Luis Suarez has revealed that he recommended the signing of Uruguayan compatriot Darwin Nunez to former club Barcelona, during his time at Camp Nou.
The 34-year-old is currently away on international duty with Nunez, who played for Spanish second-tier outfit Almeria before joining Portuguese giants Benfica in September 2020.
Nearly two week after Nunez had scored a brace against Barcelona in Benfica's 3-0 victory in the Champions League, Suarez has claimed that he suggested the 22-year-old to the Catalan club's hierarchy in the final few years of his time in southern Spain.
Speaking to journalist Gerard Romero through his program on Twitch, Jijantes, Suarez said: "When [Nunez] was at Almeria, I said it at Barcelona. They asked me and I said, 'take care of this one, he has very interesting things...', but they replied 'no, he's in Almeria, he's very young'.
"But instead of paying now £80m, £90m or £100m, they would have paid £15m or £20m. Of course, he recognises that not to be a starter then. To have him as a substitute for [me], but he is a player who needs to enhance."
Nunez, who has attracted interest from the likes of Manchester City, Manchester United and Bayern Munich, scored 16 league goals in 32 appearances for Almeria before joining Benfica, where he has found the net 20 times in 52 appearances across all competitions.
Oliver Thomas
