LUIS SUAREZ INTERVIEW WITH JAMIE CARRAGHER: I want to be remembered for winning trophies and scoring goals... not just for the bad things I've done
By JAMIE CARRAGHER FOR THE DAILY MAIL
PUBLISHED: 20:59 GMT, 12 February 2016 | UPDATED: 01:43 GMT, 13 February 2016
It's a quiet morning at Barcelona’s new Ciutat Esportiva training ground but two old friends are about to be reunited. LUIS SUAREZ has become the hottest striker in world football and Sportsmail’s JAMIE CARRAGHER has travelled to Spain to find how his former Liverpool team-mate has done it.
Suarez courted controversy during his time in the Barclays Premier League but since his £75million move from Anfield in July 2014, his form has gone to another level and the MSN partnership of Lionel Messi, Suarez and Neymar is being called one of the greatest forward lines of all time. They scored 137 goals in 2015.
This is Suarez’s first major interview with a British newspaper since he helped Barcelona win five trophies during 2015 and, as soon as he enters the media lecture theatre, he looks noticeably relaxed and happy. DOMINIC KING and PETE JENSON made notes as the conversation unfolded...
Suarez is one of the hottest striker's in football and sat down with Carragher for an exclusive interview
+36
Carragher and Suarez grin and shake hands as they catch up at Barcelona's Ciutat Esportiva training ground
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Suarez bends over with laughter during his chat with Carragher as the pair reminisced over some great games
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Sportsmail's Dominic King (right) and Pete Jenson (left) listened in as Suarez discussed his incredible career
WHEN SUAREZ MET CARRAGHER
I would only return to the Premier League to play for Liverpool, insists Suarez
Lionel Messi and Neymar 'took it as a sign' I was joining Barcelona to help and not compete with them, reveals Suarez
Pressure of being Liverpool's main man, conquering Europe and worshipping Batistuta - Suarez's 10 best quotes
CARRAGHER: So what’s your record for Barcelona? 61 goals in 77 games. Not many defenders are stopping you scoring. But do you remember a charity game at Anfield last March? It was a 2-2 draw and the centre half had you in his pocket…
SUAREZ: (laughs) Well, we were playing for the charity. You were playing serious! Always serious!
CARRAGHER: I’m just pointing that out! When you turned up at Liverpool (in January 2011) it was already clear you were a top player but in five years you have become the best centre-forward in the world. What have you improved? What did you decide you needed to get better at?
SUAREZ: It was a dream to arrive at Liverpool but I never wanted to just settle for what I had achieved. I wanted more. I played for Liverpool alongside Stevie (Gerrard) and you and that was incredible but then I went on to have a lot more responsibility and even bigger clubs were interested in me. My attitude was always to keep growing as a player.
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Suarez jumps for joy after scoring for Barcelona - the forward has netted 61 goals in 77 games for the club
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Suarez loved playing alongside Carragher but never wanted to settle and thrived for more and more success
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Carragher was quick to remind Suarez he failed to get the better of him during a charity game in March 2015
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Suarez remains one of Liverpool's greatest players of the Premier League era after three years at Anfield
CARRAGHER: When you were at Liverpool, people used to say: ‘If we get back into the Champions League, Luis will stay.’ But I’d say: ‘No - never mind playing in the Champions League, he should be winning it.’ It wasn’t about you just playing a few games in the competition. It was about you getting that medal.
SUAREZ: Yes. That’s the mentality - don’t just play it, win it. My desire at Liverpool was to help get the club playing in the elite because they had been five years without it. We used to talk about it in the dressing room. If Liverpool are not in the Champions League, it is difficult to get the best players to come to the club. That’s why for me to come to Barcelona there had to be that opportunity to not just play the tournament but to win it.
CARRAGHER: I remember being in Berlin last June when you scored the second goal against Juventus. That was the moment you proved why it was right to move.
SUAREZ: You just can’t believe how quickly things happen in football and the way life turns. I went from being the bad guy, the worst player who gets all the criticism, to being the player who makes the difference and scores the important goals. There is always a chance to get even and I’m proud of the fact that for all the blows I always got back up again. That’s what makes me most content.
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Suarez fires the ball into the back of the net against Juventus during last season's Champions League final
CARRAGHER: You think of players who have come to Barcelona and maybe been similar to you: Alexis Sanchez is a good example. He’s a great player but he found it difficult here because of the position. What have you found about adapting to life at Barcelona? Did you worry about fitting in?
