Why English comments about Suarez are a sign that they are worried about his performance against England.

Luis Suarez at the centre of another controversy.

Luis Suarez has always been at the centre of controversy in the past few seasons.He has been involved in charges of racial slur, insulting opponent fans, diving, biting an opponent and stopping a goal scoring opportunity using his hands. Despite all the controversy , he has been a special player in the English Premier League and on the international stage. Uruguay sorely missed him in their defeat against Costa Rica. Reports suggest that he could start the crucial game against England.

“You can be a great player in your league but to be recognised as one of the all-time greats you have got to do it at the World Cup. I think he will only be at that level when he shows it on this particular stage. He has got the potential. He is he a wonderful footballer. But if you are really going to put him up there with (Diego) Maradona, Pele, (Franz) Beckenbauer and (Johan) Cruyff, and (Andrea) Pirlo, this is the stage you have got to do it on really.” – Roy Hodgson on Luis Suarez

Roy Hodgson stirred up another controversy by suggesting Suarez was still not a world class footballer as he had not proved himself on the world stage. The surprising aspect was that Hodgson was asked if Suarez was in the bracket of Ronaldo and Messi in terms of his quality. By comparing Suarez to the likes of legends such as Maradona , Pele and Cyruff , Hodgson is doing Suarez’s talent a lot of disservice. Most of the players Hodgson mentioned were brilliant players who played in great teams of their eras. With all due respect to Uruguay, it does not possess the quality of some of those teams. What Suarez and Uruguay have shown in the last few years has been the fighting spirit and moments of individual brilliance which has lead them to some good performances in the last few years.

Suarez was instrumental in Uruguay’s fourth place finish in the 2010 World Cup. He scored three goals in the tournament. Only seven players scored more goals in the tournament. Suarez was the leading goal scorer for Uruguay with four goals in the Copa America competition in 2011. He was the second highest goal scorer in the tournament. In the 2013 Confederations Cup, Suarez scored three goals as Uruguay finished fourth in the tournament.

Lionel Messi, on the other hand, has scored only two World Cup goals so far , with one of those coming this year. He did not score a single goal in the Copa America. It would be unfair to suggest that Suarez is a better player than Messi, but going by Hodgson’s logic even Messi would have to prove himself. Cristiano Ronaldo has also scored only two goals in his World Cup career. Both Messi and Ronaldo are undisputably among the top two players of this generation, but Suarez has proven enough on the international stage to be considered in a similar quality bracket. However, the English manager and some pundits seem to ignore these facts.

“In 2012/2013 Suarez was pretty selfish and missed too many chances for Liverpool. Thinking of my time at Man United we didn’t worry about Suarez much. He’d barely get a kick at Old Trafford and I don’t remember any specific strategy to try to stop him playing, like we did with Park Ji-Sung on Andrea Pirlo in the Champions League, for example. Suarez is a lucky player. The ball seems to bounce off him into the right place. Luck or skill – he gets breaks other forwards don’t.” – Paul Scholes on Luis Suarez

Paul Scholes added fuel to the controversy created by Hodgson by saying Suarez was lucky and Manchester United were not bothered by Suarez a few seasons back. Luis Suarez burst onto the scene in the Premier League with a sensational performance against Manchester United at Anfield in 2011. Manchester United’s defence was exposed by Suarez in that game. Suarez also managed to score twice at Old Trafford in the past few seasons. It is quite unfair for Scholes to describe Suarez on the basis of one season where he was deemed as selfish and unlucky.

Suarez has terrorised defenses while playing for Liverpool and Uruguay. His work rate and skills on the ball are an asset to both his club and national side. He has drastically improved his behaviour on the field and has been a great team player for the past few years. The England national team is worried about Suarez when he comes up against them. The England coach and ex-players are showing signs of anxiety and denial by not appreciating Suarez for his performances in the past few years. The English coaching staff should be worried about their own players’ performances. England has consistently been poor over the past few major tournaments.

A lot depends on Suarez’s fitness and if he would start the game tonight. A semi fit Suarez can also boost the morale of the Uruguayan team who were quite poor against Costa Rica in the opening fixture. It is a risk which the Uruguyan coach has to take. English defenders need to be on their toes if Suarez manages to start the game.