The Spaniard was the joint-second-top scorer in LaLiga Santander last term with 23 goals, while Atleti’s No.9 was fourth-top with 21.
Just four players scored more than 20 goals in LaLiga Santander last season and two of them will go head to head on Sunday night, when Spanish champions Atlético de Madrid take on Europa League winners Villarreal CF at the Wanda Metropolitano.
That 4am kick-off promises to be a fascinating game, with two of the most elite forwards of the past few years leading the lines.
It was a perfect first season at Atlético for Suárez, as the Uruguayan fired his new team to the LaLiga Santander title. His 21 goals were crucial, especially the final strike – the winner against Real Valladolid on the final day to secure Los Rojiblancos’ 11 LaLiga title and the second of the Diego Simeone era.
Suárez had to wait over a year, however, to play his first home game in front of the Atleti fans. Last weekend’s 1-0 win over Elche CF was emotional for many reasons, but particularly for the long-awaited sound of adulation from the stands.
The Uruguayan is in line for his first start of the new campaign, coming off the bench in the first two encounters as he’s eased back into proceedings after playing in the Copa America this summer.
Gerard Moreno, at the age of 29, is already up and running for the season and carrying on from where he finished last campaign.
He too scored in his team’s final game of 2020/21, a crucial strike in the Europa League final against Manchester United that ensured the game went to penalties, where the Yellow Submarine prevailed for their first ever major trophy, thanks in part to the Spaniard also converting his kick in the shootout.
In his first match of the new season, Gerard scored another European final goal to force a penalty shootout against Chelsea in the UEFA Super Cup, although this time the penalty fortune wasn’t in the Spanish side’s favour.
Even though he is still waiting for his first LaLiga Santander goal of the new campaign, with Villarreal having been held to two goalless draws so far, Gerard Moreno has looked sharp and lively. It’s not for a lack of trying that he hasn’t yet scored domestically. He’s come close, and it’s only a matter of time. Granada’s Dimitri Foulquier, for example, had to pull off a spectacular goal line clearance to deny the Villarreal forward a winner on the opening weekend.
Having just signed a new long-term deal at the Estadio de la Cerámica which runs until 2027, Gerard is motivated to take on the challenges of this new season as Villarreal compete at the top of the table and return to the Champions League. Personally, he’ll also hope to contend for the Pichichi award for the league’s top scorer, after defending his Zarra prize last campaign as the top-scoring Spaniard in Spain’s top tier.
Luis Suárez knows what it’s like to win the Pichichi, having claimed it with his incredible 40-goal 2015/16 season. Only Lionel Messi, with 30, Karim Benzema, with 23, and Gerard Moreno, also with 23, scored more than Suárez last term. If the Uruguayan keeps putting away the chances created by the likes of Ángel Correa, Marcos Llorente and João Félix, et al. he’ll definitely be in with a shot.
Just like in 2020/21, an early Atlético de Madrid vs Villarreal, Atleti’s third game of last season was also a home game vs Villarreal. The visitors put up a strong fight that day, as they so often do against the very top sides, and it finished with a sharing of the spoils: 0-0 was the final score.
Atleti won the return fixture 2-0, but the results from these two teams’ most recent matchups could hardly have been more even, as their last 15 clashes have finished with five victories each and five draws. This will be a very tough test for the champions, especially with Villarreal having strengthened this summer with the signings of Boulaye Dia and Arnaut Danjuma. It promises to be another thrilling Sunday night of football in LaLiga Santander, with goals aplenty!
Watch Atletico de Madrid vs Villarreal CF at 4am tonight on beIN Sports channel.