His fingers made the response to the dancing feet, the daring body swerves, the imperishable determination by which Suárez scored the first goal.

Magical, indeed. It was almost as if Lionel Messi had moved to Liverpool, particularly the cunning way Suárez flicked the ball between the legs of Jonas Olsson before darting around the defender and, too swift for two more West Brom men, finished off his goal.

Suárez’s explanation for seeking a move during the summer break was that, at 26, he was desperate to play in the Champions League. Arsenal is in that competition, Liverpool is not.

By implication, Liverpool’s response was “Luis, you want European soccer, we want European soccer, get your head down and get us there.”

Apart from his intricate footwork, Suárez used his head twice on Saturday. His second goal was an incredible header, powered from 17 yards and generating a speed worked out by computer technology to be 38 miles, or 61 kilometers, per hour, by the time it entered the net.

And to round off his hat trick, Suárez leaped higher than any West Brom defender to guide another header home.

Those who know the way Suárez trains are not surprised that Liverpool kept him, despite the insult of his attempted summer defection. It will not shock those insiders, either, if he turns on his magic this Saturday when Liverpool travels to Arsenal for a game right at the very top of the Premier League.