Luis Suarez Reveals Pain of Steven Gerrard Slip, Slams Jose Mourinho's Tactics

Despite exchanging Liverpool for Barcelona in the summer, Luis Suarez remains emotional over the Steven Gerrard slip which handed Chelsea's Demba Ba a simple goal—and Manchester City the title—last season.

Writing in his autobiography, the Uruguayan striker has admitted he would have crumbled if he was the one to lose his footing during the 2-0 defeat, reported by Ben Nagle of the Daily Mail:

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If I had been in Stevie's shoes, I don't know if I would have been able to carry on playing. Emotionally, it must have been very, very hard.

In the previous weeks, so much had been said about him, the expectation had built so much, the talk had been about him leading Liverpool, his club, to a first title in over 20 years, on the 25th anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster, in which his cousin had died, and then that happens.

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Suarez continues, "I'm convinced that if Chelsea had not scored like that, they would not have scored at all. And once you are a goal down against them, it's virtually impossible."

Last season saw the striker net 31 Premier League goals in a fantastic run for Brendan Rodgers' side. Liverpool played speedy, fearless football which allowed the movement of Suarez, Daniel Sturridge and Raheem Sterling to cause devastation. Falling two points short of the final summit was both a commendable achievement and major heartbreak.

Curiously, Suarez provided further detail on the Chelsea match, in which Jose Mourinho's team willingly slowed play down from the off. This was aimed at stopping Liverpool from blitzing their visitors—a familiar occurrence last year—but Suarez suggests the opposition were under strict orders to carry out deliberate time wasting.

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This was confirmed by an unnamed Chelsea star, according to Suarez, per Simon Rice of The Independent:

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The only thing I didn’t like was the way that they wasted time from the very start. I was asking myself: ‘Why are they doing this from the first minute?’ I even asked one of their players. ‘What do you want me to do? If he makes us play like this, I have to play like this,’ he replied. ‘What else can I do? If I don’t, I won’t play. What would you do?

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Mourinho often employs a well-drilled strategy away from home. This is usually defensive-minded and has his side prioritise getting men behind the ball, but he looked to quash Liverpool's hopes by simply keeping the ball out of play during the Anfield tie.

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Former Arsenal defender Martin Keown said it "worked perfectly" at the time, as Chelsea "were just doing everything they could to win the game." Suarez's comments outline a deliberately negative approach was forced upon the Chelsea players, who may have been subtly punished for failing to carry such instructions out.

Mourinho is a winner of big games, and it's easy to outline his tactics as a success in hindsight. The feeling did change after Gerrard's slip, however, as Liverpool never fully regained the confidence needed to capture the title from this moment. This has been emphasised during the current season, in which four wins from 10 games leaves the side in seventh.

Suarez's Barcelona career is just gaining momentum after his four-month ban for biting Giorgio Chiellini expired. He has provided one assist, but he is yet to score in three appearances for the Blaugrana, who have only won a single match with him in the side.

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Dermot Corrigan of ESPN FC admitted Suarez is yet to fully adapt during Barca's win over Ajax on Wednesday night:

Ultimately, the player is destined to be a hit at the Camp Nou. Suarez posted one of the greatest individual seasons in Liverpool's history last year and was unplayable at his best. Gerrard's slip was an unfortunate blot on an otherwise terrific year for the club who need to show they can cut it with the best now that Suarez has gone.

This appears to be a great challenge right now. The spectre of Suarez still looms, particularly when Liverpool lose, just like it did for Manchester United when Cristiano Ronaldo exited. Only trophies can quell the thoughts of "what could have been" for both the player and his former club.