Brendan Rodgers believes he has become a better manager for his handling of Luis Suarez's bid to leave Liverpool last summer.
Suarez
will line up for Rodgers against Arsenal in the Premier League at
Anfield on Saturday, but he could as easily have been playing for the
visitors.
The Gunners made two bids to sign the striker last summer, including an
offer of 40,000,001 pounds that they mistakenly thought would trigger a
release clause.
Suarez, who at the time was serving a
10-match domestic suspension for biting Chelsea defender Branislav
Ivanovic during a league match, also gave a number of interviews stating
that the wanted to leave Anfield, three years before his contract was
scheduled to expire.
Liverpool refused to deal,
though, as principal owner John W Henry dismissed as "ludicrous" the
idea of selling their leading scorer to Arsenal -- potential rivals for
Champions League qualification.
And
the Liverpool manager has nothing but praise for the commitment the his
23-goal top scorer has shown since returning from his ban in late
September.
And asked if he felt he was a better
manager for last summer's experiences, Rodgers said: "Yes. When you're
doing your coaching courses and badges, you don't get these types of
scenarios.
"It's how you deal with them that can make you. The modern game now is about the man-management side of things.
"My
natural environment is on the field, coaching. That's what I've done
all my life. But there's absolutely no doubt that the man-management
aspect of it is something that's important.
"What
you have to do is always respect your players, but hope that you can
find the common ground that allows the club to take advantage of some of
the great players that we can have.
"And from that moment, I knew with Luis that once we ended the speculation with him, it would be fine.
"I've
never known a player like him in training. This guy genuinely loves
football, and that's continually, whether it's summer or winter,
whatever."
Even so, Rodgers is aware that the
27-year-old may be difficult to hang on to if Liverpool do not qualify
for next season's Champions League.
The Reds last
played in the competition in 2009, but are well placed to qualify again,
going into the weekend's Premier League fixtures lying fourth in the
table.
Rodgers can understand the desire Suarez has to play Champions League football, which he last did for Ajax three seasons ago.
And
the manager said it was his understanding of Suarez's character that
helped smooth things over when the player's relationship with the club
fractured last summer.
Rodgers said: "I knew, first and foremost, the human qualities of Luis. He's a good man.
"I've
found since I've been here that he's a very generous human being. I've
found him very amicable in everything I've tried to speak with him on.
He's a learner.
"He was in a difficult place in the summer. I understood where he was at. I had empathy for his situation.
"I've
watched Champions League games for many years. He's a player who wants
to be at that level, and a player who deserves to be at that level.
"But
we had to protect and fight for the club, and hope to sell to him that
this is still the place for him to play at that level.
"I've
watched Liverpool from the outside and spoken to players here who have
been involved in it, and there are not too many better places to be than
Anfield on a Champions League night.
"So it was about managing the situation, and always being honest about the situation. Managing is what you get paid for.
"I
know a lot of Liverpool supporters -- they love Luis, and they found it
difficult in the summer to accept how it was maybe going to pan out.
"But I think you've seen, by the reaction from them since, the love they have for him and the support they have for him.
"Maybe earlier on at the beginning of the season, there was still some hangover from the summer.
"But
I think you see his commitment and hunger for the club, and I think
that overrides any ill feeling that there might have been."
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