SUAREZ: (big sigh) Yes. At first I didn’t think I was going to fit into Barcelona’s way of playing. There was a lot of tiki-taka and I was thinking that without a lot of space to play in, I’d find it more difficult. I worried about that. But the help of my team-mates and the fact Luis Enrique ended up putting me in the No 9 position meant I felt more comfortable. I’ve got a magnificent relationship with Leo (Messi) and Ney (Neymar). They drive the team, with Andres Iniesta as well - what a player. You know if you have a good relationship with them off the pitch it will be that way on the pitch too. They took it as a sign that I had come to help them, not to compete with them.
CARRAGHER: I’ll be honest. When you first left Liverpool I thought that you would end up playing on the right wing, which is not your best position. How did the change happen so you and Messi switched places?
SUAREZ: The coach made the decision. When we started off, I did not feel comfortable on the right and Leo didn’t feel as comfortable. So there was a game against Ajax in the Champions League, where we said we would try to change it to see how it worked. We felt comfortable and we decided to stay that way. The coach was completely in agreement because that was what he wanted to make sure that we all felt as comfortable as possible.
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Suarez admits he doubted whether he would fit into Barcelona's style of play after joining for £75million in 2014
Suarez also praised Andres Iniesta with driving the team forward after a sensational year for the La Liga side
CARRAGHER: It’s interesting you say that. I was in Camp Nou when you beat Valencia 7-0 in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final. You scored four, Messi scored three. Neymar misses a penalty and a few chances but he is celebrating your goals as if he has scored them himself…
SUAREZ: The same happens to me when I don’t score goals. Honestly, I couldn’t be happier. It’s all natural, you know? We don’t sit there and plan it beforehand. Everything you see comes from inside. People don’t see it but inside the dressing room we laugh and joke a lot so it’s not just for the cameras. It’s the way things are off the pitch too. We are happy for each other, it is all natural. I’m not envious of Leo or Ney. Why would I be? If there is envy in the dressing room, you know it’s only going to affect results.
I know what my strengths are and what theirs are and what the three of us do is play for the good of the team. We realise that Leo is the best and we play so that Barcelona win trophies. There is no envy between us three. There have been cases in the past where some players have fought or argued among themselves and there has been some envy and the team has suffered because of it. That’s not going to happen now.
CARRAGHER: So you have played in Uruguay, in Holland with Groningen and Ajax and in the Premier League with Liverpool. Now here. What is unique about Barcelona? What makes it special?
SUAREZ: I’d have to say I enjoy myself a lot more, really. I don’t feel so much responsibility as I did in other teams. It felt sometimes at Ajax and Liverpool that it had to be me. Now, every time I go out on to the pitch, I enjoy myself and laugh. I have gone through too many difficult times in my career and I don’t want to keep thinking about them.
That’s why, right now, I just want to enjoy every minute. I never imagined I would be playing with these players in the best team in the world. At Liverpool I enjoyed it a lot. I laughed a lot. We laughed a lot, didn’t we? But, at the same time, I felt a lot of responsibility. Perhaps that affected me the wrong way sometimes.
CARRAGHER: You had more responsibility at Liverpool because you had Carragher at the back! I bet you don’t try to nutmeg Gerard Pique the way you used to do me every day!
SUAREZ: (laughs and nods head) No… But I try….
Suarez was the main man at both Ajax (left) and Liverpool, often carrying much of the pressure to find the net
CARRAGHER: You mention the problems in the past. What I think is most impressive is that nobody is talking about them now because of all the brilliant football. Is that what drives you on? To make sure that people just remember Luis Suarez the great player, the footballer?
SUAREZ: Yes, that’s what I want people to remember. I know that they will remember the bad things that I have done and I can’t change that but I want to be remembered for the good things - for winning the Champions League, for winning five of the first six trophies at Barcelona. I could win another Champions League and I want to go on making history. It goes back to the feeling of more responsibility at Liverpool. I felt I had to suffer more to not be criticised but here the responsibility falls on others too and I can enjoy it more.
CARRAGHER: Is that why not winning the Premier League really affected you? I remember you away at Crystal Palace crying after the game.
SUAREZ: That hurt. That hurt so much. We were so desperate to win it. I knew we had a unique opportunity and we were playing so well. It was that desire to get more goals against Crystal Palace that let them back into it and killed us. I knew when we drew that game the league was lost. Everyone was sick. We spoke about you in the dressing room during that run-in, you know. You had played for 17 years then, 12 months out, we came so close. How did it feel for you watching?
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Suarez acknowledges his past misdemeanours but hopes he will be remembered for what he has achieved
+36
Suarez was distraught as Liverpool's title hopes were all but ended at Selhurst Park back in May 2014
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Suarez was in tears and had to be consoled by Steven Gerrard after Crystal Palace pegged Liverpool back 3-3
CARRAGHER: It was difficult, really. My son was going to every game and of course you want them to win for him, for your family and friends, for the club. Then, on the other hand, I was thinking I would be remembered as the man who left a year too early if they won it.
