By Panos Bletsos

He’s one of the best strikers on the planet, no denying about that. At just 24 Luis Suarez has played for gigantic clubs such as Nacional Montevideo, Ajax and Liverpool and has steered Uruguay all the way to a Copa América triumph and as far as the semifinals of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. But, as they say, there are two sides to every story…

Less than a year since moving to Britain, the Uruguayan star has thrown himself into the eye of the storm on no less than three occasions. It’s not like he behaved himself while in the Netherlands but given the worldwide attention the English game attracts Suarez needs to be on his best behavior especially considering Liverpool’s stand against racism as evident by the response to the Tom Adeyemi incident, during Oldham Athletic’s FA Cup visit to Anfield last Friday. The three-time European Super Cup winners were quick to express their regret over the racism-related instance suffered by the 20-year-old Norwich City loanee. One would expect them to.

Their position in regards to Suarez’ comments are not so clear, however. The club, and Kenny Dalglish in particular, have also voiced their support to Suárez over the infamous Patrice Evra race row, which finally led to the Uruguayan been handed an eight-match ban. His team-mates, even the boss himself, wore T-shirts bearing Suárez’s name and image during the warm-up for their Premiership visit to Wigan Athletic (0-0), four days before Christmas. And they made their point clear: Liverpool would stick by their man. However, skeptics are growing in numbers by the day – perhaps the once dominant force of European football has bet on the wrong horse this time.

Could it be that one of Liverpool’s most expensive acquisitions ever is actually dragging the club’s reputation through the mud?

Side A

Without a shred of a doubt, Suárez is an exceptional footballer. Having been brought up by a single mother together with six siblings, he was already a man at 19, when he left his country for the Netherlands and Groningen. He adjusted quickly to a whole different environment and within the next four-and-a-half years he turned from a complete unknown to one of the hottest prospects anywhere. Even if the Dutch are renowned for their all-out attack approach and their loose defenses, 126 goals and 43 assists in 196 outings is a fantastic turnover, any way you look at it.

With Fernando Torres departing for Chelsea, Liverpool had no hesitation of splashing out $33.8 million to land their man, who was also given their famous number 7 shirt, previously graced by the likes of Kevin Keegan, Dalglish and Peter Beardsley. They could argue that it was a value-for-money buy, as Suárez has featured in 34 games and scored 12 times – a decent account. What they can’t claim is that they had not seen trouble coming.

Side B

In the summer of 2007, just 12 months after signing for Groningen, Suárez became the object of desire of Ajax, who had just sold Ryan Babel to… Liverpool. When his club turned down the initial $4.5 million bid, the Uruguayan appealed to the KNVB arbitration committee – although he lost the case, it was clear he no longer wanted to be at Groningen.

Only a few months after finally joining the Amsterdam giants, on November 11, 2007, during a 2-2 away draw against eternal rivals Feyenoord, Suárez had a half-time bust-up with team-mate Albert Luque over a free kick, prompting trainer Adrie Koster to substitute both of them.

And then, three years on, came the ‘Cannibal’ incident. In his short time with Ajax, Suarez had been named captain and surpassed the one-hundred-goals mark (that elite Ajax short list also includes the likes of Dennis Bergkamp, Jari Litmanen, Marco van Basten, Piet Keizer and Johan Cruijff), but then for some reason decided to bite PSV Eindhoven’s Otman Bakkal on the shoulder (!), an action which eluded the attention of referee Bjorn Kuipers. In contrast to Liverpool, Ajax fined the Uruguayan and suspended him for two matches, a ban later increased by the Dutch football association to seven Eredivisie games.

History Repeats Itself – As a Farce

Two months later, Suárez completed his move to England and you know the rest: the Evra controversy on October 15, the penalty dive at West Bromwich Albion two weeks later, the finger gesture at Fulham on December 5. It seems too much to take from one player, as highly rated and as costly he may be. Liverpool are now being criticized themselves over their stance in the case and the executive director of FARE (Football Against Racism in Europe), Piara Powar, openly expressed fears that the club has set ‘a bad example.’ And the situation won’t be getting any easier anytime soon, as Manchester United – and indeed Evra – will be visiting Anfield again at the end of the month, in the FA Cup fourth round’s most anticipated tie.

Suárez himself will not feature due to his suspension, but the situation is critical. Liverpool have to decide – will they continue to defend their enfant terrible or will they modify their approach to the matter? The clock is ticking. And it’s ticking fast.

HAVE YOUR SAY…Is Luis Suarez good or bad for Liverpool over the long run? Are long time fans of game questions about the handling of the incident fair? Talk about Suarez below.