Suarez: I’m here cos of Tevez

Posted Saturday, August 25, 2012 by The Sun

Suarez: I’m here cos of Tevez
INSPIRED ... Suarez saw the impact Tevez made in England

THEY are the two men who divide opinion and tomorrow they go head to head at Anfield in the battle of the bad boys.

In the red corner Luis Suarez — booed by fans from Newcastle to Norwich for racially abusing Manchester United’s Patrice Evra last year and the PR disaster that followed.

In the blue — Carlos Tevez, for six months a pariah at even his own club, yet transformed into a title-winning hero after his incredible return from the wilderness in March.

Now Liverpool hitman Suarez has revealed that if Tevez had not made the move to England six years ago, and proved such a smash hit, there is every chance he would not have come.

Suarez, recently committed to another four years at Anfield, used to watch the Argentine tearing defences apart for West Ham, Manchester United and City, during his days with Groningen and Ajax.

And it was seeing the success his fellow South American had in England which convinced the Uruguay star he could crack it himself when Liverpool came calling two years ago.

Suarez revealed: “I watched Tevez when I was playing in Holland and I could see he was doing really well.

“His success was one of the things which motivated me to come here.

“I thought that if Tevez could do really well, then I could do too as I have a similar physical stature.”

For all the controversy surrounding both men, the one thing over which there is no dispute is their brilliance. Yet, last term, it appeared both would be lost to the English game.

Tevez was in six-month exile at City, following his refusal to step from the bench in a Champions League game at Bayern Munich, only to be called in from the cold when City’s title assault was faltering and play a leading role in their glory.

Suarez found himself sidelined for almost two months for that Evra incident, and refusing to to shake the United star’s hand when they met again at Old Trafford in February guaranteed he was loathed by everyone outside Anfield.

But that is the way it has always been with the Uruguay forward, with his final days at Ajax tarnished by a seven-game ban for biting PSV Eindhoven’s Otman Bakkal.

Quiet and enchanting off the pitch, he is transformed into a must-win monster on it. Even Suarez admits his desire for victory is such, he is unlikely to change now.

He added: “I play football in a different way. I love it and put 100 per cent into it but I recognise sometimes this leads to unusual behaviour.

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