Complete Story of Luis Suarez: Club & Country
Everywhere around us, we see many talented people. Few get support from their families, professional training, a growth assisting environment, and much more. But on the other hand, most can’t even afford the minimum to grow in their interest. This is the sad reality of the world. But few people have an unstoppable mindset and hardworking nature due to which they not only improve their living but shine so bright that the world witnesses their success. Luiz Suarez, one of the best that the world has ever watched playing on the field is a true inspiration and a real-life warrior who fought the difficulties to make his way among the best attackers ever.
Where it all started:
Luis Suarez was born in Salto, Uruguay in a family of 7 siblings. He was the fourth of seven boys and one of his elder brothers Paulo Suarez was also a football player who played in El Salvador club Isidro Metapan. A big thing that changed Suarez’s life at a very small age was the separation of his mom Sandra Diaz from his father Rodolfo Suarez. He soon started working on the streets of Montevideo as a street sweeper.
It may be hard for many people to accept that the making of the greatest began on the streets as Suarez used to play and learn on the streets as well. Suarez’s struggle and dedication depict his passion for the sport despite the poverty he faced in the early days of his life.
If we take a look at his love life, things were not easy for him because of the issues the couple was facing due to far residing. Suarez started dating Sofia Balbi when he was 15 and things came far together. The Balbi family shifted to Barcelona in 2003 and Suarez decided to enhance his game to follow his girlfriend in the other region as well. Finally, the couple married in 2009 and are parents of a daughter and 2 adorable sons. He is a respectful man who did not just forget about his love after getting fame.
Club Career:
Luis Suarez is a player who has not only performed exceptionally well throughout his career but has left a legacy that is hard to be matched by any of the players of the upcoming era. Widely regarded as one of the greatest attackers of this generation, Suarez has been an unstoppable attacker from the very start of his career when he played at Sportivo Artigas. He joined Nacional at the age of 18 and played his debut match against Atletico Junior in the Copa Libertadores in May 2005. Suarez scored his first goal in September 2005 and he also played a vital role in Nacional’s victory in the 2005-06 Uruguayan League with 10 goals.
In 2007 Suarez signed a 5 year contract with Ajax. This transfer was worth 7.5 million euros and Suarez made his debut in the Champions League qualifiers. This can be considered as the development phase of a beast as Ajax ended at the second spot and Suarez scored a total of 17 goals in 33 matches. He was also named the captain for the 2009-10 League. He scored multiple goals in the campaign and proved himself as one of the most important players on the team at that time his performance during this campaign helped him on the Dutch Footballer of the Year Award.
After a great time with Ajax, Suarez decided to move to Liverpool. He signed the contract with Liverpool for 22.5 million euros making him the most expensive purchase of the club at that time. In his 5 year journey with Liverpool Suarez performed exceptionally well and he developed himself into a different player with a very promising skill set. But highs and lows are a part of every player’s career and the same happened with Suarez as well when he had a very good season with Liverpool winning the 2011 Copa America his performance was downgraded by his standards. The performance was satisfactory but the type of gameplay that’s displayed every single time was not present in the 2011-12 campaign. Suarez scored some of the most beautiful goals in the history of football during his time in Liverpool.
Complete Career Stats:
| Games | 768 |
| Goals | 471 |
| Assists | 263 |
In 2014 Suarez signed a contract with Barcelona for 5 years but the fee of the transfer is still undisclosed. However, after receiving some leaked data, it is believed to be around 82.3 million euros and this made him one of the most expensive players in the history of football. Unfortunately, his first season at the club was missed due to his involvement in some controversy and was not allowed to play until the matter was sorted out. However, after a few months, he was allowed to make appearances in friendly matches and he finally made his debut for Barcelona on the 18th of August against Club Leon. His first competitive match with Barcelona was against Real Madrid in El Clasico where he started the match with Messi and Neymar playing forward but eventually ended up losing to Real Madrid by 3-1.
He played a memorable match where he scored twice against Manchester City and won by 2-1 in the UEFA Champions League. He also played an important role in the Copa del Rey semi-finals and hit the winning goal for Barcelona in a 2-1 victory over Real Madrid. His success with Barcelona was something that will be remembered for decades and Messi, Neymar, and Suarez trio was getting more popular and loved by fans around the globe.
