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Tag: Luis Suarez

  • Luis Suarez Isn’t Worried About Not Scoring

    Luis Suarez had to set out for four months of the season after he bit Giorgio Chiellini during the 2014 World Cup.

    He returned to the field in late October, but has been less than impressive when it comes to scoring goals.

    Still. Suarez says that he is not upset or even worried about his failure to score in the last five games.

    “I know I came to Barcelona to score goals but I’m not worried,” Suarez told Catalunya Radio. “I feel important to the team beyond the goals. I hope to score goals but Barca have two phenomena (in Lionel Messi and Neymar), so there’s no drama.”

    “What is happening to me is that instead of acting on instinct, as I usually do, I hesitate and so I missed some good chances. I will try to regain that instinct,” he explained.

    Suarez did well playing with APOEL in the Champions League last week and was even able to make a goal. He didn’t have any luck against Valencia on Sunday.

    Luis said that one thing he has learned from his time on the sidelines is that he needs to handle his aggression and competiveness better on the field before he hurts someone badly.

    “After what happened to me, I now know that I could end up hurting myself,” he said.

    There’s still time for Suarez to get it together and score some goals. It almost seems like he is scared to get too competitive because he doesn’t want his aggressive side to come out.

    Do you think Suarez will be able to get it together in time to score some goals before the season ends?

  • Luis Suárez Gives Non-Apology For Biting Incident

    Luis Suárez has apologized (sort of) for biting Giorgio Chiellini during last week’s World Cup match-up between Uruguay and Italy.

    It’s as if the Liverpool FC forward has finally realized that both denying outright what he did and making lame excuses for himself isn’t going to encourage FIFA to go easy on him.

    Suárez had made no statements to the media since the incident or FIFA’s ban. The message posted by Suarez on Twitter is his first true acknowledgement of the biting scandal.

    In his apology, Suárez states that in the week since the biting incident, he’s spent time at home with his family and has had the opportunity to truly reflect on what he did.

    What’s interesting is Suárez doesn’t admit outright that he bit Chiellini. Instead, the Uruguayan phrased his statement to blame a “collision” with the Italian player for the damage he caused, rather than his own deliberate actions.

    In any case, Suárez apologized to Chiellini and the “football family” (could this include Liverpool FC, who’s had quite the monkey wrench thrown into its upcoming season?) and he “vowed to the public” that this is the last time that he’ll be getting into any trouble of this kind.

    Watching Suárez go through an entire season at Liverpool FC without incident would make one almost believe him.

    The problem is that with his track record, it’s hard to totally believe Suárez. Even if he’s sincere at the time of the apology, whatever is spurring this behavior goes deeper than conscious self-control.

    I’m sure his bite on Branislav Ivanovic of Chelsea FC was supposed to be the “last time” he caused trouble. Obviously, this was not the case.

    What would be encouraging, a sign of true sincerity, is if Suárez would completely admit to what he did, that he was wrong for his behavior, and then seek behavioral therapy.

    Proactively working to curb the behavior rather than excuse it, deny it, and offer empty apologies would elicit far more sympathy from the public and perhaps even encourage FIFA to show some leniency.

    As it stands…see you in November, Suárez!

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Luis Suárez: Will Liverpool FC Dump Their Star Player?

    Liverpool FC is a club that is no stranger to controversy.

    The Liverpool club has fought for decades to have the truth of the painful Hillsborough disaster brought to light.

    Meanwhile the Heysel Stadium disaster, which saw 39 people killed thanks in large part to Liverpool hooligans, is a shameful mark on the club’s history that is rarely discussed.

    In recent years the controversy found at Liverpool FC is thanks in large part to one player: Luis Suárez.

    Suárez was by all accounts a troublemaker before he actually arrived at Liverpool.

    When the club bought him from Ajax, he was serving a ban…for biting.

    If football fans weren’t aware of that scandal, they likely were aware of the Uruguayan’s blatant handball during the Uruguay vs. Ghana match at the 2010 World Cup.

    Suárez lucked out in that situation.

    Ghana failed to score the penalty. The Ghanaians then lost to the Uruguayans during the subsequent penalty shoot out.

    Still, Ghanaians and those supporting that team continue to blame Suárez to this day for their failure to advance.

    Suárez’s first full season at Liverpool was marred by a racial abuse incident, which saw him once more fined and banned from playing.

    Towards the end of the 2012-13 season Suárez was once again banned, and once more it was for biting an opponent. During the summer break that followed, the controversial athlete began to make his dissatisfaction known in the press as well as his openness towards moving away from the club that had supported him in the past.

