Luis Suárez has previously played for Ajax, Liverpool and Barcelona. (Source: Twitter / @ Atleti)
Atlético de Madrid coach Diego Simeone said Luis Suárez’s goal record spoke for itself when the club decided to sign him and confirmed that the Uruguayan would make his debut in Sunday’s first La Liga game at home to Granada.
Suárez signed a two-year contract with Atlético on Friday after completing a free transfer from Barcelona, where he scored 198 goals in six years, but new manager Ronald Koeman encouraged him to leave.
295 – Luis Suárez ?? has participated in 295 goals in 283 games for Barcelona in all competitions (198 goals / 97 assists), registering double figures for both in each of his six seasons:
14/15 – 25/21
15/16 – 59/22
16/17 – 37/16
17/18 – 31/17
18/19 – 25/10
19/20 – 21/11Gunman. pic.twitter.com/AjDkWMARtS
– OptaJose (@OptaJose) September 21, 2020
“When the opportunity to get Suarez came up, the numbers spoke for themselves,” Simeone said at a news conference Saturday.
“Yesterday he had a long and hectic day but he trained with great enthusiasm and of course he will be on the squad. We’ll see if it starts or enters the second half. ”
Simeone has seen his fair share of forwards fail at Atlético, including big-money signings like Mario Mandzukic and Jackson Martinez.
But he is convinced that Suárez has the right attitude to succeed and hopes that he will have an impact similar to that of Radamel Falcao, Antoine Griezmann and Diego Costa.
“Since we started talking, I was convinced that this was the best place to continue to show that he can still be an important player. I have found in him what it takes to succeed in this club, enthusiasm and desire to be here, “added Simeone.
“When we had Falcao, a fit Diego Costa and a fit Griezmann, we were able to compete for all the trophies until the end. The quality of Suárez will give us internal competence and attack power.
“I hope he can continue to deliver on those historic goal counts he had in Barcelona. We are very excited to see him adapt as quickly as possible to how we want to play and that his goals will help us to continue competing as we have always done.
??? URUGUAYO, URUGUAYO, URUGUAYO!
? #AúpaAtleti pic.twitter.com/i0SLkSSNtX
– Atlético de Madrid (@Atleti) September 26, 2020
Suarez said in his presentation on Friday that Simeone had helped attract him to the club.
“The conversation I had with the coach helped motivate me to come here, the way he spoke to me convinced me even more,” said the forward.
“I wanted to get to one of the best teams in Spain and Atlético is just that, they have great players and they are always fighting at the top of the table. The kind of fans who have also motivated me to come ”.
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