Suarez is basically the player we always wanted Kuyt to be, a workhorse + skill. Kuyt had the running part of it down, but his first touch was infuriating vs. the smaller teams. He definitely put 140 percent into every big match though.
If our current crop of players put in the same amount of effort as Kuyt did, we'd play Barca off the park. Unfortunately that won't happen with the likes of JC and SD in the squad.
A fair analyses into the positives and negatives into our squad would have to be something like this:
GK:
Reina is one of the best keepers in the world but lack of competition + club stagnation has obviously distracted him and he doesn't seem so secure.
Jones is alright, doing the best he can. His distribution is poor but his hearts in it and that saved us vs Chelsea.
Doni is missing. No really, he's missing.
DEF:
Wisdom is very intelligent and composed, physically strong and yet quite fast. However his inexperience shows when not surrounded by support.
Enrique is very skilled with his feet, composed, and good in offense, but loses the ball too often and gets caught out a lot (tracks back well though).
Johnson is talented but has been played in various positions. His weakness is that he is very inaccurate while shooting the ball from a distance.
Agger is world class but when he's relied upon to do absolutely everything he can have momental lapses in concentration.
Skrtel is an enforcer, good at tackling and clearing, as well as reading players. However he isn't as refined as Agger and can give away fouls.
Kelly is strong in the air and with the ball, as well as running forward. However he is super injury prone.
Carragher has been a faithful servant, is very smart in the game but is slow and is not going to get any younger. It's time to phase him out.
Coates has been a good presence, scored a great goal and knows how to defend, but his positioning has been slightly in question.
Flanagan looked talented but got slated a lot and looks shot of confidence. He's young though so he'll pick up.
MID:
Sahin is super talented, but doesn't run enough (he's also played out of position, as are all our midfielders).
Henderson is the most technically gifted English youth I've seen in a very long time but his confidence is shot + once again played out of position.
Shelvey is a dynamo, a running machine, but his game intelligence/finesse can be questioned.
Gerrard is still talented as ever, but has been played out of position for so long that we're not sure where he used to play (AM? RM? CM? DM? Who knows?).
Allen is extremely accurate and composed but is NOT a DM, where he's overrun due to his size and speed.
Lucas is the exception but is injury prone lately.
Suso is calm on the ball, makes good runs, is skillful and a good passer, but is inexperienced and can sometimes fade away.
Cole and Downing don't deserve to be compared.
FWD:
Suarez is skilled, fast, and incredibly aware of the game around him. No negatives although his finishing can improve.
Borini moves well without the ball, knows good positioning and passing, but he isn't scoring/shooting enough.
Sterling is quick and skillful but unless he plays off the shoulder of the last defender, he is contained due to his size.
Assaidi is skillfull but has faded out during a match (not connecting well with teammates).
Pacheco is similar to Suarez in terms of dribbling/game intelligence but is weak physically, shot mentally and doesn't really play.
Out of all of these we can question only Downing, Cole, and Doni's commitment. They cannot be salvaged.
Sahin and Allen also can be told that they should focus a bit and put some more effort in, but they're not beyond repair by a long shot.
Henderson, Assaidi, Pacheco, Flanagan, and Shelvey lack confidence and tutoring from senior members, not commitment. They can be salvaged.
As we can see we have some very good players here that with the right coaching can fix all of these mistakes. A winning mentality is absolutely necessary and is what will return these players confidence. However during a trial by fire you learn the basics and not the fine tuned skills that turn you into a world class player. Hopefully Rodgers can work some wonders and restore a winning mentality, which starts this weekend. The more wins we get the better our squad will be. It's now up to everyone involved to start grinding out some wins by learning not to play hoofball to Suarez.