Luis Suarez set the bar so high that it is very difficult to witness any other player like him in the next years. His play style, aggression and energy are unmatchable and definitely, the way he played for the club and the achievements he won cannot be equalized. He is not just a good player but an emotion for uncountable fans.
After spending 6 long years with Barcelona he knew that his time for departure is coming close. In 2020 Suarez left Barcelona for Atletico Madrid, the deal was for 2 years. It was a big move for the player to play for the rivals of his old team. In the very first season, he won La Liga and was loved by everyone at the club. He brought them the league title after 7 long years and was the highest scorer of them.
Before moving to Gremio he moved to his boyhood club Nacional and played for a few months for them. Finally he made a move to Gremio where he continued with his great performances.
In 2024 the player made a surprising move by signing for Inter Miami and pairing with his long lost best friend Leo Messi along with his other old friends such as Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets. It is a big surprise for all his fans to see him play again with Messi on the pitch.
The legacy that he built in Barcelona is something that the fans still want to witness and will never forget. Indeed It wouldn’t be wrong to call Suarez one of the greatest attackers of all time in the history of football.
International Career Of Luis Suarez:
Suarez first time invited to play for the Uruguay national team in the 2007 U-20 World Cup up qualifiers. But was not allowed by his club to play but still he managed to play four matches and also scored 2 goals. We can clearly see how passionate Suarez was to play for his nation and he finally made his senior debut in 2007 against Columbia which was a 3-1 win.
After this time his performance was gold and he was named in the 23-man World Cup Squad for FIFA 2010. He scored penalties as well as he scored two crucial goals against South Korea and his spectacular performance also earned him the Man of the Match Title.
In the quarter-finals against Ghana Suarez did something that shocked the world and is still one of the most ‘badass’ move in the history of the World Cup. The match was a 1-1 tie and all hopes of winning were lost. In the last few minutes of the match, Suarez blocked a shot that was going in with his hands and committed a foul for which he was sent off and the game went to penalties.
It did not go well for Ghana and Uruguay finally won the shootout by 4-2 making their way into the semi-finals. This was actually a show-stopping moment and a lifesaver for the Uruguay national team.
In 2011 Copa America Suarez performed exceptionally well scoring goals and penalties and performing favorably for the team which helped him earn the Most Valuable Player title of the campaign (MVP). A low point office international career was seen in the 2012 Summer Olympics where Suarez was selected for the Uruguay Olympic football team but was unable to score even a single goal throughout that tournament.
After this, he was given a chance to play in the 2013 Confederation Cup in Brazil. He scored an outstanding free kick from 30 yards against Spain in their opening match. He scored twice against Tahiti in an 8-0 win which made him Uruguay’s National team all-time top goalscorer with 35 goals.
In the 2014 FIFA World Cup Suarez was the top scorer in the South American region. But there was something else in his destiny that was supposed to happen, unfortunately.
Suarez got indulged in some interdisciplinary activity on the field due to which FIFA banned him for the next 8 international matches and also from the 2015 Copa America. This was a huge loss for the Uruguayan national team and also for Suarez’s career. This was the longest ban in the history of football.
A Legend of the Game:
Luis Suarez can be undoubtedly considered one of the greatest footballers in history as the way he creates goal-scoring chances, his powerful shots, and most importantly his technicalities played an important role in his career. He is a master of nutmegging and his Liverpool fans also say that he was so good at nutmegging, that he could even nutmeg a mermaid.
Suarez is a complete legend and his skill set is something that no other player can imitate. Be it dribbling, bicycle kicks, fast run-ups, and the ability to lead Suarez is a master in everything which makes him one of the most complete players.
From working as a sweeper and playing football in the streets to coming to this level Suarez has proved that hard work pays off. His achievements and journey in Barcelona are loved by so many fans and the legendary trio of Neymar, Messi, and Suarez is something that fans still want to see together although it is not possible.
Suarez will surely be known as one of the greatest strikers in the history of the football world.
