I’ll stay at Liverpool, says Luis Suarez

Striker insists fan appreciation persuaded him to change his mind.

LONDON: The love of Liverpool fans appears to have persuaded Luis Suarez to stay at Anfield, according to comments made by the controversial striker to a Uruguayan newspaper.

“For now, given all the affection of the people, I’ll be staying at Liverpool,” Suarez told El Observador yesterday from Tokyo, where he was on international duty with Uruguay for a friendly against Japan.

The paper also quoted a Uruguayan journalist who tweeted that Suarez had told him he was staying at Anfield.

“Luis Suarez confirmed to me he won’t leave Liverpool,” journalist Martin Charquero wrote on his feed. “The support of the fans in recent weeks influenced the decision.”

He added that Suarez would seek ‘a probable renewal of the contract that ties him to Liverpool’.



Last weekend, Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers told Suarez that he must apologise to the club and supporters if he wanted to mend relations with them and be welcomed back into the squad.

Rodgers has made Suarez train alone after the Uruguayan sought a move away from Anfield on the grounds that they had failed to qualify for the Champions League.

Liverpool turned down a £40 million and one pound offer from Premier League rivals Arsenal after Suarez said he wanted an ‘amicable agreement’ to leave Anfield, thinking any bid over £40 million would trigger a release clause in his contract.

Suarez, who scored 29 goals in all competitions last season, has received full backing from the club and the solidarity of supporters despite two controversial incidents that have marred his two-and-a-half years on Merseyside — the racial abuse of Patrice Evra and biting Branislav Ivanovic’s arm.

Liverpool and England captain Steven Gerrard said he was determined to do all he could to keep Suarez at Anfield.

“It’s very important he stays,” said Gerrard, who lead England against Scotland in a friendly at Wembley last night. “He is one of the best players in the world.

“I can understand why clubs are showing an interest in him [but] if I can use my influence to make him stay I will. I love playing with him and I don’t want him to go,” he was quoted as saying by the Daily Mail.

Liverpool have always maintained that they will not sell Suarez to a rival English Club. American owner John Henry also said that the sale of the controversial striker so late in the window was not possible as it would leave them with no time to find an able replacement.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 15^th, 2013.

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