The Premier League title race in 2013/14 was one of the most dramatic since the turn of the millennium.
While nothing will probably top Sergio Aguero's once-in-a-lifetime season-defining winner in 11/12, the battle between Liverpool and Manchester City two seasons later had observers on the edge of their seats in the final weeks.
The Citizens claimed their second title in three years, edging the Reds by two points (86 to 84) in the final standings, which served to remind observers they were no flash in the pan and had sights on replacing city rivals Manchester United as the dominant team in the division.
There were two outstanding players in the league in that season, with both driving their respective sides forward throughout the campaign: Luis Suarez on Merseyside and Yaya Toure at City.
Both maintained a high standard of play all year and either matched or set new top flight records. Unsurprisingly, they were front-runners for the PFA Player of the Year award, eventually claimed by the South American.
Given the outstanding nature of their campaigns, the debate over that year’s award has persisted, with many critics claiming Yaya had the better campaign and deserved the honour at Suarez’s expense.
Indeed, this debate, as is nearly every discussion in the sport, is largely down to personal opinion and interpretation of facts/stats.
The Ivorian was his team’s top scorer and led the way for assists alongside David Silva, 20 and nine in both metrics. This was significant because Yaya was neither his team’s primary goalscorer nor main creator, yet his contributions in the final third bested his teammates’ returns.
By scoring 20 Premier League goals, the four-time African Player of the Year became only the second midfielder since Frank Lampard's 22-goal return in 2009/10 to hit that number or higher in a 38-game season.
For someone whose principal responsibility wasn’t putting the ball in the back of the net, he often rose to the occasion for Manuel Pellegrini’s troops in a truly remarkable campaign, featuring many astonishing efforts.
The West African unerringly dispatched four free-kicks in the first-half of that campaign, before rounding off the season with two strikes that truly showcased his powerful running and immense ball-carrying: the first came in City’s 2-0 success at Crystal Palace in gameweek 36 where the dynamic midfielder, while in motion, ran half the Selhurst Park turf, exchanged passes with Edin Dzeko and Samir Nasri, before curling a finish into the net with his weaker foot.
He’d also provided the away side’s opening goal for the towering Bosnian frontman.
The second in the penultimate matchday of the season, and probably the best of the lot, saw Toure run with the ball at pace from inside his half, beating two Aston Villa players, leaving another three chasing hopelessly till he finished coolly past Brad Guzan.
He saved the best for last and that moment of individual brilliance is undoubtedly one of the best goals ever scored by an African since the inception of the beautiful game.
Toure, though, not only netted great goals but he did the simple things well and dominated games.
He timed his runs into the box to score one-touch finishes like Lampard in his pomp, while he netted tap-ins like an old-school poacher. In addition, the Ivorian dispatched penalties with a swagger and unflinching composure of someone who knew he was different class.
He was rewarded with his second league title in England but that wasn’t enough to outdo a remarkable Uruguayan who had one of the best individual seasons in top flight history.
Suarez scored a staggering 31 goals and assisted 12 times to deliver arguably the Premier League’s most elite performance by any player. His tally matched then-record of Alan Shearer (1995/96) and Cristiano Ronaldo (2007/08) and he achieved that tally having played fewer games than the pair. Mohamed Salah, who was to break this record with 32 goals in 17/18, achieved it in 36 games.
The ex-Ajax frontman, though, missed the opening five games of the campaign, so his final tally which came in just 33 fixtures, truly emphasises the enormity of his achievement.
The measure of how Brendan Rodgers’ side heavily relied on the complete forward is laid bare in the fact six of their losses came in games in which the prolific attacker didn’t contribute by either scoring or setting up a teammate.
Interestingly, only Steven Gerrard (with 13 assists) prevented the South American from enjoying a clean sweep of the division’s individual honours.
Suarez netted three hat-tricks (he scored four times against Norwich City) in that campaign and became the fastest player to hit 20 goals, a feat he reached in 15 games. His final tally of 31 made him the first player since the legendary Ian Rush in 86/87 to score 30 goals or more for Liverpool in a league campaign (this achievement was matched by Salah in 2018).
Notably, though, the South American and African wideman’s figure came in 38 games, as opposed to 42 for the revered Anfield legend.
While Toure’s campaign was sensational, the magnitude of Suarez’s is realised when you compare the technical quality of Man City and Liverpool at the time.
Top 10 African transfers that never happened:
— Ed Dove (@EddyDove) April 19, 2020
🇬🇭Appiah to Spurs
🇿🇦 Radebe to United
🇨🇮 Yaya to Arsenal
🇳🇬 Taiwo to Bayern
🇩🇿 Zitouni to Real Madrid
🇪🇬 Gomaa to Blackburn
🇨🇲 Song to Liverpool
🇬🇭 Kingston to Asante Kotoko
https://t.co/U3j4psaEgn pic.twitter.com/T8H59YOhVc
The Citizens possessed some of the league’s best players and the Ivorian midfielder was simply one of many world class superstars at the Etihad. Rodgers’ troops, on the other hand, were largely average or just above average and were majorly elevated to their high standing by the Uruguayan’s genius.
Sturridge, who netted 21 league goals that season, hasn't come close to reaching that tally since. Playing with Suarez, the ex-Chelsea striker had netted 10 times in 14 league games in the second-half of 12/13 having largely toiled at Stamford Bridge before moving.
That campaign was a young Raheem Sterling’s best year in Merseyside too, with observers starting to buy in to his potential.
It’s no surprise that Liverpool really struggled after the frontman’s departure for Barcelona, ultimately finishing sixth the next season, and having to settle for a place in the Europa League.
Despite Yaya’s amazing campaign in 13/14, Suarez was in a class of his own to deliver one of the best individual seasons in Premier League history. Simply put, Toure was great but the extraordinary South American was exceptional.