Can Liverpool be successful without Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge?

Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge have been the dominant force this season.

Liverpool have been a dominant force this season, and with the season nearing its end, every football follower has his eyes set on the Reds. Liverpool are the current table toppers and would be hoping to stay there till the end. This success that they are enjoying at the moment is mainly because of their strikers Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge who have been hitting the mark consistently this season and are enjoying the form of their lives.

Many feel that had Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge been not in supreme form, Liverpool wouldn’t have played so well to reach the top spot. Does this remark hold true?

Having scored 49 goals between them, Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge are proving to be the most feared strike force in the Premier League this season. This lethal duo has been delivering on a weekly basis and has torn away Premier League defences. These two have been brilliant, yes, but the credit cannot be taken away from a Steven Gerrard inspired midfield pack which has been creating chances for them, and hence the stage to steal the show.

Raheem Sterling, who can stretch the teams with his sheer pace and movement, has been a revelation for Liverpool this season. He has been the key factor in this Liverpool side and has provided the strikers enough chances to score freely. Philippe Coutinho has not been extraordinary, but has supported Sterling brilliantly.

With Steven Gerrard, Joe Allen and Jordan Henderson in their midfield, Liverpool has hardly had anything to worry about. The latter pair has done exceedingly well to support their captain in the midfield whenever required. All three have been master passers and have played an important role in the success of the current toppers. Jordan Henderson in particular has been in sublime touch; having created 60 goal chances, Henderson is only behind Luis Suarez who has created 77.

The conversion rate of Suarez and Sturridge has been the striking appeal of the season. They are in red hot form and only need one go at the goal to score. Apart from scoring goals, these two are providing opportunities to one another to score and eventually win the match for Liverpool. But more often, other members of the squad are involved, which makes the whole attacking pack lethal.

We humans are an interesting breed; we tend to divert our mind to brilliance neglecting the support behind that. Brendan Rogers, for me has been the driving force behind the success of the two strikers for he has allowed his players to attack in numbers and this in turn has increased the goal possibilities. The Reds boss also came out praising his team’s psychologist Steve Peters who, according to Rodgers, is the reason behind Liverpool’s success. Rodgers also asserted that Peters has done an excellent job in developing the mental skills of his players, which in turn has improved his side’s physical and tactical elements of the game.

Brendan Rogers – Mastermind behind success.

Taking nothing away from the two strikers, I feel there is no point applauding the two whilst neglecting the whole team behind. Strikers score and midfielders assist, this applies to every team and Liverpool is no different. To be able to score, every striker needs a good ball forward, Steven Gerrard and his lot has done this exceedingly well this season improving the performances of the two forwards.

Team spirit is another influential factor in sports, a team can win anything when they have confidence. Individual brilliance can win the game for you, but to win the league, to be champions, it comes down to a group of players. Liverpool legend Robbie Fowler came out to praise the spirit of the team and said: “I saw something in this team that I hadn’t seen in a Liverpool team for a long time. They seemed to have that togetherness and belief, and that was just in pre-season. It was genuinely impressive.”

For me, Liverpool can manage a successful season without Suarez and Sturridge. Both are brilliant individuals and have been scoring at their own will, but one cannot ignore the likes of Gerrards and Coutinhos, who have been assisting them on a weekly basis.