Luis Suarez is one of those players who always seems to be right in the thick of the action.
Since the start of 2026, the 28-year-old has already crashed home 15 goals in all competitions for Portuguese side Sporting; among them, a double against reigning European Champions Paris Saint-Germain, and three game-winning goals deep into added time.
Suarez has also scored a crucial equaliser away at title-rivals Porto with 99 minutes on the clock, as well as the winner against Francesco Farioli’s side in the cup. On top of that, he nicked Sporting’s third against Bodo/Glimt in the Champions League, to bring them back level from 3-0 down on the way to a dramatic comeback win. All in the space of 95 days.
There’s something in the way that the Colombian plays, an all-or-nothing centre-forward with a wicked turn of pace and a burning desire to make an impact, that means he is never far from goal. But that game-breaking ability hasn’t always been allowed to flourish, with injuries and confidence issues previously restricting his boundless goalscoring energy to mere flashes in the pan.
Back in October 2023, Suarez scored a five-minute hat-trick for Almeria against his former club, Granada. The goals were typical of the bustling striker, tearing in behind and putting everything behind his shots on goal. But forty minutes later, Suarez would fracture his tibia after launching himself at a cross, ruling him out of 23 league games before the end of the season, in which Almeria’s relegation to the second-tier was confirmed.
Luis Suarez in action for Almeria in 2024 (Rafa Babot/Getty Images)
It seemed as if Suarez was too good to go down, but the timing of his injury seemed to deter the biggest clubs from swooping, with concerns that his explosive style may be curtailed by lingering pain in his shin. So Suarez knuckled down in the division below, finishing the season as top scorer with 27 goals, and hitting an unstoppable rhythm that he has since carried into his early Sporting career.
Suarez has reached exciting heights since his summer move to Portugal, enjoying a newfound consistency that leaves him trailing only Harry Kane in the goalscoring charts across Europe’s top eight leagues. He even scored four goals in one game for his country against Venezuela back in September, silencing the home crowd with a brutal display of finishing that put an end to their World Cup dreams.
But there is more to this story to come, the next chapter starting with the visit of Arsenal on Tuesday, who signed Viktor Gyokeres from Sporting last summer, putting the big centre-forwards into the spotlight once more.
He has replaced the goals and the unrelenting power of Gyokeres with aplomb, but Suarez has the opportunity to go one further than the Swede over the next ten days; to take Sporting deeper into the Champions League than they have ever ventured before.
This is what Arsenal can expect to face.
Defenders all across Portugal will have breathed a sigh of relief when they saw the back of Gyokeres, but it was clear from Suarez’s first outing in the Primeira Liga that he was going to pose a very similar problem.
Suarez lashed seven shots towards goal on his debut against Casa Pia, going closest after a stomping run in-behind the defence and a sharp shot into the side netting.
His first goal for the club arrived the following week in emphatic fashion, turning away from pressure neatly before cannoning this left-footed shot off the underside of the bar.
Much like his predecessor, Suarez’s approach is uncomplicated in the final third, wreaking havoc with direct running, scrappy shoulder-charging and blasted finishes. It means he is able to fashion chances out of nowhere, with his rate of 4.6 shots per 90 in league football this season similar to the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Harry Kane. He has also laid on 15 chances for his teammate; only six players in the Portuguese top-flight have provided more.
Here against Casa Pia, for example, Suarez sets off at speed as soon as the ball breaks loose, latching onto an outside-of-the-boot pass with a run into the channels that is reminiscent of Gyokeres at Sporting last season.
Not only does the Colombian showcase his pace to get on the end of the pass, but also his willingness to chase through balls and upper-body strength to compete for possession. After spinning into the box, he fires the ball across goal, and is unlucky not to pick up an assist as Luis Guilherme pokes wide on the stretch.
No player has made more high speed runs (over 20km/h) in behind the defensive line than Suarez this season per SkillCorner, and those movements aren’t only targeted towards his stronger flank.
Suarez is able to finish confidently on both feet, having scored seven of his 24 non-penalty goals for Sporting with his weaker left. Here is an example of a piercing forward run and crisp finish down that side from that fateful afternoon against Granada, not shying away from putting his weaker foot through the ball with the angle closing down.
🎙️ “It’s Luis Suárez who scores against his former team!”
The Almería forward nets against Granada for the opening goal 🎯 pic.twitter.com/s4mDMLufOi
— Premier Sports (@PremSportsTV) October 1, 2023
It makes Suarez genuinely unpredictable down that left flank. Where Gyokeres was more frightening with his forward momentum and power, developing that signature goal that would see him chop inside and thump the ball towards the far corner, Suarez leans on his dribbling ability to create space for his shots on either side.
Below against Tondela, for example, he has the opportunity to shoot with his right, before slaloming back onto his weaker side and finishing across the goalkeeper. Suarez is able to keep the ball under close control when he cuts inside, dangerous when he can use quick step-overs and shimmies to throw his defenders off balance and keep them guessing.
https://x.com/vsports_pt/status/1982518637106766131?s=20
Of course, Suarez’s technique is not always immaculate, not immune to a shanked shot or a poor decision in front of goal. There are games when the Colombian can look a bit unpolished, a little too desperate to attack at pace and hit through the ball with all his might.
But he is a striker who plays the game at full speed and makes things happen, a precious ability even if the odd speculative shot flies over the bar.
Like all good centre-forwards, Suarez sustains his healthy goalscoring rate with a range of scrappy goals and close-range finishes, fuelled by his sense of anticipation in the box.
Along with his league-leading figures for running in behind, Suarez only ranks behind Benfica’s Vangelis Pavlidis for Cross Receiver runs, underlining his double-threat as both a high-intensity runner and a goal poacher.
As illustrated below, most of Suarez’s purposeful off-ball runs are aimed towards the centre of the penalty area, but you can also see his desire to make an impact across the width of the final third.
In addition to a smattering of tap-ins from rebounds, and even headers from set-pieces, Suarez has shown his worth when it comes to breaking down deeper defences with moments of technical ability and skill.
His passing statistics don’t jump off the page, but he invariably looks to be positive and inventive when he receives the ball, meaning he does lose possession relatively frequently. Per SkillCorner, no player in the division receives more passes in tight spaces and under high pressure than Suarez, often tasked with shielding the ball and keeping attacking moves flowing with defenders breathing down his neck.
Sometimes it clicks. He scored with a neat finish after a lay-off and a give-and-go on the edge of the box against Estrela Amadora in November, while this inspired back-heel against Nacional that snatched all three points in the 96th minute, the kind of quick-thinking and persistence that keeps Suarez in the game at all times.
⚽ GOLO
L. Suárez 96′
I Liga (#20) | Sporting (2)-1 Nacional#LigaPortugalBetclic #VSPORTSLPBETCLIC #EPOCA2526 #JORNADA20 #SCPCDN #SCP #CDN
All videos 👉 pic.twitter.com/VGI2UgMVKh— VSPORTS (@vsports_pt) February 1, 2026
Much like Gyokeres, Suarez’s numbers have undoubtedly been boosted by the lower average quality of bottom-half Primeira Liga sides. Sixteen of his 33 goals this season have come against teams ranked 300th or lower in Opta’s power rankings. Tuesday visitors Arsenal rank first.
That said the raw materials are, and always have been there with Suarez. Arsenal would be foolish to write off a player in this kind of form, with this kind of confidence, and gripped by the kind of never-say-die attitude that has characterised a dramatic career.
