Is Suarez just a small  team tormentor? Luis Suarez
Luis Suarez

Luis Suarez

LONDON. — The devastating form of maverick marksman Luis Suarez has, quite rightly, been celebrated this season.
Superlatives have been exhausted, thousands of words penned in praise and zeros attached to both his pay packet and market value.
But here is another zero for you — the number of times Suarez has scored against the Premier League’s leading sides.
Four of the 23 goals he has plundered this term, none have troubled Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea or Arsenal — last season’s top four clubs.

In fact, just four of his strikes have come against teams currently taking residence in the top half of the table.
So is Suarez a flat-track bully?

Even beyond this season, the evidence might suggest so.
On 74 occasions, the Uruguayan has kissed his wrist in celebration and accepted the acclaim from an adoring support.
Just six of those goals, however, have come against the aforementioned top four, and that from 23 matches.

In contrast, he has 11 against Norwich City alone. And, perhaps most galling from a Scouse perspective, just one against Manchester United, a late consolation at Old Trafford more than two years ago.

This season, a sizzling Suarez had scored 10 times in four matches in early December before Liverpool entered a pair of crucial away games at Manchester City and Chelsea, the festive fixtures which would go a long way to determining their title credentials.

The No 7 drew a blank on both occasions and Liverpool were beaten, losing ground as we entered the new year.
He had done the same at Arsenal earlier in the season and at Manchester United in the League Cup — again Liverpool were losers in both.
Tomorrow, they face league leaders Arsenal at Anfield. Of course, the exploits of Suarez against the division’s lesser lights means his side are still within touching distance of the top three.

For touch to become a firm grip, however, Liverpool need to start taking victories against their rivals and, for that to happen, Suarez’s influence — and goals — will be key.

The opponents, Arsenal, are the same club who tried to wrestle him from Merseyside and down to north London during the summer for £40m-plus-£1.

With Suarez, it was said, they would again challenge for a league crown which has evaded them for a decade – they haven’t fared too badly without him.

Arsenal have, of course, come up short in the games against United, City and Chelsea, but so, too, has Suarez.
It is not often criticism can be aimed in his direction when it comes to on-the-field assessment, but his return in the big matches is one such chink in his goal-plated armour.

This weekend he the chance to bully one of the big boys – or will he and Liverpool again be shot down by the Gunners? — Mailonline.

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