Barcelona striker Luis Suarez believes Brendan Rodgers is one of Europe’s finest managers and has pinpointed the success he had during his time with the Northern Irishman at Liverpool.
The 29-year-old joined the Reds in January 2011 when Kenny Dalglish was in charge of the club, but the arrival of Rodgers in the summer of 2012 really turned Suarez’s career around.
Making the mercurial striker the focal point of his side, Suarez became one of the Premier League’s finest strikers and etched his name in Liverpool’s history books.
Scoring a stunning 31 Premier League goals during the 2013/14 season – the campaign Liverpool came agonisingly close to winning the title in – highlighted just how well Rodgers brought the best out of the former Ajax striker.
Suarez opted to move on at the end of that season to join Barcelona and has managed to take his talent to new levels , becoming the first player besides Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo to score 40+ goals in a La Liga season, but insists that it would not have been possible without Rodgers’ help.
“He is one of the best coaches in Europe and I am not surprised he is looking to get back in to the game because it is a game he loves,” Suarez told reporters, as reported by the Liverpool Echo.
“If it was not for Brendan, then I know I would not be the same player that you see at Barcelona today.
“Such a big part of my education is down to him and his management.
“Of course he works to make the team stronger but he really works on a one to one level with the players.
“He will sit down with each player at the club, and work on where you can improve, where you can exploit opposition, he leaves nothing to chance.
“He is a very intelligent man. If the players at his next club listen to his words, they will become better players for sure.”
Whilst Suarez’s time on Merseyside was shrouded in controversy due to incidents on and off the field, Rodgers for the majority of the time to manage to extract that passion instilled within the striker and utilise it in the right fashion.
Salto-born Suarez was a treble-winner in his first campaign with Barcelona last season and could get his hands on a double this season if Barcelona can beat Europa League winners Sevilla in the Copa del Rey final on Sunday.
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