going to be problematic.
Why go for Suarez then?
Many Arsenal fans use the word ‘dithering’ to describe their club’s transfer business since the departure of David Dein in 2007, seeing targets such as Juan Mata all but agreed then move to Chelsea at the last minute.
The club has been guilty of dithering this transfer window also, with a number of targets moving to new clubs leaving Suarez and maybe Rooney as the only realistic world-class options available.
After the 1-0 victory against Newcastle on the last day of the season that guaranteed the club’s entrance into the Champions League playoffs again, Arsenal’s potential striking targets included Radamel Falcao (now moved to Monaco), Edinson Cavani (now moved to PSG), and Gonzalo Higuaín (now moved to Napoli).
Arsenal’s dithering has resulted in all their eggs in the Suarez basket, having to deal with a difficult club, bidding on a very risky player, when they had better, less risky options in June.
Will/Should it happen?
After bidding nearly three times the previous club record transfer value, it’s looking likely that only a sum close to £50m will prize Suarez from Liverpool’s clutches, with no other real options considering that Chelsea are looking likely to seal Wayne Rooney’s signature.
Despite the risk, Suarez is a phenomenal player, scoring 30 goals in 44 appearances last season. He clearly wants the move to a club with a much brighter future than Liverpool that can also offer immediate Champions League football.
The key to the move may be in him handing in a transfer request, rubbing salt in Liverpool’s wounds. I wouldn’t put it past him, publicly backstabbing the club that has protected his controversial acts for two seasons. It would be a less-extreme move than biting Branislav Ivanovic to be fair.
Liverpool legends Michael Owen and Jamie Carragher have spoken out on the matter, saying he needs to stay, while manager Brendan Rodgers has said Suarez owes it to the club to stay.
Rodgers’ affirmation of his desire to keep Suarez despite his wrong-doings and remaining 6-game ban in the Premier League is not a surprise. Luis Suarez was the reason Liverpool finished seventh in the league last year instead of the bottom half of the table, without him next season the outlook is bleak. Selling him to a league rival would only ensure they slip further into mediocrity.
Despite Arsenal’s apparent willingness to smash their transfer record for Suarez, the deal still looks unlikely for me. Until he submits a transfer request and kicks up a bit of a fuss, he will stay at Anfield next season.
Arsenal’s lack of a killer instinct with transfers also contributes to the feeling that we will be entering the new season with Olivier Giroud leading the attack. ‘Dithering’ becomes a problem for Arsenal yet again, as indecisiveness has lead to Gonzalo Higuaín, arguably the missing piece in the jigsaw, moving to Napoli when he expressed a “preference for Arsenal over Napoli”.
For me, even if Arsenal eventually sign Luis Suarez, I will still be disappointed that we missed out on Higuaín. He is a year younger; would have been less than half the £50m price of Suarez, has no controversial habits, has significant experience playing at the very top of the game, has won trophies, and is statistically the most clinical striker in Europe.
‘Dithering’ was a word never mentioned when David Dein was spearheading Arsenal’s transfer business. When Arsene Wenger wanted a player, Dein would pay for him, simple.
Arsenal fans often cite departures of players such as Francesc Fabregas, Samir Nasri, and Robin van Persie as ones that significantly dented the club’s stature. What I would give for David Dein back this summer, he’d have likely snapped up Higuaín and Maroune Fellaini for under £50m combined in the first few days in the job.
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