and gave the fans a quick wave They were ready for this Champions League Final and so was he Hard times make you appreciate the good times that had been Luis’s motto over the past year After all the anger the tears the headlines and the four-month suspension he had bounced back better than ever There was nothing he could do about his mistakes in the past except try to learn from them He had shut out all the distractions and focused on only two things football and family Now having already won the Spanish league title and the Spanish Cup he was ninety minutes away from completing an amazing Treble Back in the dressing room Dani Alves turned the music up loud and the players tried their best to relax Luis walked over to the far side where the Suárez 9 shirt was hanging He had worn that name and number plenty of times but it had never looked better than it did now He looked up at the countdown timer high on the wall less than fifteen minutes to go He put on the shirt pulled up his socks and slotted in a tiny pair of shin pads Their opponents Juventus 12 LUIS SUÁREZ
would play a physical style but Luis had never liked big bulky shin pads He could handle the kicks Dani throw me the tape he called Do I work for you now Dani replied laughing Just because you score the goals you think you run the place Luis had quickly built good friendships within the Barcelona squad For the first time since leaving Uruguay he was surrounded by teammates who spoke Spanish and that had certainly helped him to settle in quickly He still had to pinch himself to believe that he was scoring goals alongside a magician like Lionel Messi The referee knocked on the dressing-room door It was time Luis finished putting the tape round his wrist jumped to his feet and joined in the quick high fives As they headed for the tunnel he felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see Xavi waiting with some final words of advice Stay calm out there They know all about your temper and they’ll be trying to wind you up Play your game and ignore them We need you 13 EL PISTOLERO
Luis nodded Many of the things he regretted most in his football career were related to reckless moments on the pitch He just needed to win every game and sometimes he went too far Don’t worry I won’t let you guys down he added with a serious face Then a grin broke out After the game it’ll just be my goals that people are talking about For most of his teammates this was yet another Champions League Final But it was Luis’s first and he was shaking with a combination of nerves and excitement The atmosphere was incredible the anthem the fans the perfect pitch It was like no other game he had ever played As he passed the ball around in a little triangle with Messi and Neymar he had no doubts about the result of the game With all their star players how could they not score three or four goals He placed the ball in the centre circle He would be getting the first touch of the final When the whistle blew for kick-off Luis felt like he could run all day Barcelona took an early lead and Juventus equalised in the second half but Luis struggled to 14 LUIS SUÁREZ
find his best form Was it just the big occasion that was getting to him He worked hard but nothing was falling for him With twenty-five minutes to go he even feared that he might be substituted Clapping his hands he urged his teammates to do more saying Leo let’s go Let’s make something happen One of Luis’s biggest strengths was that he never gave up and always believed that a chance would come his way From his earliest years he just knew where to be at the right moment to score goals There’s still time he told himself Things can change in a second Then it happened Messi dribbled past three Juventus defenders and Luis saw his teammate preparing to take a shot His instincts took over He wasn’t going to watch the shot As soon as Messi pulled his leg back to shoot Luis was racing towards the goal looking for a rebound Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon made the save but the ball bounced loose None of the defenders had a chance Luis was too quick Before they could move he had pounced on the ball and fired a shot into the top corner 1515 EL PISTOLERO
