Luis Suárez: "Sporting and the national team play very similarly"

Luis Suárez is currently enjoying the best form of his career, leading the league in scoring as the World Cup approaches. He is widely expected to be Néstor Lorenzo's starting striker for the Colombian national team.

The forward, who has already netted 33 goals for his club, hopes to maintain his excellent form leading up to the tournament. Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, he revealed the secret to his success: "My maturity and mindset have changed. When I first joined the national team, I thought I was mentally prepared to contribute. Now, I have a more mature and different mentality."

Discussing the Colombian national team, Suárez emphasized the importance of having technically gifted teammates like James, Juanfer, and Luis Díaz, believing that on-field understanding is more crucial than tactical formations.

"For me, it's very comfortable to have players with good feet. It's always great to have players like James, Luis Díaz, Juanfer, who, for me as a striker, are perfect for delivering that final pass," he explained, adding that "despite tactical changes, the most important thing is how you understand your teammates."

The striker also highlighted that the similarities in playing style between his club and the national team facilitate his adaptation: "Within football, it's very similar in many phases of the game. We play very similarly at Sporting and with the national team."

When asked about his preference for playing as a lone striker or with a partner upfront, Suárez remained indifferent: "It doesn't matter to me whether I play with one teammate or with more players behind me. The important thing is to analyze the opponent well and, from those tactical setups and teammates, extract the best version of ourselves and win games. What I personally like takes a backseat, because the important thing is how we play to always achieve victory."

Regarding his future and alleged interest from Premier League clubs, the Colombian declined to comment: "I can't answer that; I'm focused on the club and what's next with the national team."

Despite a heavy workload of minutes (3,317), Suárez assures that his playing time is managed internally with the club to ensure he is in top condition for every match: "I have little rotation due to a teammate's injury [Ioannidis], but I work to be at my best in every game, and with the club, we organize the issue of minutes played. This is managed internally to ensure I'm performing well in matches."