Jamie Carraghers Daily Mail column - The difference a year makes. On this day 12 months ago, Luis Suarez was public enemy No 1 in English football and starting a 10-game ban. Now he is on the cusp of completing a remarkable transformation as he could scoop the two most prestigious individual awards in the domestic game. An even bigger achievement would be leading Liverpool to their first league title since 1990. In many ways, it is symbolic that Chelsea are Liverpool’s opponents. He brought trouble on himself in this fixture in April 2013, so it would be fitting if he does something in April 2014 that gets him remembered for the right reasons. That is not to say the incident in which he bit Branislav Ivanovic will be forgotten. Looking back on that day, I am still bemused by Luis’s actions. During the match, we had no idea about the seriousness of the situation. I was up the other end of the pitch and saw there had been a coming together but as Ivanovic, to his credit, didn’t make a big issue of it, we carried on as normal. There was some talk later on that something unusual had happened but my only thought at the final whistle was how Luis had been the hero again, as he’d scored a brilliant header to secure a 2-2 draw in the last minute. Coming back into the dressing room, however, it was clear all was not right. Luis is normally bubbly and bouncy after scoring but, on this occasion, he was quiet and sheepish. I asked him what was wrong, as did others, but he just said nothing; only when we saw television replays did we become aware of the full extent. It meant that was the last time I played a competitive game with Luis for Liverpool. It was a stupid thing to do and I wouldn’t begin to defend him for it. In the days that followed at Melwood, Liverpool’s training ground, you could see how things had taken a toll on him. Luis knew he had let everyone down, from Brendan Rodgers to his team-mates, and I’m glad he’s had the chance to make amends. Of course, there was the high-profile issue in the summer when he tried to engineer a move to Arsenal and I was concerned, particularly after I trained with him before Steven Gerrard’s testimonial in August, that he might down tools and sulk. Thankfully, he has done anything but. He has not put a foot out of place and you can trace the improvement in his on-field behaviour back to that moment with Ivanovic. He’s steered well clear of controversy. If Liverpool do become champions, Luis’s role of scoring 30 goals could catapult him into the top five or six players ever to represent Liverpool, placing him alongside legendary figures such as Kenny Dalglish, Steven Gerrard, Graeme Souness, John Barnes and Ian Rush. Plenty have done more for Liverpool in terms of winning trophies — Luis currently only has a League Cup medal to show for his three years — but what he could be doing is launching a new period of sustained success. Liverpool’s greatest teams were in the 1970s and 1980s but, without Bill Shankly building the foundations with pillars such as Ron Yeats, Ian Callaghan and Roger Hunt in the 1960s, the domination that followed would not have been possible. That is why being the man who can start the rebirth of Liverpool in terms of winning championships will be a legacy for Suarez that no amount of money or medals will be able to beat. Similarities can be drawn with Eric Cantona. Manchester United won the Champions League after he retired, but he was the catalyst for their golden era and, like Suarez, he returned from disciplinary trouble to inspire a memorable campaign. Should Suarez lift the title, it would evoke memories of Cantona doing ‘The Double’ in 1995-96 when he scored a glut of defining goals, like against Newcastle in the Premier League and Liverpool in the FA Cup final. In my first column last August, I said Luis ‘needed to give Liverpool one more year’ and I’m delighted he did as he has got to the levels of Thierry Henry and Cristiano Ronaldo, the two I rate as the Premier League’s best ever players in terms of ability. At this moment, he is the best striker on the planet. What separates him is the mental toughness that accompanies his ability; he wants to train every single day and he is the one who spends the least time in with the medical department. Earlier in the season, I found it difficult to split him and Sergio Aguero, but Suarez has moved way ahead in that race and the fact he is leading the race for the Golden Boot in the era of Ronaldo and Lionel Messi speaks volumes. The stage, then, is set for him and the atmosphere at Anfield could eclipse the Champions League semi-final against Chelsea in 2005. That was the loudest I have ever heard a football stadium. Jose Mourinho made reference to Luis Garcia’s ‘ghost goal’ again this week and, judging from some of his comments about playing a weakened side, it looks like he’s getting his excuses in early. Whether he makes wholesale changes, I don’t know. But if Suarez inspires Liverpool once again, I can say with certainty his turnaround will be complete.
Posted on: Sat, 26 Apr 2014 13:54:32 +0000
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