In an interview with France Football magazine, the forward didn’t spare Barça and his current coach Ronald Koeman, who told him he didn’t have it.
Uruguayan Luis Suárez assured that he was very irritated by the way Barcelona let him know that he didn’t have him, that he found a club at Atlético de Madrid at the height of his ambition and that pride led him to show that he continues. are among the best in the world.
“Barcelona needed changes, I accept that, but the manners bothered me, I have always tried to be at the club level, to do my best. It is not easy to spend six years at Barcelona and at it. level that I was. I think I earned a certain respect by telling me that they no longer loved me. With pride I told myself I wanted to show that I am still worth it, “he said in an interview published last Tuesday. by France Football magazine.
The attacker did not hold back criticism on Barça and his current coach, Ronald Koeman, who told him he wasn’t counting on him.
“It bothered me that they told me I was old and that I could no longer play at the highest level, at the level of a great team. That disgusted me. If I had not done anything in a club like Barça for three or four. years. I would have understood, but every year I scored more than 20 goals. I always had good statistics, behind Leo, “said Messi.
He acknowledged that the change of town was difficult for his family, for his children who have moved away from their friends, but felt it was essential because “I wouldn’t be happy in a place where they don’t love you.”
“It is important to feel that you have the strength to overcome difficult moments. That has always been one of my characteristics: I never lower my arms, even when I go through difficult moments. That character was the reason why came team that fights for things that matter, ”he noted.
“One of the drivers was to show that you can still count on me. It’s a matter of self-love. After all these years at Barça, I wanted to show that I can be useful at the highest level, among the Spanish elite., ”he added.
Suárez dismantled the idea that in the Atlético de Madrid he trains more than in Barcelona, although he acknowledged that the intensity may be greater, but concentrated in less time.
He also pointed out that in the rojiblanco club he plays in a position where he has more freedom of movement and that in the coach, the Argentinian Diego Simeone, has found a technician who is confident in his quality as he once did Luis Enrique at Barça.
“What motivates me is that I am in a club that has not won the competition for a long time (2014) and aspires to do so. But also a club that has the same desire as me to win the Champions League (it is a finalist in 1974, 2014 and 2016). The competitive level of this club is unbelievable and is consistent with mine, my pride and my will to keep winning even though I am 34 years old, ”he said.
Suarez He wanted to show that his performance was not only responsive to the fact that he was in a club like Barça and with a teammate like Lionel Messi.
“In recent years they said it was easy to score when you play alongside Messi. Now I keep scoring and I feel that what I do is getting more value. I know what I’m worth. I didn’t score just because I played together with the best player in the world in a club like Barça. Also because of my quality, “he noted.
The Uruguayan acknowledged that he longs for his Argentinian friend, “who was a friend who went beyond the player” and “misses conversations not just about football, but also about life.”
When asked who he misses the most, if it Barcelona The Messi answered: “What is certain is not the coach, who said he was happy with the decision to let me go. Maybe Leo is longing for an everyday friend.”