eBook
Available on Compatible NOOK devices, the free NOOK App and in My Digital Library.
Related collections and offers
Overview
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781786062048 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | John Blake Publishing, Limited |
| Publication date: | 01/01/2016 |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 160 |
| File size: | 222 KB |
| Age Range: | 9 - 12 Years |
About the Author
Read an Excerpt
CHAPTER 1
CHAMPION OF EUROPE
6 June 2015. As Luis took a quick glance around the stadium, all he saw were the colours of Barcelona. It was still thirty minutes before kick-off but they were cheering as if the warm-up was the real thing. He stretched out his right leg, loosening the muscles and preparing his body for the biggest game of his life.
Xavi fired the ball towards him, catching him by surprise, and Luis turned to chase it as it rolled off the pitch. As he crossed the touchline, almost within touching distance of the Barcelona fans in the front row, all he heard was 'Suárez! Suárez!' He grinned and gave the fans a quick wave. They were ready for this Champions League Final – and so was he.
Hard times make you appreciate the good times – that had been Luis's motto over the past year. After all the anger, the tears, the headlines and the four-month suspension, he had bounced back better than ever. There was nothing he could do about his mistakes in the past, except try to learn from them. He had shut out all the distractions and focused on only two things: football and family. Now, having already won the Spanish league title and the Spanish Cup, he was ninety minutes away from completing an amazing Treble.
Back in the dressing room, Dani Alves turned the music up loud and the players tried their best to relax. Luis walked over to the far side, where the 'Suárez 9' shirt was hanging. He had worn that name and number plenty of times but it had never looked better than it did now. He looked up at the countdown timer high on the wall – less than fifteen minutes to go. He put on the shirt, pulled up his socks and slotted in a tiny pair of shin pads. Their opponents, Juventus, would play a physical style, but Luis had never liked big, bulky shin pads. He could handle the kicks.
'Dani, throw me the tape,' he called.
'Do I work for you now?' Dani replied, laughing. 'Just because you score the goals, you think you run the place?'
Luis had quickly built good friendships within the Barcelona squad. For the first time since leaving Uruguay, he was surrounded by teammates who spoke Spanish, and that had certainly helped him to settle in quickly. He still had to pinch himself to believe that he was scoring goals alongside a magician like Lionel Messi.
The referee knocked on the dressing-room door. It was time. Luis finished putting the tape round his wrist, jumped to his feet and joined in the quick high fives. As they headed for the tunnel, he felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see Xavi waiting with some final words of advice. 'Stay calm out there. They know all about your temper and they'll be trying to wind you up. Play your game and ignore them. We need you.'
Luis nodded. Many of the things he regretted most in his football career were related to reckless moments on the pitch. He just needed to win every game, and sometimes he went too far. 'Don't worry. I won't let you guys down,' he added with a serious face. Then a grin broke out. 'After the game, it'll just be my goals that people are talking about.'
For most of his teammates, this was yet another Champions League Final. But it was Luis's first and he was shaking with a combination of nerves and excitement. The atmosphere was incredible – the anthem, the fans, the perfect pitch. It was like no other game he had ever played.
As he passed the ball around in a little triangle with Messi and Neymar, he had no doubts about the result of the game. With all their star players, how could they not score three or four goals? He placed the ball in the centre circle. He would be getting the first touch of the final! When the whistle blew for kick-off, Luis felt like he could run all day.
Barcelona took an early lead and Juventus equalised in the second half, but Luis struggled to find his best form. Was it just the big occasion that was getting to him? He worked hard but nothing was falling for him. With twenty-five minutes to go, he even feared that he might be substituted. Clapping his hands, he urged his teammates to do more, saying, 'Leo, let's go. Let's make something happen.'
One of Luis's biggest strengths was that he never gave up and always believed that a chance would come his way. From his earliest years, he just knew where to be at the right moment to score goals. There's still time, he told himself. Things can change in a second.
Then it happened. Messi dribbled past three Juventus defenders, and Luis saw his teammate preparing to take a shot. His instincts took over. He wasn't going to watch the shot. As soon as Messi pulled his leg back to shoot, Luis was racing towards the goal, looking for a rebound. Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon made the save but the ball bounced loose. None of the defenders had a chance. Luis was too quick. Before they could move, he had pounced on the ball and fired a shot into the top corner.
Suddenly, as the emotions took over, everything was a blur. He jumped over the advertising boards onto the athletics track that surrounded the pitch. Lionel, Neymar, Dani and the rest of his teammates joined him, climbing on his back and burying him in hugs. He had saved the day. 'That was such a classic Suárez goal,' Dani yelled. 'You shoot, you score – that's why you're El Pistolero!'
As he jogged back to the halfway line, Luis couldn't stop smiling. He loved scoring in big finals. From the first time he kicked a ball, he had always wanted to be the goalscorer and the hero. While the game was stopped for a substitution, he allowed his mind to wander, just for a minute, back to his beloved Uruguay, where it all began.
