Now it is certain he is staying at Liverpool, Luis Suarez hopes to regain the fans’ trust.
The Uruguayan international enjoyed the season of his life last term, but he stunned the Anfield club in the summer by demanding a move. Not only this, but he also claimed Brendan Rodgers had personally assured him that, if a UEFA Champions League qualifier came in for him with over £40million, then he would let him leave.
So when Arsenal bid a pound over this supposed clause, Suarez had set his heart on a move to the Emirates Stadium club, despite admitting Real Madrid was his first priority. The Reds dug their heels in and insisted the clause meant they simply had to inform the striker that an offer of such a size had been received, and they simply refused to sell.
The former Ajax man, who has never been far from controversy during his stay in England, accepted defeat in his quest for a move last month, and he is now waiting for his suspension to be lifted so he can resume his career on Merseyside. Speaking after over the World Cup qualifiers, he now admits he has to regain the trust of the Liverpool faithful.
“I hope to be the same player the fans can trust,” he is quoted as saying by the Daily Mirror. “For me, it has been closed for some weeks. I said I wanted to play in the Champions League, but when that didn’t happen, I knew I’d be happy with life to have my future at Liverpool. It is closed now and I am comfortable with the decision. I said if there was something good, I would be interested. If not, then I am happy at Liverpool. I can say now I am happy.”
Regaining this trust shouldn’t be a problem. Despite his attitude this summer and his obvious desire for a transfer, the fans gave him a great reception when he turned out for Steven Gerrard’s testimonial match in August. He is due to return from his ban, which was given after he bit the arm of Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic towards the end of last season, against Manchester United in the Capital One Cup this month.
Meanwhile, Rodgers has expressed his satisfaction at the deals he has concluded in the market. As well as keeping his star player, the Anfield boss has signed Kolo Toure, Iago Aspas, Luis Alberto, Simon Mignolet and Aly Cissokho, and then on deadline day, Mamadou Sakho, Tiago Iloris, and on a season-long loan, Chelsea’s Victor Moses.
“I’m obviously very pleased,” said Rodgers. “The window this summer has been very productive for us. We’ve done great business over the course of the summer – and we’ll run with that until January and see where we’re at then. I’m sure we’ll look to strengthen again and finish off the second part of the season like we did last season.”
