Suarez leaving removed the belief that had built up last season.
Our party balloon was inflated to the max, stretched tight by months of poetry in motion and WE and more importantly THE PLAYERS 'believed' we'd win. They were charging onto the pitch, buoyant, focused and confident. The balloon was so big we couldn't quite get the knot tied off.
The way the season ended had already let a little bit of air out as Mourinho, then Pulis and finally Pellegrini got hold of the balloon and did that annoying thing and stretched the loose end to let some air come screeching out. Then the World Cup removed any remaining puff our key English contingent might've had to reinflate it.
But make no mistake, Suarez pulled the knitting needle out and jabbed it in. The new signings came in expecting to find the party still going on, only to see bits of burst balloon lying around the floor. The belief gone.
The new one is being blown up every week, but so far it's full of holes and is as flat as it was in the summer. Roy broke the lad with the most puff to get things going again and suddenly there was no SAS to help out, just an SOS so far unanswered.
It's time to start again from scratch. Newcastle away felt like capitulation. There was nobody even willing to give it a go. Tough fixtures can sometimes be exactly what is needed. The hardest part of any balloon is that first breath, getting it going. Time to forget about the whys and wherefores of our situation and get blowing again. Everyone. Fans, management and players together, cos balloons don't inflate themselves.