    Words were exchanged behind closed doors and Suárez was humbled. What followed was a remarkable season for Liverpool FC and by all accounts Suárez seemed to have turned himself around at long last.

    Then came the 2014 World Cup and yet another Suárez-related controversy that will impact Liverpool’s upcoming season. The four month football ban ruling by FIFA means that Suarez will not be available to LFC until November.

    Moreover, the global controversy and the negative attention it brings to Liverpool FC is no doubt wearing on the club’s patience. It could finally be the last straw that gets the star player booted from England.

    Rumor has it that the Liverpool club are considering a sale to Spain’s FC Barcelona. It may quite possibly involve a direct exchange for Chilean forward Alexis Sanchez.

    It can’t be said that Liverpool FC hasn’t stood by Suarez, even at the erosion of the club’s reputation. So if he is sold despite his outstanding performances in seasons past, it will be entirely his own doing.

    Liverpool FC isn’t afraid of controversies.

    It has survived them and will continue to do so. However, sometimes one man’s demons can be too much, even for a club as old and storied as Liverpool FC.

    Suárez’s luck might have finally run out.

    Image via YouTube

  • Luis Suarez Football Ban: Why It Will Solve Nothing

    We all knew that a lengthy ban was coming for Uruguayan football player Luis Suarez.

    One doesn’t take a chunk out of three different players and walk away without a serious punishment.

    Already there is a great deal of controversy over FIFA’s decision.

    Firstly, this is a ban from all football activities over a period of four months. Suarez will be out of the World Cup, that’s a given.

    Depending on how many more matches Uruguay survives, he may ultimately only be banned from the national team for a handful of games.

    Despite this action occurring with his international team, his current club Liverpool FC will be the ones bearing the brunt of the misfortune following the ruling.

    FIFA’s punishment means that Suarez will miss nine league games, three Champions League games, and one domestic cup competition.

    As Luis Suarez is far and away the best striker for LFC, the club will no doubt be feeling like the ones hit hardest by a ban over an incident that did not occur during the English Premier League football season.

    Perhaps worst of all….this ban will change nothing with regard to Suarez’s bizarre and problematic behavior.

    The reason is that it’s clear that there’s something else going on in the mind of the controversial football player.

    How does one bite three different players?

    How does one commit offensive and unsportsmanlike acts against others and then behave as if he is the victim?

    And most puzzling of all…why are so many people willing to defend and excuse those behaviors?

    It’s clear that bans and shaming aren’t helping Suarez. It’s also clear that so long as his club (during the racism scandal) and country (during his most recent scandal) enable and excuse the behavior, it will only continue…if not grow worse.

    What Luis Suarez needs is comprehensive behavioral therapy.

    Only by dealing with the root cause of his behaviors (and taking him out of an element filled with enablers) can any long-term changes truly be anticipated.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Luis Suarez Faces FIFA Charge for Biting Chiellini

    Luis Suárez faces FIFA sanctions for allegedly biting opponent Giorgio Chiellini in Tuesday’s World Cup game between Italy and Uruguay.

    Suárez, who is known both as Uruguay’s superstar player and soccer’s bad boy, appeared to have bitten Italian defender Chiellini at around the 80th minute of a tense and critical game.

    The referee didn’t see the bite and no foul was called against Suárez.

    But the incident was caught on television and thanks to the Internet, quickly went viral.

    Images show both an outraged, slightly shocked Chiellini pulling down his jersey to show the bite mark on his left shoulder and a wincing Suárez holding his front teeth following the incident.

    On Wednesday FIFA officially announced an investigation into the incident:

    “FIFA can confirm that disciplinary proceedings have been opened against the player Luis Suarez of Uruguay following an apparent breach of art. 48 and/or art. 57 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code during the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™ match Italy-Uruguay played on 24 June 2014. The player and/or the Uruguayan FA are invited to provide with their position and any documentary evidence they deem relevant until 25 June 2014, 5pm, Brasilia time.”

    A ruling will be announced prior to Uruguay’s match up with Colombia on Saturday.

    Suárez downplayed his actions after the game:

    “These are things that happen on the pitch, we were both in the area, he thrust his shoulder into me,” he said in Spanish. “These things happen on the pitch, and we don’t have to give them so much (importance).”

    And yet, if Suárez did indeed bite Chiellini, it wouldn’t be the first time the Uruguayan has resorted to such behavior.

    The first incident happened in November 2010 when Suárez was playing for Ajax Amsterdam and bit PSV Eindhoven midfielder Otman Bakkal on the shoulder in the Eredivisie. That transgression resulted in a seven-match ban for Suárez.

    In April 2013 Suárez earned himself a 10-match ban for biting Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic on the shoulder.

