Suárez tied with Messi in MLS Golden Boot race
Remember in January, when skeptics questioned whether Inter Miami made a mistake signing 37-year-old Luis Suárez? His aching knees won’t be able to handle the MLS grind, they said. He is past his prime, they declared. Think again.
Suárez, the Uruguayan forward known as “El Pistolero” (The Gunslinger) has shown in 11 MLS appearances that although he might be a bit slower, he can still be as lethal as he was at Liverpool and Barcelona. His knees are holding up just fine, so far.
Anybody who witnessed Suárez’s hat trick Saturday during a 6-2 drubbing of the New York Red Bulls could see he still has his trademark touch. It wasn’t just that he scored three goals in the span of 12 minutes, although that alone is remarkable. It was how he scored them.
For the first one, he was a bit behind Messi’s entry pass, so he twisted in mid-air and launched a scissor-kick volley from 12 yards out. The second came from an exquisite give-and-go, a perfectly timed sequence in the midst of a clot of defenders, born of many years playing alongside each other. To complete the hat trick, Messi found Suárez hovering close to goal, the way he does, and then the Uruguayan made a quick move to get around the New York goalkeeper and struck from a sharp angle.
Messi assisted on all three of Suárez’s goals. Each time, Suárez broke into a huge grin and hugged his longtime friend and scoring partner.
“Their partnership in the second half was like old times,” Inter Miami coach Tata Martino said. “When they find each other and their teammates can back them up, they are very influential in the game.”
Messi and Suárez are tied atop the MLS Golden Boot standings with 10 goals apiece. Messi’s have come in eight games, Suárez’s in 11. The dynamic duo has also combined for 17 assists, 12 for Messi, five for Suárez.
“What we saw tonight is surprising because it hasn’t been seen before in
our sport, but as a teammate and knowing Leo, nothing surprises me because that’s the quality player he is,” Suárez said. “As a teammate, it’s different playing on the field with him because we have played together a long time, so we know each other so well, sometimes we make moves without even looking at each other. That was another plus for our team.”
Asked if there is a healthy competition between he and Messi to be the team’s leading scorer, Suárez shook his head, and replied: “No, no. It’s not like that. We played together a long time at Barcelona, and it was always like this … each helping the other. In 201516, Leo and Neymar helped me win the Golden Boot.
“The competition is to see your teammate happy and work together to win. Note that [Saturday], Leo broke a league mark with five assists, something that had not been seen before, and that shows what kind of teammate he is.”
Suarez’s performance capped a week in which he attended an NBA playoff game between the Miami Heat and the Boston Celtics, and the Miami Grand Prix at Hard Rock Stadium.
“It’s nice to have events in two to enjoy and share with family, but my focus is always on this team, from the day-to-day training to doing what we have to do to win,” Suárez said.
Suárez, a native of Salto, Uruguay, rose to fame in Europe when he signed with Dutch club Ajax in 2007. He scored 81 goals in 110 games for Ajax and then moved to the English Premier League, where Liverpool bought him for $29 million. He scored 69 goals in 110 games with Liverpool and left for
Barcelona.
He and Messi quickly formed a powerful partnership, and Suárez scored 198 goals in six seasons for the Spanish club. He won four La Liga titles, a European Golden Shoe and a Champions League trophy with Barcelona.
Suárez left Barcelona in the summer of 2020. He joined Spanish club Atlético Madrid and critics said his game was on the decline. He responded by scoring 21 goals in 32 games and was a big reason Atlético won its first La Liga title in seven years. He spent two seasons with Atletico and then moved back to Uruguay to join his boyhood team, Nacional. He led Nacional to the Primeira Division title, scored eight goals in 16 appearances over six months with the club and left for Gremio in Brazil.
Suárez said reuniting with former Barcelona teammates Messi, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba is a dream come true. His bond with Messi is especially strong.
Suárez’s wife, Sofia Balbi, whom he started dating at age 15, became good friends with Messi’s wife, Antonela Roccuzzo. His children, Delfina, Benjamin and Lautaro, have grown up with Messi’s three sons and they are in school together in Fort Lauderdale.
“It’s nice to remember the great moments we lived together in the club we all dreamed about, Barcelona, and one of the motivations for me coming here was to reunite with them,” Suárez said in his introductory press conference. “But more than anything, we are very ambitious, very professional and we are committed to showing the young, talented Inter Miami players that your age doesn’t matter — what matters is the commitment you have on and off the field.”