Leaving Liverpool: Suarez vs Torres

“The badge on the front is more important than the name on the back”

This has become something of a custom now. Liverpool fans are slowly, but surely, getting used to seeing their brightest stars leave for glorious shores elsewhere. Although the club hierarchy summarily denies that Liverpool aren’t a selling club, but the scenario across Europe with the emergence of moneybag clubs categorise Liverpool among the second tier of clubs, clubs which serve as talent pool for the bigger, richer clubs. Liverpool fans are suffering from insecurities they never experienced before, with their star players constantly linked to bigger clubs, they almost always enjoy sterling performances with a tinge of irony, that these eye-catching performers are catching the eyes of the circling vultures. Michael Owen, Xabi Alonso, Javier Mascherano, Fernando Torres, and now another prodigal son of the Kop, Luis Alberto Suarez.

Michael Owen to Real Madrid was another story; new manager, contract running out, and the proverbial lure of Real Madrid. Same could be said of Xabi Alonso and Javier Mascherano. Alonso was virtually shown the door by then manager Rafael Benitez when he suggested that Liverpool needed a left footed midfielder, Gareth Barry in this case, and alienated Alonso. Mascherano’s was similar to Owen, new manager and unstable club hierarchy meant Liverpool was clearly not the place of his dreams, at a time when he was at his peak. Both secured moves to Spain – Alonso to Real Madrid and Mascherano to Barcelona. All three of them were club favorites, and made the Kop weep as they departed. While Alonso and Mascherano’s transfers were subdued happenings, the Owen saga was not well received by some sections of the Anfield faithful, partly because of the petty fee that the club received.

And onto the most recent and well-known Fernando Torres saga – Torres chose to travel on that well-trodden road by jumping ship to Liverpool’s domestic rivals, Chelsea. Torres enjoyed a prolific, albeit, trophyless, three and a half years at Anfield. His glut of goals, both in the Premiership and in Europe, will be remembered for years by the fans. He broke quite a few records on the way and could have stayed much longer had there not been a managerial overhaul at Liverpool. Torres was happy and kicking under compatriot Rafa Benitez, having won multiple international titles with Spain and was widely recognised as the most feared attacker on the planet. This caught the eye of many of his long time admirers, Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich being among one of them. The change of managers at Liverpool, coupled with boardroom troubles and Torres’ own injury woes, led Nando to the exit doors faster than anticipated.

Torres’ s departure in atrocious circumstances led to a massive out-pour of hatred from the Liverpool fans who had accepted him as their own. Although Liverpool got a sizeable transfer fee of 50 million pound sterling, the fans couldn’t see their favorite son doing a Judas impersonation. And the fact that he moved to one of their rivals was too difficult a fact to bear. A move to foreign clubs of the ilk of Real Madrid or Barcelona or Bayern wouldn’t have culminated in such an ugly end to the Torres love story. And add to that, his bitching of the club by stating that he was leaving Liverpool to join a bigger club left a very bad taste. He started promisingly and the club loved him, and could’ve been a legend, but he chose to abandon his shed in search of glory elsewhere. Many could argue that it was his career and a that a footballer’s career is too short, and his craving for trophies was too strong an attraction for him to leave. So far his dream move has been crowned with trophies, and big ones too, but his personal career has taken a hit. Gone are the days when he was an automatic starter for Spain. In fact, his place in the Chelsea bench is not guaranteed these days.

But if Torres is a something of a legend, what could possibly happen to the ongoing Luis Suarez saga ? Suarez is something of an opinion divider, as much as he is liked and loved by his fans, he is vilified and hated by opposition fans. A true genius on the pitch, Suarez’s misdemeanours have led him to troubles more often than not. Few other players can do what Suarez does with a football -his touch, movement, skills, trickery and vision are second to none. But it is his controversial side that makes news more than his ability. Suarez was branded the ‘cannibal’ after he bit one of his opponents, PSV Eindhoven’s Ottman Bakkal, in the Eredivisie. Then came his moment of ultimate infamy, an act that made him the villain of the world when he handled a goal-bound effort from Ghana’s Dominic Adiyiah in the quarter finals of the World Cup in South Africa. Ghana, with a man advantage, went on to lose and Suarez was berated all over the world.

Suarez arrived at Liverpool with a mission. With his image tainted and reputation tarnished, Suarez arrived the same day as Fernando Torres left Liverpool. For a few hours at least, he became Liverpool’s all time record signing only to be overshadowed by Andy Carroll a little while later. Suarez made his mark in some style, scoring in front of the Kop on his debut. Gradually, he made the Kop forget about Torres, and the Kop just couldn’t get enough of him. His mind blowing performances endeared him to the Anfield faithful, and they had a new hero in town. But the controversial Suarez resurfaced again with a racism row involving Manchester United‘s Patrice Evra. Suarez was condemned by the press and subsequently banned, but the club supported him to the hilt. And a year later, as if that wasn’t enough, Suarez got himself embroiled in another controversy, this time his cannibal instincts getting the better of him. He bit Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic and got himself into further trouble and further punishments. The British press made his life harder and Suarez soon became enemy number one outside the Anfield walls.

And so after two and a half seasons, it is time for a familiar feeling for Kopites. Suarez has revealed in the local media that he would be leaving Liverpool this summer citing family troubles and paparazzi as primary reasons. Real Madrid have been circling around the mercurial star for quite some time now, and with the lure of playing at the very highest level, with players of the likes of Ronaldo and Casillas, Suarez surely won’t let this opportunity pass him by. Suarez has been seen as quite a gentleman off the pitch by the Liverpool fans. His demeanour is quite lovable as a human being, but it remains to be seen how the fans react to his imminent departure.

The leaving of Torres set the social media on fire with hate mails and death threats being the order of the day. People even burnt effigies of Torres and his replica shirts were burnt down to ashes by irate fans. A similar reaction is unlikely, given the timing of the news and that Suarez isn’t any close to joining Liverpool’s rivals. Torres was a brand, a cash-cow for Liverpool, one of the most popular global stars. He sold more shirts for Liverpool than any other player in their history. He boosted the commercial arm of the club with his image, so his was a bigger loss. But Suarez, for all his genius, is still a rung below Torres when it comes to a brand. His reputation is hardly something that clubs would like to carry along with them, but his ability to deliver magic moments on the pitch is second to none.

But nevertheless, tears will be shed and Liverpool Football Club will be poorer with Suarez’s exit. The leaving of Suarez will surely be a catastrophic experience. Feelings of sadness, hatred will once again engulf Liverpool Football Club. But rest assured, it won’t be that big as the leaving of Torres.