Luis Suarez looks set to remain at Liverpool this season.
The Uruguay international has rarely been too far from controversy since his move to Merseyside in January 2011, most famously of all when he was found guilty of racially abusing Manchester United defender Patrice Evra, which resulted in an eight-match suspension. More recently, he bit the arm of Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic, an incident from which he still has six games of a ten-match ban to serve.
That his club have stood by him throughout both episodes has raised its own controversy, yet the forward threw this loyalty back in their faces this summer when he tried to engineer a move away from Anfield. The former Ajax star claimed to have an agreement with the Reds which allowed him to leave should a bid of over £40million arrive; something Arsenal triggered when they offered just a pound over this amount.
The actual details of this clause remains something of a grey area, but what has been made clear in recent weeks is that Liverpool have no intention of selling Suarez, least of all to a team they believe to be competing with for a UEFA Champions League place. And it now appears as though the 26-year-old has conceded defeat in his attempts to clinch a transfer, as he looks to remain at his existing club for the coming campaign.
Just a week after accusing Brendan Rodgers of reneging on promises he could leave the club this year, the player has reportedly told compatriot Martin Charquero that he will now stay put. The Uruguayan journalist, who has also hinted that a new contract could even be in the offing, tweeted: “Luis Suarez has confirmed to me that he will not be leaving Liverpool. The support of the fans in the last few weeks has influenced his decision.”
Whilst it now looks likely that Suarez will remain at Liverpool, Rodgers will still expect him to apologise to his team-mates for his attitude since the end of last season. An apology to the supporters, though, doesn’t seem to be necessary despite his actions, judging by the reception he received in the Steven Gerrard testimonial game last weekend.
