Luis Suarez Reveals Which Striker He Told Barcelona To Sign

Luis Suarez

Getty Luis Suarez celebrates scoring for Atletico Madrid

Former Barcelona striker Luis Suarez has revealed he recommended the club sign Uruguayan striker Darwin Nunez but saw his advice ignored by the Catalan giants.

Nunez is one of Europe’s hottest young strikers and bagged a brace against Barcelona in September when Ronald Koeman’s side were beaten 3-0 by Benfica in the Champions League.

Suarez told journalist Gerard Romero he had urged Barcelona to snap up his compatriot three years ago when he was playing for Spanish side Almeria, as reported by Diario Sport.

“When he was at Almería, I said it to Barcelona,” he said. “They asked me and I said ‘take care of this one, he has very interesting things …’, but they answered ‘no, he’s at Almeria, he’s very young.’ But instead of paying now 80, 90 or 100 million, they would have paid 15 or 20.”

Nunez is reportedly wanted by a host of clubs, according to Portuguese newspaper Record. European champions Chelsea have joined a list of admirers including Atletico Madrid, Inter, AC Milan, and Paris Saint-Germain, as reported by Sport Witness.

Barcelona have also been linked with Nunez in the past. The Catalan giants targeted the striker in November 2020 as a possible replacement for Suarez at the Camp Nou, according to Sam Marsden and Moises Llorens at ESPN.

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Nunez ‘Destined For Great Things’

Nunez only joined Benfica in 2020 but could be on the move again shortly after impressing with the Portuguese side. The youngster scored 11 times in his first season at the club and already has six goals in eight appearances in 2021-22.

The striker’s agent, Edgardo Lasalvia, told FC Inter News that there is plenty of interest in his client from clubs across Europe.”

He said, “Darwin is ready to play for any team on the planet. Various top-level teams have contacted us but, for the moment, he is concentrating on continuing and growing with Benfica and with the Uruguayan national team.

Lasalvia added that Nunez is happy at Benfica currently but certainly wasn’t ruling out a future move away from the club.

“The important thing is that he is happy now and wants to repay the trust of Benfica and the affection of the people by winning a title,” he added. “We’ll discuss the transfer possibilities with the club executives if necessary, as it should be. For the moment we’re calm and happy to see him on the pitch.”


Barcelona ‘Will Be Able To Sign Stars’

Barca’s well-documented financial problems means the club will struggle to compete with Europe’s top teams in the transfer market.

However, CEO Ferran Reverter offered hope the club will be able to sign some stars next summer at a new conference following a Financial Due Diligence review by Deloitte, as reported by Mundo Deportivo.

“The first thing we have to do is our obligations. We have done a large part, the salary bill has been lowered, but we have to keep working and if that happens, of course we will be able to sign star players,” he said. “Barça is in accordance with Fair Play and from next year on, if we continue to do our homework, the players we want will be able to come.”

Barcelona could well move for a striker next summer to strengthen the attack, particularly after waving goodbye to such talents as Lionel Messi, Antoine Griezmann, and Luis Suarez.

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