Bielsa explains why Suárez didn’t make the Uruguay squad

It’s easy to get lost in the numbers. Is it 400? Or maybe 450? Actually, is it closer to 500?

Where did all these goals come from? That’s the easy bit: his left foot, his right foot, his head, and a couple - dare I say it - from his hands.

Luis Suárez scores goals. So despite the fact that he ‘retired’ from international football, hosting a farewell game with fireworks and strobe lights, his absence from the roster still sparked debate.

It’s a good thing then that Bielsa of all people was on hand to explain why. Amid questions of AI and human psychology, a regular occurrence once you get used to sitting in at a Bielsa presser, came the questions on Suárez. Why wasn’t he picked? Do you two have a problem? Who is going to score the goals? Bielsa responded to them all in the way he responds to everything else: carefully.

“Suárez was willing to contribute by returning”

“When Suárez informed us, during the farewell match that was organised, that he preferred to step aside from the team, one of the reasons he stated publicly was that he wanted to help foster the development of some younger players who were alternatives in his position,” Bielsa revealed. “From that point on, Darwin Núñez, Federico Viñas and Rodrigo Aguirre were the ones who took on the role of centre-forward more regularly.”

While explaining that Suárez had said goodbye, he also admitted that the player “was willing to contribute by returning to the national team”, which he understood as “a valuable and sincere expression of intent.” However, it didn’t change his mind. Suárez was out.

And just to add more Bielsa to Bielsa’s answer, he admitted that anything he does may be a mistake: “Every decision a person makes can turn out to be a mistake, but the decisions I make are guided by nothing other than what I believe is best for the team’s sporting fortunes. Anyone who makes decisions in football exposes their choices to everyone’s opinion. I accept that, but I explain my reasons not because that makes me right, but because those are the arguments that guide me.”

If Uruguay go out at the group stage without having scored a goal, Suárez can expect a letter to arrive on his doorstep in 20 years’ time. Inside it, just three words: I’m sorry. Marcelo.

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