Football: talented, sulphurous, Luis Suarez announces the imminent end of his epic with Uruguay

A bite, a saving stop of the hand and a lot of goals: legendary Uruguayan striker Luis Suarez has announced Monday night that he would play his last match with the Celeste on Friday against Paraguay, in his country, at the age of 37.

“Friday, it pains me to say it, will be my last match with my country's national team,” declared 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 hang up 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 for you say”.

The “Pistolero” has cracked several times when confirming his departure. After an “analysis” of the situation that took him some time, the emblematic No. 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 that he could improve on Friday night at the Centenario stadium in the capital of Uruguay, 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” to make, explained 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.

“I can leave with serenity” because “I gave everything I had,” he continued, saying he was “proud” to be his country's top scorer.

The former Atlético Madrid, FC Barcelona and Liverpool player in particular, 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.

“I am grateful to the +Maestro+” Tabarez, continued “Luisito”.

– Controversial talent –

Praised for his goal-scoring skills wherever he went, his attacking qualities have never been discussed, unlike his behavior on the pitch.

Incarnation of the Uruguayan “garra”, the anger, a national value, the native of Salto has not lost his pedals only 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, while at Liverpool, he was suspended for eight matches for using the Spanish word “negro” (black) when addressing the Frenchman Patrice Evra in a Champions League match against Manchester United.

“I made mistakes,” the center forward admitted on Monday.

On a different note, in the quarter-final of the 2010 World Cup against Ghana, he stopped a header with his hand at point-blank range, an action that was punished with a red card. An act of unfair play, 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 on Monday, where his Barcelona sidekick Lionel Messi also plays in MLS. “It was the best moment of my career.”

“For sure, I'm going to complain again today because I cried, when I told myself not to cry, but it was impossible.”

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