Ex-Uruguayan striker Luis Suarez has drawn a parallel between Julian Alvarez’s current situation at Atletico Madrid and his own transfer story at Liverpool back in 2013.
According to ESPN UK, Suarez shared that he once wanted to leave Liverpool for Arsenal to play in the Champions League.
“I faced the same situation when I was at Liverpool, back in 2013, when I announced that I wanted to leave for Arsenal,” Suarez said.
“Arsenal was in the Champions League, and Liverpool wasn’t, and I wanted to leave because I wanted to play in that competition.”
Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard played a key role in getting Suarez to stay for another season. Gerrard promised that if they had a good campaign, it could lead to an even bigger transfer.
“Gerrard came to me. He convinced me to stay, telling me, ‘You can’t go to Arsenal this year; if you have a great season, and we’re going to have one, with the manager, the club, and everyone helping you, you’ll be able to go to Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, or wherever you want.’”
“‘The choice will be yours, but for this year, stay here.’”
Suarez took Gerrard’s advice to heart. He later apologized for his earlier remarks, fully committed to Liverpool, and then had the best season of his career at Anfield.
“He convinced me. I publicly apologised at the time because my earlier comments hadn’t been good; I committed myself fully to Liverpool, and within two or three games, the fans loved me.”
“It turned out to be my best season at the club.”
Suarez’s remarks come as Alvarez's future at Atletico Madrid continues to spark interest. The former Liverpool star used his story to show how a player's situation can change dramatically after just one good season.
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