Revealed: How Ancelotti Blocked Suarez’s Move To Real Madrid
Mar 22, 2017 at 10:49 AM
Back when Luis Suarez was set to leave Liverpool in 2014, the Uruguayan striker had his fair share of suitors, but it has been revealed that Real Madrid rejected the chance to take him, allowing bitter rivals Barcelona to swoop in.
Marca claim Carlo Ancelotti, who was the manager of Los Blancos at the time, opted to withdraw interest in Suarez due to the presence of Karim Benzema.
The now Bayern Munich boss believed the Frenchman to be the perfect foil for both Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale, meaning he did not need the Liverpool man in his squad.
Barca swooped in, signing Suarez for a mammoth £65m, and he has gone on to further elevate his already illustrious career in Catalunya.
Nevertheless, Madrid have still been a potent attacking threat during that time and Benzema has been at the forefront of much of it.
While not the most sensational of strikers, the French international has been a resounding success in the Spanish capital.
Many have tried to usurp his role and many have failed; Gonzalo Higuain was shipped off to Napoli and the returning Alvaro Morata has been condemned to the bench for much of this season.
Of course, a player of Suarez’s ilk would have been tailor-made for Zinedine Zidane’s side, however, it would have been cruel of Ancelotti to simply banish Benzema from his plans.
Sometimes, managers have to take the sensible route and while it would be lovely to have hordes of world-class strikers at your disposal, it is simply not viable. Benzema certainly owes Ancelotti some gratitude.