Luis Suarez not guaranteed to shine beside Lionel Messi at Barcelona
- Luis Suarez has completed a £75m transfer from Liverpool to Barcelona
- Uruguay striker may not receive the same adulation at the Nou Camp
- Michael Owen and Fernando Torres were unloved after leaving Anfield
- Suarez is unlikely to displace Lionel Messi as the main man in Spain
- Thierry Henry, Alexis Sanchez, David Villa and Zlatan Ibrahimovic have struggled under Messi's shadow
- Real Madrid may have been a better move
So it is official: Luis Suarez has gone the way of Michael Owen and Fernando Torres, to seek a fresh challenge after lighting up the Barclays Premier League in Liverpool red.
During my 16 years at Liverpool Suarez, Owen and Torres were the three best strikers I played alongside (Robbie Fowler was not at his peak when I was making my way in the first team), but Suarez was top of that all-star list. Luis used to do things on the pitch that were so audacious, you could only laugh in amazement.
But now here’s the question: will he get the same kind of adulation in Camp Nou as he did at Anfield?
Hero worship: Luis Suarez was idolised by Liverpool fans during his time at Anfield
Spanish fly: Liverpool striker has completed a £75million move to Barcelona
Unloved: Fernando Torres and Michael Owen (R) never found the same love after leaving Liverpool
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Or will he end up like Owen and Torres, searching for affection and struggling to replicate the devastating goals-per-game ratio they had in their Merseyside pomp?
There was a reason Owen and Torres never recreated what they had done for Liverpool. Our team was built around them and, in Steven Gerrard, they had someone to supply them with killer balls; their pace was perfect for Gerard Houllier and Rafa Benitez, who liked to destroy teams on the counter-attack.
Suarez was afforded a similar indulgence. Don’t forget Brendan Rodgers jettisoned Andy Carroll as soon as he arrived in 2012 and constructed a side around his No 7. Suarez was good for Rodgers with the goals he scored but, equally, Rodgers was good for Suarez and gave him licence to roam.
Clearly, Luis can be a star for Barcelona. He has the ability to play with any player and thrive for any club but it is not a given, by any means, that he will simply turn up in Catalonia and replicate what he was doing for Liverpool.
For all that we admire Barcelona, for all that we have marvelled at how tiki-taka has changed our perceptions of how the game should be played, they are not an easy team to play for — you don’t just pull on that distinctive jersey and join in the fun, particularly if you are a striker.
Centre of attention: Brendan Rodgers built his Liverpool team around the 27-year-old
Numero Uno: Luis Suarez is unlikley to displace Lionel Messi as the main man at Barcelona
Look at Thierry Henry. He is arguably the Premier League’s greatest player, certainly the best I played against, but he never showed the same wow factor after he left Arsenal. Yes, he won seven trophies, including the Champions League, but he had a strict role to play on the left wing.
Strikers who are brought into Barcelona don’t get the option of operating through the middle because that is the domain of Lionel Messi. He is the king, the man around whom this particular team is built and others have to tailor their game accordingly.
Think about it: Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Neymar, Alexis Sanchez — all brilliant attackers, all undisputed match-winners, but none of them flourished alongside Messi. Even David Villa, for all his brilliance and the trophies he won, became frustrated towards the end of his time at Barcelona playing second fiddle to Messi.
Second fiddle: Thierry Henry and Zlatan Ibrahimovic struggled under Messi's shadow at the Nou Camp
Boy from Brazil: Neymar
New in town: Luis Suarez
Phenomenon: Lionel Messi
The system is what matters and you can see that from the decision to let Cesc Fabregas, who looked to be Xavi’s natural heir, join Chelsea.
So where will Luis fit in? A front three of Suarez, Messi and Neymar sounds like it has come straight from the computer game Football Manager but it will be fascinating to see how Luis Enrique, the new man in charge at Camp Nou, juggles the demands when Luis is available.
Messi’s position is not up for debate and Neymar plays from the left, as Suarez would like to. Does that mean he goes out on the right? Luis played out wide for Liverpool on occasions, and did the job well, but he knew he wouldn’t do it every week and also had the freedom to roam.
Is playing in a specified position something Suarez will accept and adapt to or is something that will take the edge off his spontaneous, impulsive brilliance?
Wrong city? The Liverpool may have been better off moving to Real Madrid
I thought a move to Real Madrid would have been more natural for him. Yes, Ronaldo is the star but Luis is a better player than Karim Benzema and he would have played in his rightful position — straight down the middle.
Liverpool will desperately miss him, there can be no disputing that, but the time was right for him to leave and the club have got the best cash deal they could, as was the case when Torres headed to Chelsea in January 2011.
What they must make sure does not happen is falling into the trap Tottenham did 12 months ago of spending a giant windfall on players about whom nobody is sure where they play or what they do. They have to use this finance to build on the foundations Suarez helped lay last season.
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