The Uruguayan is available to face Manchester United in the Capital One Cup after serving a 10-game ban, but the Reds manager has cast doubts over the striker’s fitness

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers says Luis Suarez is “chomping at the bit” to make his first-team return after serving a 10-game ban.

Suarez was punished for biting Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic in April, but is now available for selection to face Manchester United in the Capital One Cup on Wednesday.

Rodgers has admitted he is unsure if the Uruguyuan will play apart against the Premier League champions due to his lack of competitive action, but is confident he will shine once back to full fitness.

“It has been a really difficult time for him not playing games,” Rodgers told reporters. “How he has prepared himself over the last number of weeks has been fantastic.

“He’s really chomping at the bit to help the team. Everyone knows the depth of his quality and his attitude. Once he gets back on the field again he will show what he has shown since he’s been here.”

“He certainly comes back into the squad and we’re delighted to have him. He’ll travel with us and we’ll reflect in the next 24 hours whether he starts or not. Having someone of that quality back into your squad gives everyone a lift.

“You never get the full match fitness until you’re playing and you have the crowd and everything, but one of the things that has astounded me in the time I’ve been here has been his physicality.

Rodgers, thought, as admitted he might be without Daniel Agger after the defender limped out of Saturday’s 1-0 defeat to Southampton.

“We’ll see how he is for the game,” Rodgers said. “He could be a doubt for that game as he has not quite recovered.

“But we’ll see. He’s a player who makes a good recovery and we’ll see over the next 24 hours how he gets on for the game on Wednesday.”

The Liverpool defender is expecting plenty of goals now the Uruguayan has served his 10-game ban, with the former Chelsea striker currently leading the line for the Reds

Kolo Toure is backing Luis Suarez to form a formidable strike partnership with Daniel Sturridge at Liverpool now the Uruguayan’s 10-game ban is over.

Saturday’s shock 1-0 defeat to Southampton saw Suarez sit in the stands for the final time as the Reds’ unbeaten start to the season was ended.

Suarez publicly threatened to leave Liverpool on multiple times during the summer after complaining about the English media’s intrusion into his private life, but is now expected to make his return against Manchester United in the Capital One Cup on Wednesday.

“Luis is a fantastic player – a top striker who can score a goal at any time. He will strengthen the team,” Toure told the Liverpool Echo.

“Daniel Sturridge has been playing so well for us and the two of them will be a very strong partnership. I’m sure Suarez will be ready to be thrown back in.

“You saw from his international appearance the other week, in the first game he had played for a while he scored twice. That just shows how strong this guy is.

“He has been very difficult to defend against in training. He is a winner. He’s always working hard and fighting. You want those kind of players.”

The pair played alongside each other 12 times following Sturridge’s move from Chelsea in January, with 13 goals being scored between them.

Sunday’s derby showed two teams going in opposite directions, Paolo Di Canio was doomed to fail at Sunderland, and North London rule the roost

COMMENT
By Greg Stobart

NO MORE MISTAKES FROM MOYES OR UNITED RISK TOTAL HUMILIATION

Leaving the Etihad Stadium last night, I could not help but wonder whether the two Manchester clubs are even direct rivals this season.

Both clubs can claim to be in transition after changing manager over the summer, but City’s 4-1 evisceration of their great rivals on Sunday drew a stark comparison between the two squads.

City have depth in every position, technical quality, a fierce desire to win back the Premier League title and a manager with the tactical nous to handle the big occasion.

PREMIER LEAGUE TABLE
Team 1. Arsenal 2. Tottenham 3. Man City 4. Chelsea …………………. 5. Liverpool 6. Everton 7. Southampton 8. Man Utd	Played 5 5 5 5 …….. 5 5 5 5	GD 5 4 8 4 …….. 2 2 1 1	Points 12 12 10 10 …….. 10 9 8 7

This is no kneejerk, but five league games in, United should forget about the title. Their priority this season should be to finish in the top four.