    Adding to his bad-boy reputation is an October 2011 incident in which Suárez was charged with racially insulting Manchester United’s Patrice Evra, resulting in an eight-match ban.

    Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez says he’ll defend Suárez: “I want to say that if he’s attacked, as it has begun in this press conference, we’ll also defend him, because this is a football World Cup, not of cheap morality.”

    Uruguay team caption Diego Lugano chose to focus instead on Chiellini’s actions: “The worst of all was Chiellini’s attitude … as sportsmen leaving the field, crying and appealing against a rival.”

    “It doesn’t bother me, so long as he isn’t suspended,” said a fan. “Did you see what the Italians did to us and what they’ve done in the past? This isn’t a game for little girls.”

    Not everyone is so willing to overlook the biting incident, as is evidenced by the slew of memes on Twitter:

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Luis Suarez Just Bit Yet Another Player

    Luis, Luis, Luis.

    Seriously, what the HELL is wrong with you?

    It’s bad form for a world class footballer to bite someone one time. ONE TIME and it’s a terrible look for his brand, not to mention the source of a likely (and lengthy) ban.

    Luis Suarez, following a violent nibble on the shoulder of Italy’s Giorgio Chiellini, has bitten an opponent for the third time.

    He knew what he did was wrong, which is why immediately after biting Chiellini, he fell to the pitch as if he’d been fouled.

    It’s incredible, really.

    It’s as if Luis Suarez doesn’t know we live in the 21st century with things like instant replay, HD television, and the ability to pause and blow up images in order to see exactly what happened.

    The image Chiellini’s clearly bitten shoulder is now a top trend all over Twitter, as is Suarez himself.

    What can he say after this incident?

    “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it, it won’t happen again?”

    It’s getting a bit redundant, not to mention ringing more than a tad hollow.

    Luis Suarez, despite his controversies, is a fascinating and talented player.

    He tied Cristiano Ronaldo as the top goalscorer over the course of the 2013-14 season and was the top goal scorer by far in the Premier League. Suarez has scored some prolific goals throughout his career, both for current club Liverpool and the Uruguay national men’s football team.

    He is a master of his craft and his talent is awe-inspiring.

    However, he may be living proof that there’s a thin line between genius and insanity.

    He has far too many controversies for a player at his level. He’s been accused of a racist remark against an opponent. There was the infamous handball during the 2010 World Cup (which some say helped seal Ghana’s fate).

    And of course…he’s a biter. It was a bite on Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic that saw him miss the tail end of the 2012-13 Liverpool FC season and the opening five games of the 2013-14 season. Despite missing so much game time, he incredibly left all other goalscorers in the dust, racking up an impressive number of goals.

    Still, it’s impossible to praise him as an amazing player without considering his lack of sportsmanship where it counts.

    Luis Suarez is association football’s “brilliant bad boy”, but he’ll never held up to the legendary standards of past greats if he cannot move beyond his childish and pathological behaviors.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Luis Suarez Ends England’s World Cup Dreams

    They should have known better.

    Roughly half of the men on England’s squad play with Luis Suarez in the Barclay Premier League team Liverpool FC. The rest of them have played against him at some point.

    In fact, it’s fair to say that English players have more experience watching the Uruguayan magician at work than any other national team in the world. Aside from Uruguay.

    So it boggles the mind that he was left alone and unmarked.

    A moment of distraction was all the 27-year-old striker needed to dash past a flustered English defense and score his second goal of the night.

    Just like that it was 2-1.

    And just like that…England was finished.

    Suarez scored both of Uruguay’s goals, the first came in the 39th minute via a brilliant header.

    England struggled valiantly through the game, as they had against Italy, seeing moments of near brilliance that failed to come to fruition.

    England’s Wayne Rooney managed to score at the 75th minute, making it a 1-1 game.

    It was Rooney’s first World Cup goal. The goal probably flattered his performance over England’s two games more than he deserved. Prior to the tap-in, Rooney was found wanting in front of goal.

    Unfortunately for England, they didn’t stay level with Uruguay for long. A defensive lapse in concentration by Phil Jagielka allowed Luis Suarez to be perfectly situated for a one-on-one that Joe Hart had no hope of countering.

    Perhaps the most amazing aspect of the Luis Suarez-inspired win is that he’s not 100% fit. Suarez suffered an injury that required surgery a month ahead of his trip to Brazil. He was rested against Costa Rica and perhaps Uruguay suffered the consequences.

    As for England, they desperately need Italy to defeat both Costa Rica and Uruguay. If England is able to beat Costa Rica, it could come down to goal difference. England will have to score quite a few goals. Their previous performances do not suggest that this is possible.

