Luis Suarez will continue at Inter Miami, although his future isn’t quite set in stone.
The legendary striker previously joined the Major League Soccer club in December 2023. Despite his legendary status in the sport, the team was able to sign the star on a free transfer.
At the time of the deal, Suarez only signed a one-year contract with the team.
Bringing Suarez to South Florida has undoubtedly been one of the best deals of the entire MLS offseason.
While he is now 37, the forward has netted 16 goals and added five assists in 20 league games this campaign. Only Cristian Arango and Christian Benteke have managed to score more goals in MLS season than the Uruguayan.
Suarez’s success has made Miami fans wonder about his future with the club. Although his current contract is technically just for the 2024 season, there was reportedly an extra stipulation included in the deal.
Outside of the one-year agreement, there is also an option to extend Suarez’s contract for an additional season. This option has not yet been triggered though.
As Miami fans sweat, Suarez recently announced his retirement from the Uruguay national team. The striker featured against Paraguay Friday night in his last match with La Celeste. Although he did not score in the game, he hit the post with a shot as he captained the team to a 0-0 draw.
The decision to step away from Uruguay could have been seen as bad news for Miami supporters. After all, Suarez may very likely soon also retire at the club level as well. Nevertheless, Miami Herald reporter Michelle Kaufman claims otherwise.
In a recent episode of Inside Inter Miami, the newspaper’s online show about the MLS club, Kaufman stated that Suarez is not quite done with the sport. “As far as [Suarez’s] future with Inter Miami, his contract ends at the end of this season,” explained Kaufman. “He did say, ‘I want to enjoy football a little more.’ That to me is a hint that he would sign maybe one more year. [Lionel] Messi has one more year. Maybe Suarez will be able to sign for one more year.”
“They are the two best players of their national teams currently. They are among the best players in the world at this point in their careers when you look at all of their stats over all of the years. Their resumes are ridiculous. And they’re both on this [Inter Miami] team.”
“If Messi hadn’t come here, and Inter Miami were to have signed Luis Suarez, everybody would have said ‘Oh my goodness, how did they get Luis Suarez?’”
Along with giving an update on the Suarez situation, Kaufman also touched on Messi’s current injury status.
The superstar has not played for Miami since suffering an ankle issue during Copa America 2024 while with Argentina. Although Messi has remained on the sidelines for nearly eight weeks, he is expected to return soon.
The playmaker recently returned to full training with Miami during the current international break. Due to this break, the South Florida club does not play again until September 14th.
Miami will host the Philadelphia Union at this time. The goal, according to Kaufman and Miami manager Tata Martino, is to have Messi feature in this matchup. The Argentine has not played for the club in over three months.
Photo credits: IMAGO / Agencia-MexSport
