LIVERPOOL MANAGER BRENDAN Rodgers does not want Luis Suarez to change his approach but says the Uruguayan must be wary of ill-discipline.
Suarez scored the Reds’ equaliser against Sunderland on Saturday as they earned a point but also picked up a booking for simulation.
Two more yellow cards would see the 25-year-old suspended for one league game and, though Rodgers praised the desire shown by the striker, he conceded his star man must show more control.
“He is an emotional guy, he runs on emotion, as some players do,” he told Sky Sports.
“That is part of what makes him and he is on to three (yellow cards) now so he’ll have to be careful. You are always trying to educate players and talk to them.
“I have no complaints, I read from the outside all these reports about Luis Suarez but he has been an absolute pleasure to work with from the first day I came in here and he is a good guy who works very hard every day and gets his rewards on the field.”
The Northern Irishman went on to praise 17-year-old winger Raheem Sterling, who provided the cross which resulted in Suarez’s goal.
The winger recently earned an England call-up after impressing since breaking into the Merseyside outfit’s first team, but Rodgers is committed to keeping the youngster’s feet on the ground.
“I am sure it is difficult for him to take it all,” he added.
“You get a lot of adulation for playing well but him and I communicate which is part of me trying to keep him level-headed and making sure the whole situation does not distort his reality.
Expectation
“The reality is he is an exceptional talent we want to nurture and make sure he is around for many years, not just for a few months and he is a good kid, he is a good listener, which is important, he is a really, really good lad.
“It is our job to manage him and manage the expectation and just let him concentrate on his football.
“He is a very level-headed boy. He doesn’t waste his time doing stupid things, he comes into work with the first team and listens to the senior professionals, he is happy to listen to the coaches and it has been quite straightforward with him, and his performances have done the talking and he has come in every day to work and worked well.
“We know he still has a mountain to climb to be a top player but what we are seeing at 17 years of age is the early stages of his career and he is going to be a real talent.”