CHAPTER 2
LEARNING THE BASEICS
'I'll be back for dinner,' Paolo called to his parents as he opened the door. 'I've got to go. My friends are waiting.'
Hearing his brother's voice, Luis leapt off his bed and raced into the hallway. 'Wait! Are you going to the football pitches? Can I come with you?'
Paolo turned and looked at his little brother. He had excitement all over his face. Luis always wanted to play football with the older boys but every time he was told he was too young. Today, Paolo was feeling generous.
'Okay, but don't say anything silly in front of my friends. And you'll have to be careful. The other boys are all ten or eleven. Don't get hurt.'
'Don't worry,' Luis replied, with a toothy grin. 'I can look after myself.'
Paolo couldn't help but laugh. His little brother couldn't even tie his own shoelaces but he was fearless.
The Suárez family lived just outside the army base, where Luis's father, Rodolfo, was a soldier. Ever since they had moved in, Luis had heard the stories about the pitches on the base and the endless football matches after school each day. Finally, he would get to see it for himself. He ran to the door before Paolo could change his mind.
The base was even bigger and better than he had pictured. As they turned a corner, past a large 'Military zone, No entry' sign, four football pitches magically appeared. Boys and girls were running around on all of them. Like Luis, most of them were barefoot, chasing balls that looked like they were one bad bounce away from being useless.
Paolo found his friends and, with a little embarrassment, explained that little Luis was here to play as well.
'He's three years old,' one of the boys sneered. 'Can he even run?'
'I'm four,' Luis fired back. 'And I'm fast.' That made the whole group laugh.
They picked teams. Luis was just told to join Paolo's team. 'Stay out of trouble,' Paolo warned, pointing for Luis to stay out on the far side of the pitch, away from the action.
'No chance,' Luis mumbled to himself. He had waited long enough for this moment. He wanted an up-close view.
At first, he was too busy watching everything – how fast the older boys could run, how hard they kicked the ball, how small he felt on such a big pitch.
Suddenly, the ball was coming towards him, with three boys sprinting after it. For a second, Luis wanted to run away. But he didn't. He stuck out his foot to stop the ball and then, without looking, kicked it as hard as he could. Luckily, it went straight to Paolo. 'Nice one,' shouted Pedro, one of the best players in the group. Luis felt ten feet tall.
For what felt like ten minutes, Luis didn't move. He was still enjoying the rush of excitement – and his foot hurt.
That night, he refused to go to bed. His mother, Sandra, saw him sitting on the sofa well past his bedtime. 'Luis, you should be asleep, you little rascal,' she told him.
'I know, but I played football with Paolo and the big boys today and I don't want the day to be over.'
Sandra smiled. 'But you can go back tomorrow and play again, like your brothers do.'
'Promise?'
'Yes, Luis,' she said gently. She lifted him off the sofa and carried him to the room he shared with his younger brother, Diego. 'You're getting heavy!'
'That's good,' he said, smiling. 'I need to be bigger to win against the older boys.'
Football at the base became part of Luis's routine. As soon as school was over, it was a race against time to get to the pitches and claim one before the other groups got there. Luis's classes finished earlier than those held at the other boys' schools, so he had a head start most days.
On the rare occasions when the weather made it impossible to play outside, Luis and his brothers quickly turned to Plan B – playing in the house. Sandra and Rodolfo gave the boys this freedom, until Luis accidentally put an end to that by breaking his parents' bed.
He would never forget his mum's reaction.
'Boys, get in here!'
'What's wrong, Mama?' Luis tried to look innocent but he knew what was coming.
'How did this happen? There's a crack and the bed is broken. It wasn't like that this morning, and I can see dirty footprints. It doesn't take a genius to know you were playing football in here.'
Luis looked at the floor – partly because he felt guilty, and partly to look for the footprints that had given them away. He said nothing, and was relieved that his brothers didn't put all the blame on him. After all, it was Paolo who had hit the wild shot. Luis was just diving to stop the ball breaking other things in the room.
Sandra shook her head. 'Well, if no-one wants to answer, you're all banned from going to the pitches for a week.'
The words hung in the air. Luis wanted to protest but he knew from past experience that his mother's decisions on these kinds of things were final. Sandra waved them out of her room, reminding herself that her daughters were far less trouble.
'Thanks for not pointing the finger at me,' he whispered as they headed outside.
'Well, we've got to stick together, but now we're all in trouble,' Paolo replied.
Luis went back to his bedroom and sat on his bed. It was going to be a long week.
CHAPTER 3
THE 'EL CHANGO' EFFECT
Luis loved playing football, but it was hard to keep up with the older boys. One evening, when the whole family had gathered for dinner, he turned to Uncle Sergio – El Chango – for answers.
'Uncle, how can I get better? I want to kick the ball harder and score goals like Paolo.'