By JAMIE CARRAGHER FOR THE DAILY MAIL
PUBLISHED: 20:59 GMT, 12 February 2016 | UPDATED: 01:43 GMT, 13 February 2016
It's a quiet morning at Barcelona’s new Ciutat Esportiva training ground but two old friends are about to be reunited. LUIS SUAREZ has become the hottest striker in world football and Sportsmail’s JAMIE CARRAGHER has travelled to Spain to find how his former Liverpool team-mate has done it.
Suarez courted controversy during his time in the Barclays Premier League but since his £75million move from Anfield in July 2014, his form has gone to another level and the MSN partnership of Lionel Messi, Suarez and Neymar is being called one of the greatest forward lines of all time. They scored 137 goals in 2015.
This is Suarez’s first major interview with a British newspaper since he helped Barcelona win five trophies during 2015 and, as soon as he enters the media lecture theatre, he looks noticeably relaxed and happy. DOMINIC KING and PETE JENSON made notes as the conversation unfolded...
Suarez is one of the hottest striker's in football and sat down with Carragher for an exclusive interview
+36
Carragher and Suarez grin and shake hands as they catch up at Barcelona's Ciutat Esportiva training ground
+36
Suarez bends over with laughter during his chat with Carragher as the pair reminisced over some great games
+36
Sportsmail's Dominic King (right) and Pete Jenson (left) listened in as Suarez discussed his incredible career
WHEN SUAREZ MET CARRAGHER
I would only return to the Premier League to play for Liverpool, insists Suarez
Lionel Messi and Neymar 'took it as a sign' I was joining Barcelona to help and not compete with them, reveals Suarez
Pressure of being Liverpool's main man, conquering Europe and worshipping Batistuta - Suarez's 10 best quotes
CARRAGHER: So what’s your record for Barcelona? 61 goals in 77 games. Not many defenders are stopping you scoring. But do you remember a charity game at Anfield last March? It was a 2-2 draw and the centre half had you in his pocket…
SUAREZ: (laughs) Well, we were playing for the charity. You were playing serious! Always serious!
CARRAGHER: I’m just pointing that out! When you turned up at Liverpool (in January 2011) it was already clear you were a top player but in five years you have become the best centre-forward in the world. What have you improved? What did you decide you needed to get better at?
SUAREZ: It was a dream to arrive at Liverpool but I never wanted to just settle for what I had achieved. I wanted more. I played for Liverpool alongside Stevie (Gerrard) and you and that was incredible but then I went on to have a lot more responsibility and even bigger clubs were interested in me. My attitude was always to keep growing as a player.
+36
Suarez jumps for joy after scoring for Barcelona - the forward has netted 61 goals in 77 games for the club
+36
Suarez loved playing alongside Carragher but never wanted to settle and thrived for more and more success
+36
Carragher was quick to remind Suarez he failed to get the better of him during a charity game in March 2015
+36
Suarez remains one of Liverpool's greatest players of the Premier League era after three years at Anfield
CARRAGHER: When you were at Liverpool, people used to say: ‘If we get back into the Champions League, Luis will stay.’ But I’d say: ‘No - never mind playing in the Champions League, he should be winning it.’ It wasn’t about you just playing a few games in the competition. It was about you getting that medal.
SUAREZ: Yes. That’s the mentality - don’t just play it, win it. My desire at Liverpool was to help get the club playing in the elite because they had been five years without it. We used to talk about it in the dressing room. If Liverpool are not in the Champions League, it is difficult to get the best players to come to the club. That’s why for me to come to Barcelona there had to be that opportunity to not just play the tournament but to win it.
CARRAGHER: I remember being in Berlin last June when you scored the second goal against Juventus. That was the moment you proved why it was right to move.
SUAREZ: You just can’t believe how quickly things happen in football and the way life turns. I went from being the bad guy, the worst player who gets all the criticism, to being the player who makes the difference and scores the important goals. There is always a chance to get even and I’m proud of the fact that for all the blows I always got back up again. That’s what makes me most content.
+36
Suarez fires the ball into the back of the net against Juventus during last season's Champions League final
CARRAGHER: You think of players who have come to Barcelona and maybe been similar to you: Alexis Sanchez is a good example. He’s a great player but he found it difficult here because of the position. What have you found about adapting to life at Barcelona? Did you worry about fitting in?
SUAREZ: (big sigh) Yes. At first I didn’t think I was going to fit into Barcelona’s way of playing. There was a lot of tiki-taka and I was thinking that without a lot of space to play in, I’d find it more difficult. I worried about that. But the help of my team-mates and the fact Luis Enrique ended up putting me in the No 9 position meant I felt more comfortable. I’ve got a magnificent relationship with Leo (Messi) and Ney (Neymar). They drive the team, with Andres Iniesta as well - what a player. You know if you have a good relationship with them off the pitch it will be that way on the pitch too. They took it as a sign that I had come to help them, not to compete with them.
