The Uruguayan striker extols the team’s unity during the season’s most difficult moments
In an interview with the American sports network ESPN, FC Barcelona striker Luis Suárez said the Catalans were “one game from achieving the goal they always set at the beginning of the season.”
Suárez, of course, was referring to the La Liga title.
“We control our own destiny,” he said.
The Uruguayan made it clear that team unity is one of the big reasons Barça are right there heading into the final game of the season.
“Everything happened all at once,” Suárez said, in reference to a rough patch the team hit at one of the season’s most pivotal points. “We lost three league games in a row and were knocked out of the Champions League.”
“But,” he said, “we stayed together as a team and we never lost our confidence.”
The Champions League elimination was especially hard on the squad, he said. “It left a really bitter taste in our mouths. We deserved to go through,” he said.
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For Suárez himself, this season is turning out to be nothing short of spectacular. The Uruguayan leads the Spanish First Division in scoring with 38 goals and leads the standings for the Golden Shoe. His 81 goals since joining Barça prior to the 2014/15 season are tied for most all-time among blaugrana players hailing from the South American nation.
Through it all, Suárez has remained humble.
“You score goals thanks to your teammates,” he said. “As of late, they’ve been looking for me more so I can score.”
He continued: “I never thought I’d be a big goal scorer at Barça and I’m having a lot of fun.”
For now, though, Suárez is focused on winning Saturday at Granada and then the Copa del Rey final versus Sevilla the week after.
“Sevilla are one of the toughest teams we could face. We’re really familiar with each other and they always make things tough for us,” Suárez said.
See the full interview on ESPN FC, here.