Luis Suarez: I Almost Joined Real Madrid In 2014 To Replace Arsenal-Bound Benzema

By The Editor
on 19th February 2024

Luis Suarez corroborates rumours from the past…

Former Barcelona striker Luis Suarez revealed that he almost joined Real Madrid in the summer of 2014 to replace Arsenal-bound Karim Benzema, he told DelSol 99.5 FM.

Rumours were rife during the 2014 summer transfer window about a move for Benzema and while there weren’t any credible reports co-signing the story, a denial from either party wasn’t forthcoming either.

A year after Arsene Wenger prized Mesut Ozil away from Real Madrid and with a central striker top of the shopping list, it made sense that Benzema featured high among his compatriot’s thinking.

However, following Suarez’s revelation, it does appear that the move was further down the line than the public imagined. Eventually, Wenger went in a different direction and made a move for Alexis Sanchez, a player the boss wanted to field as our No.9.

“Before the 2014 World Cup, Real Madrid wanted to sign me, and everything was on track,” Suarez narrated.

“They were planning to sell Benzema to Arsenal; it was all done. When the World Cup started, Barca joined the race, and obviously I preferred Barca.

“With the bite situation, Madrid lowered their interest, and Barca became more interested… In the end I had both options and I chose Barca because it was my dream.”

While Arsenal signing Benzema may seem rather ambitious in hindsight, there were a few years when it appeared that the Frenchman wasn’t valued by Los Blancos.

As Suarez indicates, several strikers were constantly linked with a move to Real Madrid to replace Benzema who wasn’t the most prolific of marksmen during that period.

The Frenchman’s desire to stay in the Spanish capital ultimately paid off with the La Liga side exercising a period of dominance in Europe, winning four Champions Leagues in seven years.