Barnes: Why Suarez’s ban was a good thing

When Luiz Suarez bit Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic at the end of last season and the Liverpool striker picked up a ten match ban, very few would have thought that this ban could turn out to be a good thing.

Liverpool legend, John Barnes, believes that Suarez’s ban actually benefited Daniel Sturridge and has contributed to the England strikers fine form this season.

Speaking on 5times.co, Barnes said, “Overall, we are doing better than expected and in some ways Luis Suarez being missing for the opening eight games helped Daniel Sturridge cement his quality, certainly in the fans minds. Had Suarez started the campaign and been the main man his strike partner may have been a bit subdued but he has now come onto that stage and proved he belongs there.”

Sturridge started off the season playing as the lone striker upfront for Liverpool and was able to bang in the goals in three consecutive games. The focus at that point was all on Sturridge and how good he can be without Suarez. Sturridge certainly showed us that he can do the job if given the opportunity to play centrally. During his time at Chelsea, he struggled to impress as he was being deployed out wide.

The fear then came when Suarez returned from his ban and many wondered how a Sturridge and Suarez partnership would work. We have seen it now as the two have been playing brilliantly together and have a total of 18 goals between them already this season.

What is really encouraging is that Sturridge has shown that he can lead the line when he is alone or when alongside Suarez. Hopefully the two can continue their fine form for the rest of the season and their goals can secure Liverpool with a top four finish.