Luis Suarez thinks a player Manchester City let go last year has now become the “best in the world” in his position.
Pep Guardiola has always taken the stance that if a player wants to leave Man City, they can, no matter how important they may be to the Premier League club.
This has been seen on several occasions, although the Man City hierarchy did block Savinho from leaving for Tottenham this summer, despite the winger wanting to make the switch to North London to increase his chances of making the Brazil squad for the 2026 World Cup.
Last year, Guardiola allowed a key member of his treble-winning squad to depart the Etihad Stadium, and Suarez now believes the player has become the best in the world in his position.
Luis Suarez in action for Inter Miami v SE Palmeiras.
Photo by Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Luis Suarez thinks Julian Alvarez is the best striker in the world
Last summer, Man City allowed Julian Alvarez to move to Atletico Madrid as part of a massive £82m deal, despite the World Cup winner being a key part of Guardiola’s squad.
That proved to be a mistake as the Manchester club were left short of strikers throughout the first half of the 2024/25 campaign, which eventually led to City signing Omar Marmoush in January.
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This was made worse by the fact that Alvarez impressed during his first season in Madrid, with Suarez now believing that the former Man City star is the “best striker in the world”.
“The best striker in the world for me is Julián Álvarez. I have him first,” the legendary striker told Davoo Xeneize’s Kick channel.
Diego Forlan shares a similar view of the 25-year-old, who recently stated that Alvarez was better than Erling Haaland.
Julian Alvarez in action during Atletico de Madrid v Real Betis Balompie.
Photo by Denis Doyle/Getty Images
How Julian Alvarez compares to Erling Haaland
Guardiola once labelled Alvarez as an “extraordinary” player, but the legendary coach did not want to stand in the Argentina star’s way when he asked to leave last summer.
The World Cup winner would have been a very useful player for Man City to have this season and throughout the 24/25 campaign, as he can play in various forward roles, while being a different profile to Haaland.
Player Games Goals Assists Minutes
Erling Haaland 48 34 5 4042
Julian Alvarez 57 29 8 3967
Erling Haaland and Julian Alvarez’s 24/25 stats
While the Norwegian superstar is a pure striker who likes to use his physical attributes to score goals, Alvarez is a more versatile forward who is technically better and likes to play in behind the lines, as well as being lethal in the box.
The Argentina international continues to get better, and only time will tell just how big an error Man City made letting him go last summer.