Sunday, 29 September 2024
Sunday, 29 September 2024
An eventful career filled with magical moments and a few biting controversies came to an end on September 2 as Uruguay’s top goalscorer Luis Suarez retired from football.
"Friday will be my last match with my country's national team," an emotional “El Pistolero” told a press conference.
The 37-year-old, who has 142 caps for his country, made his international debut in 2007 and was a key member of the squad that reached the FIFA 2010 World Cup semi final and won the Copa America a year later.
The Uruguayan legend made his international debut on February 8, 2007, in a 3-1 victory over Colombia.
Here’s a look back on the career of a striker who was always in the spotlight for either controversies or his prolific goal scoring ability.
Helping Uruguay reach the World Cup quarter finals - 2010
Suarez headed for the World Cup determined to showcase his talents as one of the best emerging forwards in the world, and scored the winner in a group-stage victory over Mexico which took Uruguay into the second round.
His superb double strike in a 2-1 win over South Korea in the next match established him as one of the best forwards at the tournament, although a much more infamous moment was to come in the quarter-final…
The Ghana handball save - FIFA 2010
In one of the most controversial moments in World Cup history, Suarez stopped Ghana’s Dominic Adiyiah’s header using his hand in the closing stages of extra-time. Suarez was sent off the field for his action. Asamoah Gyan missed the penalty. And a red carded Suarez started wild celebrations after the miss. Suarez, supposed to be out of the field, celebrated again near the sidelines after Uruguay won the penalty shootout.
In a way, due to Suarez’s handiwork Ghana was robbed of a chance to get into the tournament's semi-finals, a first for any African nation. He was a hero to his country, but a villain to pretty much everyone else.
The first bite
Back at Ajax, the Ghana incident had meant that Suarez was now being watched all over the world, and soon after he scored his 100th goal for the club he snapped. Literally.
A bizarre bite to the shoulder of opponent PSV Eindhoven's Otman Bakkal landed him with a two-game suspension by the club and a seven-match punishment by the Dutch Football Association. He joined Liverpool Football Club.
The Copa America Champion - 2011
At the end of his first half-season at Liverpool, Suarez headed off for Argentina to play in a Copa America. Football pundits expected Uruguay to fall short to either Brazil or the hosts. They did much better than that.
With Suarez as the catalyst alongside the likes of Diego Forlan and Edinson Cavani, Uruguay swept into the final where they blew away Paraguay to win their 15th Copa crown and their first since 1995. Suarez scored four goals, including the opener in the final, and he was named the player of the tournament.
An 8 match ban at the club level
Suarez was accused of racially abusing Manchester United defender Patrice Evra in a match between Liverpool and United in October 2011.
It was a claim that Suarez denied, but after an FA panel was assembled to scan the evidence, In December, Suarez was found guilty despite the footage couldn’t confirm the bite. Despite Liverpool's full backing, he was banned for eight matches and fined £40,000.
Another vengeful bite
The Uruguayan had been excellent throughout 2012/13 for Liverpool, scoring 30 goals in 44 matches in all competitions.
In a match against Chelsea, Suarez conceded a penalty due to a needless handball. Minutes later Suarez bit the shoulder of the Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic when the pair clashed to meet a Steven Gerrard cross. The incident was missed by the referee, with Suarez staying on the pitch to score a last-gasp equaliser in a 2-2 draw.
He was later charged with violent conduct, given a 10-game suspension by the FA and even criticised by the then UK Prime Minister David Cameron.
Knocking the English out in style
There were fears before the FIFA World Cup 2014, that Suarez would miss due to an injury he initially picked up in a match against Newcastle.
He spent Uruguay's opening defeat to Costa Rica on the bench before returning to face England in Sao Paulo. Given his history with English football, it was never going to be a match which would pass off quietly. The forward notched two goals to give the Uruguayans a 2-1 win which all but knocked the English out.
But like his previous World Cup experience four years earlier, Suarez was involved in another controversy.
The Chiellini bite
Uruguay faced a must-win match against Italy with both their World Cup futures on the stake.
Minutes after he'd missed a presentable chance, Suarez copied the Ivanovic incident of 14 months earlier and bit the shoulder of Italy's Giorgio Chiellini. Again it was missed by the officials. Italy won the match and later Suarez was banned from football for four months and suspended for nine competitive Uruguay matches. It was one of the harshest punishments ever seen in football, but many agreed it was deserved.
The Barcelona transfer
A couple of weeks after his ban was announced, Liverpool agreed a fee to sell Suarez, who at the time was banned from even entering any football stadium. Barcelona made the move in mid-July and influenced Suarez to issue an apology to Chiellini. Suarez received the offer, even though he was going to be unable to play for his new club until late October.
The Messi-Suarez bond
Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi struck up a close friendship and a destructive on-field partnership during six seasons together at Barcelona.
There is no footballer in the world who has assisted Lionel Messi more often than Luis Suárez. The Uruguayan provided 47 assists for the Argentine in the six years that they spent together at FC Barcelona, where they displayed great chemistry from the first time they stepped onto the pitch as teammates. Messi set up 39 Suárez goals over those years and the pair combined for a total of 478 goals during their time together at the Camp Nou. They lifted 13 trophies together, including four LaLiga Santander titles and one Champions League.
The duo reunited at Inter Miami in Major League Soccer, when the Beckham owned club signed the Uruguayan before the start of the 2024 season.
Ever since, he has been the best player in MLS for the first half of the season, carrying a Messi-less Miami through an injury crisis.
One Last Dance
Suarez has already said Inter Miami will be his last club after joining the Major League Soccer side last year to reunite with former Barcelona teammates Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba.
Uruguay take on Paraguay at the Centenario stadium in Montevideo on Friday in the South American qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup before facing Venezuela four days later. It will be Suarez’s last match for Uruguay.
