Football
ESPN staff 10y

Carragher: Will Barca adore Suarez?

Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher has questioned Luis Suarez's transfer to Barcelona.

- Kelly: Farewell, Suarez -- now someone else's problem

On Friday, Liverpool confirmed that an agreement has been reached with Barcelona for the sale of Suarez, who is serving a four-month ban from football for biting Italy's Giorgio Chiellini at the World Cup.

Suarez enjoyed an outstanding 2013-14season at Anfield, scoring 31 goals in 33 Premier League appearances as the Reds finished second in the table.

Carragher regards the Uruguay international as one of the best forwards he has played, with but believes he may not replicate the form he demonstrated for the Reds when representing Barca.

The former defender wrote in the Daily Mail: "During my 16 years at Liverpool, Suarez, [Michael] Owen and [Fernando] Torres were the three best strikers I played alongside (Robbie Fowler was not at his peak when I was making my way in the first team), but Suarez was top of that all-star list.

"Luis used to do things on the pitch that were so audacious you could only laugh in amazement.

"But now here's the question: will he get the same kind of adulation in Camp Nou as he did at Anfield? Or will he end up like Owen and Torres, searching for affection and struggling to replicate the devastating goals-per-game ratio they had in their Merseyside pomp?

There was a reason Owen and Torres never re-created what they had done for Liverpool."

Carragher added: "I thought a move to Real Madrid would have been more natural for him. Yes, Ronaldo is the star but Luis is a better player than Karim Benzema and he would have played in his rightful position -- straight down the middle."

He also warned Liverpool to be careful about how they re-invest the money received for Suarez, reported to be in the region of 75 million pounds.

"What they must make sure does not happen is falling into the trap Tottenham did 12 months ago [after selling Gareth Bale] of spending a giant windfall on players about whom nobody is sure where they play or what they do," he said. "They have to use this finance to build on the foundations Suarez helped lay last season."

^ Back to Top ^