Barcelona appointed Ronald Koeman as their new manager two weeks ago. The Dutchman’s first big call was to inform star striker Luis Suarez he was no longer needed at the club. (Sport)
That surprised many. The Uruguayan, despite his age and injury problems, managed to score 21 goals and provide 12 assists in just 29 starts across all competitions last season.
Suarez can still be a major player and news he was available this summer alerted many clubs. Marca reported last week Premier League side Leicester City had joined Juventus, Ajax and teams from America in being interested in signing the Barcelona man.
Brendan Rodgers knows Suarez well having worked with him at Liverpool many years ago. The Uruguayan scored 61 goals and provided 32 assists in 81 games under the current Leicester boss, and a reunion could turn out to be just as successful.
However, it looks like the Foxes have missed out. Suarez is reportedly close to making a move to Italian champions Juventus and has already agreed personal terms. (Sky Italia)
The Daily Mail claims the former Liverpool star will move to Turin for just £4.4 million, less than a tenth of the £75 million Barcelona paid the Reds in summer 2014. (BBC)
That’s a fee Leicester could easily afford but the opportunity of playing in a front three alongside Cristiano Ronaldo and Paulo Dybala is never easy to turn down.
Kelechi Iheanacho fared well under Rodgers last season while the Foxes extended Jamie Vardy’s contract recently. That’s a decent enough strike force for a Europa League side but one can only wonder how good they would have been if Suarez had joined them.
Suarez and Vardy are both capable of winning games on their own against the best of sides but the Englishman will now have to be their main man yet again, which is something he is used to and has done incredibly well over the years.
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