BARCELONA STAR Luis Suarez believes his on-pitch aggression is borne out of his upbringing as a child, admitting that his desire to succeed has led to “big mistakes”.
The Uruguayan has played six games for the Catalan club since joining from Liverpool while serving a ban for biting Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini at the World Cup.
Suarez, who scored his first goal for his new club against APOEL Nicosia on Tuesday, claims that some of the more positive aspects of his character do not come through in public.
“The worst thing is the temperament I have on the pitch sometimes,” he said. “It’s because nobody has ever given me anything in my life and I always try to do everything on the pitch, which sometimes makes me do big mistakes.
“And the best thing [about me], nobody can see it because it’s off the pitch where I try to be the best father in the world.”
Speaking at an Audi event, the 27-year-old says he does not know what would have become of him had he not made it as a professional footballer.
“If I hadn’t played football I don’t know what I would have chosen instead,” he reflected. “My dream was always playing football but I said sometimes, joking, that I wanted to be a singer because of my bad voice.
“But I don’t know what I could be. I cannot imagine myself [doing anything else].”
Barcelona have fallen two points behind Real Madrid since losing the first Clasico of the season in October but Suarez insists the title race will go beyond the traditional giants once again this season.
“It’s good having five or six teams among the top positions in the Spanish league standings,” he added.
“That means Spanish football is not just Real Madrid and Barcelona nowadays because there are more teams fighting up [the top], as Atletico Madrid did last year when they won the title.
“That is an extra aim for other teams [like Valencia or Sevilla], to fight with the big contenders.”
First published at 09.30