David Moyes was handed a tough fixture list early on – and even suggested some conspiracy against United – but the Scot has picked up just one point from three clashes against direct rivals and his side have produced just one convincing performance domestically.

Aside from the opening day defeat of Swansea, they have lacked cohesion and looked defensively suspect, the legs of veterans such as Rio Ferdinand and Patrice Evra creaking,

Marouane Fellaini’s arrival on the final day of the transfer window was vital, but United’s midfield is still their problem position and fails to compare with that of City, Chelsea, Arsenal or Tottenham.

The deeper frustration for Moyes will be that the teams United’s rivals have all started strongly and make up the fetal top five in the league, despite making changes of manager and losing star players themselves.

United now have a run of eminently winnable fixtures until they face Arsenal on November 10. But they cannot afford any mistakes or Moyes may have to contemplate the ultimate disaster: failure to even qualify for next season’s Champions League.

DICTATOR DI CANIO WAS DOOMED TO FAIL

Is there anyone who expect the Paolo Di Canio and Sunderland story to end any differently?

DOOMED TO FAIL
DI CANIO’S SUNDERLAND RECORD
GAMES PRESIDED OVER WINS DRAWS LOSSES PLAYERS BROUGHT IN PLAYERS SHIPPED OUT	13 3 7 3 14 15

The Italian lasted just 13 games at the Black Cats manager but the club deserve credit for pulling the plug early and sacking Di Canio on Sunday night.

It was never going to improve. Sunderland have started the campaign horribly – they are bottom of the table with one point from five games – and in their next six home games place five of the ‘big six’ plus arch rivals Newcastle.

Di Canio made the instant impact he needed last season to keep up a team that looked doomed to relegation.

But his behaviour was increasingly bizarre as he alienated players by publicly lambasting them, running the club like a dictatorship rather than inspiring the players to get behind him.

It ended in a stand-off with the Sunderland fans after the 3-0 defeat to West Brom on Saturday that summed it up: for him, it was still the Paolo Di Canio show. He was a dream for the press but a nightmare for Sunderland.

In these circumstances, clubs often turn to the polar opposite, so expect owner Ellis Short to admit his mistake and appoint a no thrills, safe pair of hands to put the ship back on course.

NORTH LONDON SITTING PRETTY AT PREMIER LEAGUE SUMMIT

Tottenham lost their best player over the summer, for a long time Arsenal did absolutely nothing.

Yet any negativity in north London has evaporated, with the two clubs sitting pretty and level on points at the top of the league after five games.

Mesut Ozil has started in sparkling form for the Gunners and continued to rack up his incredible assist record in the 3-1 win over Stoke on Sunday, while Spurs showed they can score last-gasp winners without Bale in their 1-0 victory at Cardiff.

Both teams lack the experience of winning titles, but they have certainly taken early advantage of teething problems as their rivals – City, United and Chelsea – settle under new management.

Top four has to be the priority for Arsenal and Tottenham this season but while their squads lack title-winning experience, who’s to say neither side can launch a credible challenge? It’s there for the taking.

ALL EYES ON SUAREZ AGAIN

It’s been a long time coming but with Luis Suarez, there was never a danger of the Uruguayan becoming a forgotten man.

This week he finally returns from a 10-game ban for biting Branislav Ivanovic and, of all clubs, he faces Manchester United and Patrice Evra at Old Trafford in the Capital One Cup on Wednesday.

While Liverpool have started the season brightly, they missed Suarez’s touch of genius in the final third in Saturday’s dismal defeat to Southampton, so his return comes at a good time.

His desire to leave the club in the summer seems already forgotten, while his drive to win football matches has never been in doubt.

Intense, impetuous, impulsive – it’s what makes the striker a great player and also a liability.

Part of me would like Suarez to enjoy a low-key, understated return on Wednesday and stay out of the headlines. It’s never that simple with him, though.

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