Ronald Koeman admits regrets over Luis Suarez's transfer from Barcelona
Ronald Koeman has openly admitted that it would have been better if Luis Suarez joined Juventus this summer.
The former Barcelona striker went on to sign for Atletico Madrid and is helping his new side reign supreme in La Liga this season.
Before the start of this season, Barcelona informed Luis Suarez that they no longer required his services at the club. Former club president Joseph Bartomeu made it clear that the striker was free to join any club, and a move to Juventus was on the cards.
However, the move did not materialise due to passport issues, and Luis Suarez had to find a new club. He moved to Atletico Madrid and is now helping them top the league table.
Ronald Koeman has admitted that the striker's move to their title rivals has hurt them. The move was surprisingly sanctioned by the club, despite knowing that they were directly strengthening their rivals.
Talking to The Athletic, Koeman said:
"You speak to the club — and when I came as a coach to Barcelona, we had our opinions and I had the information out of the club — and then finally you make decisions. You need to make these decisions because if it goes well then it's OK, but if it doesn't go well, then it needs to be my way and that's the most important thing."
"We are changing and of course, it would have been better that Luis Suarez signed for Juventus instead of Atletico Madrid because he's still in the Spanish league. But that kind of decision, we had to make it, really tough ones but showing respect to the player, and I think that's really important. And I still agree with what we did at that time."
Barcelona are currently second in the league table but are far away from the top. Atletico Madrid are 10 points ahead right now and still have a game in hand.
Luis Suarez has been their best player this season. He has scored 14 goals in just 16 matches and is currently the top scorer in the league.