    All signs point to an early exit for the English national team, courtesy of Luis Suarez.

    Image via Fox Soccer, Twitter

  • Liverpool F.C. Goes Top: Potential Title Contenders?

    If you go to the English Premier League website to view to current standings ahead of the Arsenal v Chelsea clash, you will see Liverpool at the top. If Arsenal fails to win at home, the club will stay there. Even now, it is an unreal sight for many who had counted out the football club due to its years of competitive decline. The Reds have managed to stay near the very top of the league table for practically all of the season so far. Liverpool stayed on the heels of the dominant Arsenal as other clubs fell behind. To everyone’s surprise, this includes previous champions, Manchester United.

    Both Manchester United FC and Liverpool FC have had new coaches come aboard, though Brendan Rodgers has had more time to settle at Anfield than David Moyes at Old Trafford. However, much of LFC’s ongoing success has been credited to the club’s current “talisman”: Luis Suárez.

    After leading the team to a decisive home victory over Cardiff City, Suárez has netted a total of 19 goals for the Reds so far this league season. He is the first player in Barclays Premier League history to score 10 goals in a single month. Stats like that draw major attention. Rather than risk losing Suárez to a winter window bid, the club has signed a lengthy new contract with the talented striker.

    (image)

    If Liverpool can keep up their current form, there is speculation that goes beyond whether or not they have what it takes to stay in the top four. Some are already whispering “league title”, words that no one thought they’d hear back in August.

    It’s not a ridiculous possibility given the previous run of games. This includes a major upset away over Tottenham Hotspurs that saw Andre Villas-Boas lose his job. Thrashing a top four contender away from home sends a signal that Liverpool is serious about maintaining a strong position in the league. Will it be enough to grab the elusive league title? Nothing is certain, and there is still more than half a season to go.

    Anything can and probably will happen.

    Many have already pegged Manchester City as the team most likely to grasp the league this year as their local rivals United flounder in mid-table purgatory. Even Liverpool’s Brendan Rodgers said as much when discussing the Reds’ upcoming visit to City on Thursday.

    “I still believe the title is Manchester City’s to lose. They have the strongest squad. The resources they have are incredible.”

    Liverpool may very well be competing with City for the title at some point. But for now, fans can enjoy seeing their club in a table position that is virtually foreign considering the terrible luck of seasons past.

    Image via Liverpool FC Twitter, Barclays Football Facebook

  • Luis Suárez Signs New Contract With Liverpool FC

    Controversial he may be, but no one could argue against Luis Suárez’s sheer brilliance on the field. Despite a ban which saw him miss the first five games of the season, Suárez has emerged the English Premier League’s top goal scorer. That alone isn’t enough to convey the impact that the Uruguayan has made since joining the Reds in 2011. He does more than score goals; he has also been instrumental in breaking up defenses and creating numerous chances for teammates. Some lament his knack for controversy and childish behavior, but Liverpool coach Brendan Rodgers is convinced that Suárez is on the right track.

    When a player has Suárez’s level of skill, it is inevitable that there will be talk of transfers to foreign clubs with big names and big bank accounts. Managing director Ian Ayre thought it best put an end to such gossip by securing Suárez’s services in a new long term agreement. The deal runs until 2018 and includes a pay increase to £200,000 per week in the last four years.

    Many fans are thrilled with the news since it is clear how instrumental Suárez will be to the club’s success. His 17 goals have helped guide the Reds to second in the league and a mere two points off rivals Arsenal FC. Arsenal had attempted to acquire Suárez’s talents with a cheeky summer bid of £40,000,001, meant to trigger a release clause in the contract at the time. This lead club owner, John W. Henry, to respond via twitter:

    Whatever it was, LFC’s owners were having none of it. They dug in their heels and have been vindicated many times over.

    Perhaps Tottenham Hotspurs are beginning to feel that they should have done the same. The club recently sacked manager Andre Villas-Boas following a humiliating 0-5 defeat at home to a Suárez-led Liverpool side. The team had a record transfer season which began with the sale of the club’s talisman, Gareth Bale. Bale is working hard to make waves at Real Madrid, meanwhile the Spurs have struggled in his absence. Observation rather than experience can be one of the best teachers and this is clearly an issue being actively avoided at Anfield.

    With the winter window almost upon us, this deal was likely a way of closing the door firmly in the faces of domestic and foreign rivals for the interest of the star player. Some also speculate that the owners have cemented Suárez’s enthusiasm to stay by promising to add talent to the team. It is too early to say what the Reds can accomplish, but this new contract is definitely a statement of intent. Liverpool will be holding on to a very good thing and it may lead to a many great things in the near future.