Suarez opens door to England switch
Manchester United could turn their attentions to Ajax’s free-scoring striker Luis Suarez, as Sir Alex Ferguson searches for another forward to lessen the burden on Wayne Rooney.
Suarez hit an incredible 35 goals in 33 games for Martin Jol’s side this campaign but it was still not enough to see Ajax claim league victory ahead of FC Twente.
And after three seasons in the Eredivisie, Suarez himself admitted that a move to a Premier League club would be tough to turn down.
He told FourFourTwo last month: “Clubs have come to Amsterdam to watch me, but as far as I know, none came in with a concrete offer.
"If I keep playing well and keep developing, they’ll come. But first I’ve got to finish this season and then there’s the World Cup.
"It’s a great competition [the Premier League]. If teams like Manchester United, Chelsea, and Arsenal come to talk, we’ll talk. It would have be a very attack minded club which suits my game. But to be honest, my lifelong dream is to play for Barcelona."
Goals have flowed for Suarez this season with an emphatic 49 in all competitions, including six European strikes to keep him firmly on the radar of England’s elite.
The 23-year-old’s strike rate for Ajax over his three seasons with the club leaves a lot to be desired, with an incredible 74 goals in his 97 league matches for the Dutch giants.
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Old Trafford supremo Ferguson would be particularly keen to add the forward to his ranks to reduce the weight on the shoulders of Wayne Rooney, with the hunt for further contributors in front of goal a priority this summer after fellow forwards Dimitar Berbatov and Michael Owen struggled.
Karim Benzema and David Villa are both strongly rumoured to be high on United's shopping list, with Suarez also featuring prominently should bids fail for Ferguson’s prime targets.
Ajax - and former Spurs - boss Jol recently revealed that his former employers Tottenham had made an approach for the prolific goal-getter.
"[Tottenham chairman] Daniel Levy recently approached me to talk about Luis, but I told him that they can't afford him. He wasn't too happy when I said that," he told De Pers.
"However, I know that Luis wouldn't leave Ajax for a club like Tottenham anyway. He will only leave us if the opportunity comes up to join one of Europe's best teams. He has developed into one of the leaders of our team."
By Joe Brewin
Gregg Davies is the Chief Sub Editor of FourFourTwo magazine, joining the team in January 2008 and spending seven years working on the website. He supports non-league behemoths Hereford and commentates on Bulls matches for Radio Hereford FC. His passions include chocolate hobnobs and attempting to shoehorn Ronnie Radford into any office conversation.