How fast fortunes can change in football. A year ago, Luis Suarez was in exile, his status as the world game’s biggest bad boy firmly intact, ending his World Cup Finals in disgrace with a bite on Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini.
Now, though, the Uruguay forward is a new man, reborn by an outstanding (and troublefree) first season with his dream club, Barcelona, complete with a perfect ending of a league, cup and European treble – culminating in a crucial goal in the Champions League final against Juventus.
Suarez’s maiden campaign at the Nou Camp wasn’t always plain sailing, however. Prevented by his post-World Cup ban from making his debut until a Clasico defeat against Real Madrid in late October, he initially struggled to make a major impact as the team blundered through the autumn in unconvincing fashion.
When Barca came good in January, however, Suarez was at the heart of the revitalisation, forming an integral part of an outrageously successful forward line alongside fellow South Americans Lionel Messi and Neymar.
After scoring just once in his first eight outings for the Blaugrana, he exploded into life with three goals in four games either side of Christmas and proceeded to find the back of the net on a regular basis, eventually finishing the campaign with a more than respectable tally of 25 goals from 43 appearances.
And more than that, he developed a superb understanding with Messi and Neymar, directly assisting 20 goals and playing a key role in the creation of many more with clever and selfless movement, opening up gaps for his team-mates to exploit.
In an interview with Sport360, Suarez admits that his first season in Catalonia exceeded even his wildest expectations, smiling: “It couldn’t have gone better, to achieve what we did in my first season was a dream.”
And the crowning glory of the Champions League final in Berlin, where Suarez restored his team’s advantage over Juventus with a well-taken strike at a crucial stage of a close game midway through the second half, was a moment to cherish forever. “It was a trophy that I was desperate to win, and to do it in my first season was special,” he beams. “Of course, scoring in the Champions League final is special and something I will always remember.”
Familiar foes Cristiano Ronaldo & Lionel Messi are joined by Luis Suárez for the 14/15 “Best Player in Europe” award. pic.twitter.com/4lJBxdktrQ
— AS English (@English_AS) August 12, 2015
Elite clubs such as Barcelona can only ever provide a short amount of time to reflect upon past successes, however, and the ever-ambitious Suarez asserts that he is now fully focussed on gaining more silverware in the upcoming nine months.
“If you look at some of the players here they have won trophies season after season, and that is my aim now,” the 28 year-old says. “We enjoyed our moment last season, but now it is about a new challenge.”
Although outsiders may regard Suarez’s ample trophy haul at the end of last season as a vindication of his decision to quit Merseyside for Catalonia, the striker is clear he does not share that opinion. With his wife’s family already living in Castelldefels, a smart beach town 15 kilometres south of Barcelona, the Nou Camp was Suarez’s ideal destination for both footballing and personal reasons, and he never had any doubts about making the move.
“It was the right decision,” Suarez firmly states. “Winning trophies was a part of my decision in joining Barcelona, but also as a family we knew it was the right decision even before I won a trophy.
“I am very happy at Barcelona – I am at the best club in the world.”
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Suarez’s goalscoring and creating exploits certainly played a major role in returning Barca to their former glories, and he is proud to have struck such a fruitful understanding with Messi and Neymar so quickly. He admits that his style of play has changed as a result of being expected to provide goals as well as scoring them, but insists he is happy to take a backseat to his fellow frontmen in the goalscoring column.
“My role has changed,” he concedes. “There are so many players in this team that can score goals, and all I want to do is a good job for the team. I am privileged to be able to play with Messi and Neymar – for me it is a dream.”
Reflecting on the dramatic mid-season improvement, which saw Barca win 28 out of 30 games between early January and midMay en route to their magnificent treble, Suarez is unable to pinpoint any specific tactical changes and instead believes that growing self-belief was the key.
“We know how we can play,” he explains, “But when you hit the level you know you should be playing at, the confidence comes amongst the players, and that is when I really think we started to play as well as we can.”
Heading into the new campaign, Suarez is feeling fit and refreshed after enjoying the rarity of a long summer break. His ongoing international ban – which still has four games to run – prevented him from competing for Uruguay in this summer’s Copa America in Chile, and although he was disappointed to miss out on the tournament, he can also see the positives.
“I wanted to represent my country, but this is the first time in six years I have had a proper pre-season,” he says. “I do feel the benefit, and I feel really ready to go now.”
Barca’s biggest rivals, as always, will be Real Madrid, but Suarez was determined to avoid commenting on another eventful summer at the Bernabeu and the appointment of fellow Anfield old boy Rafa Benitez.
“I don’t need to concern myself with such things,” he adds. “They have appointed a new coach, but we will just be concentrating on ourselves.”
In the longer-term, Suarez hopes that the final chapter of his playing days will take him back to Uruguay and the club where his career began – but the bad news for defenders across Europe is that he is far from finished with Barca.
“I have always said that it is my dream to retire at Nacional,” he said, adding: “But for now that is a long way into the future. We have the chance to win even more trophies this year, and at Barcelona the aim is to win every trophy we enter.”
