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Uruguayan Luis Suarez, who has already scored sixteen goals for Liverpool this season, is considered the key to the club's successful game. However, this player receives more criticism than praise. Is he just a villain on the field or did the not-so-easy path to get there lead to it?
"The smiling boy" - that's how Kenny Dalglish, who was leading the team at the time, described the club's new acquisition. The club paid £22.8 million for the forward from Ajax.
Today, it would be hard to doubt that this boy was worth it. His story is not too different from Cinderella's.
Luis Suarez had to turn down an offer to play for the Uruguayan youth team in childhood because he couldn't afford a pair of sports shoes. For everything he achieved, he had to fight tooth and nail.
The Uruguayan was born 26 years ago - on January 24, 1987 - and his name was Luis Alberto Suarez Diaz. He was the middle child among seven siblings.
His mother separated from his father and raised seven children on a meager income. When the talented child turned seven, he moved to the capital, Montevideo, where Luis's talent came to light.
"Growing up, I had a lot of difficulties. As you can imagine, in a large family, there were no large incomes, so we lived a simple, self-sacrificing life. Moving to the capital when I was seven was my first chance, and since then there were many more opportunities in my life," the boy told the Liverpool Echo about his journey.
Luis was eleven when the managers of the Uruguayan national youth team invited him to join the team. However, he couldn't accept the offer.
Poverty postponed the footballer's path to success: "It was my dream, but I had to reject it because it was too expensive. I couldn't even afford regular shoes at the time. But eventually the dream came true when I started playing for Nacional de Montevideo at the age of 14 - the most successful club in the country."
It was then that the boy started breaking the rules. He was caught drinking and having fun all night, but the coach reprimanded him. He threatened not to let Luis play if he misbehaved.
At sixteen, he was already playing in the main team and in 2006 won the national championship with the club.
Although things went well for the boy in Uruguay, he couldn't wait to go to Europe. The reason for this was not a promising career, but a girl. Sofia, whom Luis married in 2009, then moved to Barcelona and Luis decided to accept an offer from the Dutch club Groningen. The club paid 800,000 euros for the nineteen-year-old.
"Although I won a title, my happiness was not sincere," confessed Luis Suarez. "Sofia and I had to continue our relationship long distance for a year. Although it was not easy, I couldn't give up. When I received an offer to travel to Europe, I didn't hesitate. I just wanted to be next to her. That's how my European adventure began."
It wasn't easy for the footballer to adjust in the Netherlands - he didn't speak English or Dutch. He initially didn't play in the first team of Groningen, but quickly got a chance to prove his worth and played in the country's top league.
Looking back, I can't believe I played in the dirty streets of Montevideo. Now I can be proud of what I have achieved," the footballer recalled his childhood.
In his first season in Europe, he scored 17 goals, and Groningen finished eighth in the championship.
In 2007, he made his debut in the Uruguayan national team. His team won, but Luis collected two yellow cards and was sent off the field.
Later that same year, Luis Suarez moved to play for the most famous club in the Netherlands - Ajax.
The footballer didn't waste time proving his worth there too - 20 goals in 40 games. However, unfortunately, he ended up in the newspapers not only for his talent but also for his hot temper.
The club suspended the player after he got into an argument with a teammate during a match over who should take a penalty kick. And after this incident, Luis Suarez constantly earned yellow cards and tested the patience of coach Marco van Basten.
His behavior improved only when he was entrusted with the captain's armband. He became more stable and calm. The player matured also because he became a husband and a father - he married Sofia and they had a daughter named Delfina.
After that, the Uruguayan stood out especially in the 2010 World Cup. He helped Uruguay reach the quarterfinals with Ghana, where L. Suarez received a red card for defending a shot with his hand.
Then Ghana's player Asamoah Gyan missed the 11-meter penalty, and Uruguay won the penalty shootout 4:2.
Uruguay reached the semifinals for the first time since 1970. To some, Luis was a hero, to others - just a cheat.
While in South Africa, the player not only caused a stir at the championship but also engaged in charity work. At the time, the footballer insisted he was for equality and against racial, religious, and social discrimination.
Returning to the Netherlands, he got into a scandal again. This time he bit Otman Bakkal after he stepped on his foot. Journalists dubbed him "Ajax's cannibal".
Finally, in 2011, the player moved to Liverpool FC. He quickly established himself in the team and played productively, but scandals continued. He was suspended for racist comments towards Patrice Evra.
This season, the Uruguayan from Montevideo continues to score goals and leads Liverpool up in the Premier League, but scandal is always around the corner. The last time he scored a hand goal was in a match against "Mansfield" in the English Cup.
It is unknown what the future holds, but the humble boy from Uruguay, who once moved to Europe out of love, is now a world-class player, watched by everyone ready to condemn or forgive. But he is a forward who scores goals, and no one can deny that.
