Barcelona forward Luis Suarez has revealed who he would name as the world’s greatest player, and it may surprise few that he has plumped for his teammate, Lionel Messi.
Speaking in the United States, where Barca are competing in a pre-season tournament, the Uruguayan forward was questioned on whether he or someone else was the best player in the world, according to L’Equipe.
The ex-Liverpool star confirmed that he was ‘not the best’, before naming Messi as his pick for the world’s greatest.
“Do you know who the best is?” the 28-year-old retorted, in a moment that was shared on Barcelona’s official Twitter feed, “Messi!”
Who is the best player? This is Luis Suarez’s answer #tourFCB https://t.co/OdemSlXzty
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) July 21, 2015
The two dovetailed magnificently last season—Suarez’s first in La Liga—to fire Luis Enrique’s side to a magnificent treble.
The duo, along with Brazil superstar Neymar, forged a magnificent forward line, impressing with their movement, their creativity and their mutual understanding.
Suarez took to Spanish football almost immediately, scoring 16 goals and contributing 14 assists in 27 appearances as Barcelona lifted the Liga BBVA title.
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Even that superb return was far inferior to Messi though, who capped his 38 outings with an astonishing 43 goals and 18 assists. According to Who Scored, the Argentine forward was also named Man of the Match on 25 occasions, a fine demonstration of his consistent excellence.
In the Champions League, he scored 10 goals and contributed five assists in 13 outings en route to Barcelona’s final triumph over Juventus.
Speaking to Sport, Suarez recently slammed those who criticised Messi, asserting that despite his brilliance, he is human after all: “The best player in the world should not receive so much criticism.
“He’s human and not [Lionel] nor anyone else likes being on the end of such unfair criticism.”