Luis Suarez should not be allowed to grace the Arsenal shirt

Ah, you just got to love the summer transfer window. Every day there is something new to get up in arms about. Today, it’s the continued rumour that Arsenal are set to increase their bid for Liverpool’s Luis Suarez.

The Suarez to Arsenal story is the new “story that won’t go away.” A fortnight ago it was Higuain and before that it was Jovetic. Both interspersed with Rooney and the return of Cesc Fabregas.

In  reality I am not sure what to make of the Suarez link. When it first surfaced this seemed to be a case of creating a story to get some momentum. What do I mean? Well, from all perspectives it looked like the deal between Arsenal and Real Madrid to bring Higuain was done and dusted.  Higuain’s father and various outlets in Argentina, Spain and England had all be officially confirmed the deal. Then Madrid seemingly moved the goal posts.

So the Suarez story then pops up. Suarez is one of Madrid’s primary targets it has been reported. The striker himself has made no secret of his desire to play there. So all this looked like was an attempt (albeit a feeble one) to pressure Madrid into finalizing the Higuain deal.

Well, if you haven’t noticed since the Suarez story first brook any news on Higuain to Arsenal has gone quiet. Only word that on July 15, Ancelotti wants to meet face to face with the Argentine.  Now, today we are greeted with the story that Arsenal are set to raise their bid on Suarez.

It makes you wonder what is going on.

How did we go from a player who by all indications wanted to come here to one who supposedly wants nothing to with England because of its very opinionated media? No one knows and anyone who says is either lying or is Arsene Wenger.

Suarez seems on the surface to be such an anti-Arsene kind of selection. We are constantly told that part of the selection criteria is a mental attitude above just physical skill. We’ve all read the detailed psychological profiling that Wenger and his scouts subject players to. Based on the weight of evidence against him, Suarez looks to be one who would fail the test – repeatedly.

No doubt Suarez is a highly skilled player. His ability to find the back of the net is amazingly prolific. At Ajax his final tally was 74 goals in 97 league appearances. Last season at Liverpool he netted 30 goals in 44 appearances.

He is technically skilled and has pace to go along with deft movement off the ball. He is virtually a threat from anywhere; long-distance, fighting in the air or anywhere around or in the box. His speed and guile make him elusive and god forbid if you let him have space to attack from the outside in – he will hurt you.

On the surface his positives surely make him a target to covet. Why wouldn’t you take him based on this?

Well, because it is only part of the picture. When we discussed Suarez’s ability to pass a psychological exam Arsenal hold so dear, it wasn’t because we thought he was mentally challenged. But his behavior clearly shows that something isn’t quite right up in the head.

Before anyone gets the wrong idea, I am not calling him a special needs case. I am just calling him a mental case. A mental case that I’d personally prefer to keep miles away from this club.

We are Arsenal. That means something. Arsenal has personified class for as long as anyone can remember. It has always been part of the core of what make Arsenal, Arsenal.

Sure, there have been players who may not have always had the class down perfect. Adams and Vieira come to mind. But their infractions in my opinion pale in comparison to the long list of infractions Suraez has amounted in the last 7 or so years.

Just to recount them for you:

(list courtesy the Telegraph)

• Dismissed in his first game for Nacional in 2005 (2 yellows)
• Locker room brawl with Ajax teammate Albert Luque (banned by club)
• Hand of God for Uruguay – on the goal line his blatant handball denied a goal scoring chance in the final minute that would’ve sent Ghana through. Uruguay got on through winning on PKs.
• Biting an opponent while at Ajax – bit Otman Bakkal of PSV Eindhoven. Given the nickname – the Cannibal of Ajax
• Frequent Diver miles – since his time in the Premier League no one does more to “win” penalties then Luis Suarez.
• Racism – the FA panel found that on 10 separate occasions Suarez used a racially charged term to goad Patrice Evra. Feigning cultural ignorance and stating the term is used in a friendly manner in his native Uruguay, Suarez and his Liverpool teammates made a mockery of the sensitivities of the charge.
• The one-fingered salute – Gave the finger to Fulham supporters walking off the pitch after he failed to win a penalty after supposedly being taken down in the box by Brede Hangeland.
• Hand of God for Liverpool – blatant handball that dropped the ball at his feet to allow him to score against Mansfield allowed Liverpool to move on in the competition. Never accepted responsibility or took and blame.
• Biting an opponent whilst at Liverpool – the biting of Branislav Ivanovic needs no further explanation.

Now many will argue so what. We need to win. Let’s forget about all this. We forgave Vieira his spitting and Adams his drinking.  True. The problem is that with Suarez these things don’t stop. They add up and continue to happen and each time it is not the player who truly pays the penalty, it is the club.

The next time, and there will be a next time, that he does something stupid in the Premier League, his ban will be substantial. His last ban was 10 games and the Evra ban was 8 games. He will find no lenience with the FA next time. Another ban would likely keep him out of the squad for a 1/3 or more of a season. Then you’ve spent upwards to £40 million on a player who is of no use to you when you likely need him the most.

We simply can’t afford to sacrifice the core principles in the name of bringing star players. We want, no we need our players to exude the standards the club has set.

Victory through harmony is a phrase that is touted by many and when I see it , I want to quote Inigo Montoya and say “I do not think it means what you think it means.”

To me we win and will win when we work together for the team. Arsenal pulled through the end of the season last year because the gelled as one cohesive unit playing for each other.

Suarez is not a player who plays for his team. If he did he wouldn’t keep repeating stupid act after stupid act. Additionally, by continually placing blame on everyone but himself he portrays himself as the big victim when all the proof says otherwise.

We want players of quality and who can do what Suarez can do. Sure but not at any cost. Not at violating some of what makes this club exceptional. We are all repulsed when the paedo chants are sung about Arsene Wenger. We got upset at the rapist chants against Van Persie when he was here. We vocally lauded the decision to ban Suarez when he was suspended for his reported racist comments. We do that because we have a sense of class and tradition and expectations.

8 years is a long time without silverware. Not the longest for this club but still a long time. I get the overwhelming desire to sign Suarez by some portion of the supporters.  But I know many like me are repulsed at the idea of having him wear our colors and represent this club.

I am asked if we sign him will a sing his praises if he scores. No. I will celebrate the goals that Arsenal the team got. But I cannot support someone I find repulsive and a stain on the game.

Side note: regular readers know I am in the US. I live outside of Philadelphia and follow the Philadelphia Eagles. I’ve always been a diehard Oakland Raiders fan but I used to work for the Eagles and as such follow them. However, since the day they signed Mike Vick to be their QB, I have not watched a single game. As a dog owner I could not fathom any club taking in so vile a human being that would do what he did in the name of making money to dogs.

No I won’t stop watching Arsenal. My love for the club goes deeper than one person. But the feelings that I have for Michael Vick here in the US (as do many many Eagles fans) is similar to what I feel for Luis Suarez. If he plays for us, he will get the benefit of playing for my club but I will not sing his name.