Luis Suarez had never played a knockout tie in the UEFA Champions League before this season. Now he has played three of them – and in those 270 minutes he has scored four brilliant goals, all of them away from home.

He has found his true level – and in great style. In Barcelona’s 3-1 win against Paris Saint-Germain he had more shots on target than any other player (3) and only Lionel Messi went on more runs with the ball.

His two goals were stunning, and drew a simple verdict from Thierry Henry. “He is a true number nine – always available,” Henry told Sky Sports’ viewers. “Great movement, great goalscorer, great player.”

This is just what Suarez dreamed of. The chance of winning the Champions League was why he left Liverpool last summer to join Barcelona, he said in an interview published a few hours before his man-of-the-match performance in Paris.

The Uruguayan was footballer of the year in the Netherlands and England, but Ajax and Liverpool were not among Europe’s elite teams while he was there.



“The clubs I played for before didn’t really have the chance to win big European trophies – maybe a domestic league or cup at best,” Suarez told UEFA.com. He was tempted to Barca, he said, by “the allure of winning the Champions League”.

He is certainly playing his part in Barca’s challenge this season. After a two-goal blast at Manchester City in the round of 16, he was at his brilliant best in Paris. “He had a huge game,” said team-mate Neymar.

Suarez’s first goal was stunning. Played down the right by Xavi, he tricked David Luiz by playing the ball between his legs, then dribbled past Marquinhos and Maxwell in one flashing movement before scoring. Three Brazilian defenders left in his wake for Barcelona’s 400th goal in the Champions League.

His second goal came from the left side. He embarrassed Luiz again before clipping a magnificent shot into the top right-hand corner of Salvatore Sirigu’s net.

If that was a knockout blow, there will surely be many more to come from unstoppable Suarez.

Source; Goal.com