A bite, a saving hand save and a whole lot of goals: legendary Uruguayan striker Luis Suarez announced on Monday evening that he would play his last match with La Celeste on Friday against Paraguay, in his home country, at the age of 37.
“Friday will be my last match with my country’s national team,” said the player, unanimously considered one of the best centre-forwards of the 21st century, at a press conference.
Cunning, explosive and combative, even totally excessive like the day he bit the Italian Giorgio Chiellini in the middle of a World Cup match in 2014, he will put away the sky blue Uruguay jersey after a final meeting in Montevideo, in the qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup.
Rumours about his future have been rife since the Uruguayan Football Federation (AUF) called a press conference with a title that left no room for doubt: “Luis Suarez has something to tell you”. The “Pistolero” has repeatedly cracked when confirming his departure. After an “analysis” of the situation that took him some time, the iconic number 9 considered that “it was the right time”.
He will retire as the Celeste’s top scorer, with 69 goals in 142 caps, a mark he could improve on Friday night at the Centenario stadium in the Uruguayan capital, Montevideo. Goals that he celebrates with two fingers in the air, managing to propel the ball into the back of the net even from improbable angles, hence his nickname.
“The decision was not easy, but (I made it) with complete serenity,” said Suarez, promising to enter the field one last time “with the same enthusiasm” that has driven him since his debut with the national team 17 years ago. The former Atlético Madrid, FC Barcelona and Liverpool player, among others, took his first steps in the national team under the leadership of coach Oscar Washington Tabarez (2006-2021), alongside the two other illustrious Uruguayan strikers of this century, Diego Forlan and Edinson Cavani.
Controversial talent
Praised for his goal-scoring skills wherever he went, his attacking qualities were never questioned, unlike his behavior on the pitch. The embodiment of the Uruguayan “garra”, the aggressiveness, a national value, the Salto native didn’t lose his cool just once.
Before the Chiellini affair that earned him a suspension of several months, he had already bitten two opponents: Otman Bakkal in 2010 in the Dutch championship, when he played for Ajax Amsterdam, and Branislav Ivanovic in 2013 in the Premier League. In 2011, then at Liverpool, he was suspended for eight matches for having used the Spanish word “negro” (black) while addressing the Frenchman Patrice Evra in a Champions League match against Manchester United.
On another note, in the quarter-finals of the 2010 World Cup against Ghana, he stopped a header with his hand at close range, a gesture punished with a red card. A purely unsportsmanlike act, but one that paid off, since the Ghanaians missed the penalty awarded and then lost on penalties. Enough to become the most popular footballer in the small South American country, twice world champion.
On a purely sporting level, with the Uruguay jersey, Suarez can boast of a Copa America won in Argentina in 2011, a trophy that holds a special place in his heart. “I wouldn’t trade the Copa America title for anything in the world,” said the current Inter Miami striker in MLS on Monday. “It was the best moment of my career.”
- RMC Sport
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