CARRAGHER: I’ll be honest. When you first left Liverpool I thought that you would end up playing on the right wing, which is not your best position. How did the change happen so you and Messi switched places?
SUAREZ: The coach made the decision. When we started off, I did not feel comfortable on the right and Leo didn’t feel as comfortable. So there was a game against Ajax in the Champions League, where we said we would try to change it to see how it worked. We felt comfortable and we decided to stay that way. The coach was completely in agreement because that was what he wanted to make sure that we all felt as comfortable as possible.
+36
Suarez admits he doubted whether he would fit into Barcelona's style of play after joining for £75million in 2014
Suarez also praised Andres Iniesta with driving the team forward after a sensational year for the La Liga side
CARRAGHER: It’s interesting you say that. I was in Camp Nou when you beat Valencia 7-0 in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final. You scored four, Messi scored three. Neymar misses a penalty and a few chances but he is celebrating your goals as if he has scored them himself…
SUAREZ: The same happens to me when I don’t score goals. Honestly, I couldn’t be happier. It’s all natural, you know? We don’t sit there and plan it beforehand. Everything you see comes from inside. People don’t see it but inside the dressing room we laugh and joke a lot so it’s not just for the cameras. It’s the way things are off the pitch too. We are happy for each other, it is all natural. I’m not envious of Leo or Ney. Why would I be? If there is envy in the dressing room, you know it’s only going to affect results.
I know what my strengths are and what theirs are and what the three of us do is play for the good of the team. We realise that Leo is the best and we play so that Barcelona win trophies. There is no envy between us three. There have been cases in the past where some players have fought or argued among themselves and there has been some envy and the team has suffered because of it. That’s not going to happen now.
CARRAGHER: So you have played in Uruguay, in Holland with Groningen and Ajax and in the Premier League with Liverpool. Now here. What is unique about Barcelona? What makes it special?
SUAREZ: I’d have to say I enjoy myself a lot more, really. I don’t feel so much responsibility as I did in other teams. It felt sometimes at Ajax and Liverpool that it had to be me. Now, every time I go out on to the pitch, I enjoy myself and laugh. I have gone through too many difficult times in my career and I don’t want to keep thinking about them.
That’s why, right now, I just want to enjoy every minute. I never imagined I would be playing with these players in the best team in the world. At Liverpool I enjoyed it a lot. I laughed a lot. We laughed a lot, didn’t we? But, at the same time, I felt a lot of responsibility. Perhaps that affected me the wrong way sometimes.
CARRAGHER: You had more responsibility at Liverpool because you had Carragher at the back! I bet you don’t try to nutmeg Gerard Pique the way you used to do me every day!
SUAREZ: (laughs and nods head) No… But I try….
Suarez was the main man at both Ajax (left) and Liverpool, often carrying much of the pressure to find the net
CARRAGHER: You mention the problems in the past. What I think is most impressive is that nobody is talking about them now because of all the brilliant football. Is that what drives you on? To make sure that people just remember Luis Suarez the great player, the footballer?
SUAREZ: Yes, that’s what I want people to remember. I know that they will remember the bad things that I have done and I can’t change that but I want to be remembered for the good things - for winning the Champions League, for winning five of the first six trophies at Barcelona. I could win another Champions League and I want to go on making history. It goes back to the feeling of more responsibility at Liverpool. I felt I had to suffer more to not be criticised but here the responsibility falls on others too and I can enjoy it more.
CARRAGHER: Is that why not winning the Premier League really affected you? I remember you away at Crystal Palace crying after the game.
SUAREZ: That hurt. That hurt so much. We were so desperate to win it. I knew we had a unique opportunity and we were playing so well. It was that desire to get more goals against Crystal Palace that let them back into it and killed us. I knew when we drew that game the league was lost. Everyone was sick. We spoke about you in the dressing room during that run-in, you know. You had played for 17 years then, 12 months out, we came so close. How did it feel for you watching?
+36
Suarez acknowledges his past misdemeanours but hopes he will be remembered for what he has achieved
+36
Suarez was distraught as Liverpool's title hopes were all but ended at Selhurst Park back in May 2014
+36
+36
Suarez was in tears and had to be consoled by Steven Gerrard after Crystal Palace pegged Liverpool back 3-3
CARRAGHER: It was difficult, really. My son was going to every game and of course you want them to win for him, for your family and friends, for the club. Then, on the other hand, I was thinking I would be remembered as the man who left a year too early if they won it.
