Barcelona star joins rivals
Barcelona's Uruguayan forward Luis Suarez (left) celebrates after scoring a goal during their 54th Joan Gamper Trophy friendly match against Arsenal at the Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona on August 4, 2019.
What you need to know:
- Barcelona said that Atletico had agreed to pay six million euros for Suarez, who left his last training session in tears on Wednesday having been told over the summer that he was no longer required by new coach Ronald Koeman
- The move to Barcelona's La Liga rivals follows a failed attempt to join Juventus
Madrid
Atletico Madrid announced the signing of Barcelona forward Luis Suarez late on Wednesday, confirming the Uruguayan striker is set to continue playing in La Liga rather than joining Juventus in Italy.
Barcelona said that Atletico had agreed to pay six million euros for Suarez, who left his last training session in tears on Wednesday having been told over the summer that he was no longer required by new coach Ronald Koeman.
Since joining Barca from Liverpool in 2014, Suarez has won a host of trophies, including the 2015 Champions League and four Liga titles.
Barcelona's Uruguayan forward Luis Suarez (left) vies for the ball with Atletico Madrid's Montenegrin defender Stefan Savic during their Spanish Super Cup semi-final match on January 9, 2020, at the King Abdullah Sport City in the Saudi Arabian port city of Jeddah. Suarez has joined Atletico from Barcelona.
He leaves as the club's third highest scorer with 198 goals behind Cesar Rodriguez (232) and Lionel Messi (634).
The move to Barcelona's La Liga rivals follows a failed attempt to join Juventus.
Juve coach Andrea Pirlo disclosed last week a deal was unlikely because of delays in the Uruguayan's bid to get an Italian passport.
On Tuesday, prosecutors in Perugia said they suspected Suarez of cheating to pass his Italian language test with the aid of examiners suspected of helping him.
The exit of the 33-year-old from Camp Nou comes as Koeman attempts to reshape Barcelona.
As well as Suarez, the Dutchman has shown the exit to Arturo Vidal and Ivan Rakitic, while French defender Samuel Umtiti is also set to leave.
Spanish television channel Gol showed Suarez wiping away tears with his sleeve as he drove off after saying his last goodbyes to teammates at Barcelona's Sant Joan Despi training centre.
