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Former Liverpool striker Luis Suarez says his most "special" period as a player was at Anfield — not in Barcelona — when he thrived under Brendan Rodgers in the Premier League.
Suarez went on to play in the famous frontline that also included Lionel Messi and Neymar at the Camp Nou. But he believes his best form came at Liverpool when he fired the Reds into the title race, which they ultimately fell short in against Manchester City.
After being asked whether the version on Merseyside or in Spain was better, the Uruguayan told SPORT: "The Suarez at Liverpool in 2013 or 2014, when everything was going his way — because everything was going his way — was special.
"It's a streak, a moment, when everything clicks and you enjoy it. The Suarez at Barcelona was completely different from the Suarez at Liverpool because of the space and the role he had to fulfil.
"I always explained it: at Barcelona, I learned to play in a 10x10 meter space with one touch, something I didn’t do at Liverpool. At Liverpool, I had 40 meters to run on my own, and I had to [dribble] myself and fight for the ball.
"It was the same in Uruguay. At Barcelona, no matter where I looked, I had to get used to passing accurately. It made me evolve a lot, and the Suarez from 2014 to 2017, which were my best years at Barcelona, was also good."
In his most prolific period at Barcelona, Suarez scored 54 goals and notched 23 assists in a single season. He was the only player in the 2010s to win the La Liga Golden Boot aside from Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo.
In the 2023/24 season at Liverpool, Suarez scored 31 goals for the Reds in the Premier League.
At Liverpool and Manchester City respectively, Mohamed Salah and Erling Haaland have since beaten that number, but Suarez was banned for the first few matches of the campaign, and so he did it in fewer appearances.
Now 38, Suarez is still playing in MLS, where he plays alongside Messi, Rodrigo de Paul, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba.
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"I feel good physically," he continued. "Over the years you learn to use a series of tools that allow you to take better care of yourself to perform better.
"What you see after training (barefoot jogging) is a routine I do because it makes me feel more active during the day. Before, I was used to training for this hour and a half, then I'd go to your house, and since you'd already done your job, I'd just lie on the sofa.
"It's not that you weren't professional before, it's just that it was a different era. Like 50 years ago, times are different, but I think all these tools have improved football.
"We, the older players of today, see them as opportunities to keep improving, because they're tools that help us keep improving, and we continue to take care of ourselves and remain committed to playing football this way."
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