El Chango grinned. 'You need a good coach. I know just the right person.'
'Who?' Luis said quickly, looking confused.
'Me!'
Luis put down his fork. 'Okay, when can we start?' Rodolfo shook his head. 'Hold on, Luis. Let's finish eating first. You can't score goals if you're hungry.'
Luis patiently finished his meal, but he was already thinking about what his uncle would teach him.
The next day, El Chango kept his promise. He and Luis walked over to the base early in the morning and found an empty pitch. El Chango kicked the ball into the middle of the pitch but held up a hand as Luis turned to chase it. 'Leave it, Luis. We don't need it yet.'
Luis looked at his uncle as if he had two heads. 'What do you mean? How will I get better without a ball?'
'Ah, well that's the first secret. Before you can be a good player, you need to be a clever player. You need to understand the game, the tactics and the tricks.'
Luis sat down. He was willing to listen. After fifteen minutes, El Chango decided that the boy had heard enough. 'Okay, now get the ball.'
Luis jumped up. This is more like it, he thought.
'So, what do you want to learn?' El Chango asked, palms outstretched.
'I want to be a goalscorer.'
'Okay, show me how you kick the ball. Take a shot over there.'
Luis lined up his shot but the ball just trickled towards the goal.
'Try using this part of your foot instead,' El Chango explained, pointing. 'Watch this.'
El Chango dribbled the ball back to the edge of the penalty area, and then fired a shot into the bottom corner.
'Gooooooooooal!' Luis shouted as he ran to get the ball. 'Wow, do it again!'
His uncle grinned. 'No, it's your turn,' he said, patting Luis on the head.
It took some time but, by the end of the morning, Luis was hitting the ball with more accuracy and confidence. He could see the improvement.
'Now let's do some passing. You have to be good at that too.'
'But I just want to be a goalscorer. Other players pass, then I score.'
El Chango shook his head. 'If you want to be a star, you need to practise everything.'
Luis did as he was told. He stood ten paces away from his uncle and they passed the ball back and forth to each other, left foot then right foot.
'Okay, so what time can we come back tomorrow?' Luis asked once they had decided to stop for the day. He was still wiping sweat from his forehead.
'Luis, you've got school tomorrow. I don't want to be in trouble with your mum for helping you skip classes. There's no rush. Keep working on what we practised and we'll come back next weekend.'
The next morning, Sandra woke up to a tapping noise outside. Her first thought was that an animal of some kind was trying to get into the house. She cautiously followed the sound to the front door. When she opened it, there was no sign of any animal. Instead, she found Luis kicking an old ball against the side of the house. He was placing the ball carefully, then reacting quickly to control it as it rebounded back.
'Luis!' she said in the angriest whisper she could manage. 'It's six o'clock. You're crazy. Get back to bed before the neighbours start shouting.'
'Mama, I have to be ready for El Chango. I promised him that I would practise my passing.'
Sandra rolled her eyes and reminded herself to pinch El Chango next time she saw him. 'Luis, if you want to keep playing, go across the street and play on the patch over there. But if you fall asleep at school, there'll be trouble.'
Luis grabbed the ball and crossed to the other side of the street. That's what he loved about his home city of Salto. He had the pitches at the army base, there were lots of big open spaces and it was safe to play in the streets. It doesn't get any better than this, he thought, as he kicked the ball high into the air and ran after it.
But this perfect world was about to be shaken.
CHAPTER 4
ON THE MOVE
'I don't want to move!' Luis screamed, tears running down his cheeks. He made no effort to wipe them away. He heard his parents knocking on his bedroom door, and that just made him scream louder. He wanted to be alone.
Moments earlier, Rodolfo had told his children that they were leaving Salto and moving to Montevideo, the capital city of Uruguay. He had requested a transfer to the army base there. 'This is a new adventure,' he explained. 'Better jobs, better schools and a better life.'
Luis had just stared at his parents in disbelief. 'But ... but,' he stammered. The words wouldn't come out. Instead, he ran out of the room and dived onto his bed. He didn't want to cry in front of his dad. How could this be happening?
Eventually, Paolo bravely opened the door and walked over to Luis's bed.
'I said, go away,' Luis yelled without looking up.
'It's me,' his brother said. 'I know it all seems very scary, but let's talk about it.'
Luis relaxed. He was sure that Paolo would be just as angry and maybe they could work together to stop the move. They both had a lot of friends in Salto. He wiped his eyes on his pillow and turned to face his brother.
'What are we going to do?' Luis asked. 'I love Salto. How can they make us leave our friends behind? There must be something we can do to make them change their minds. We could all say that we refuse to go.'
Paolo gave his brother a sympathetic look. 'Luis, the decision has been made. The army has made all the arrangements for Dad, and now we have to support him.'
Luis couldn't believe it. His brother was on their side too. 'I don't want to talk about it anymore. I'm tired. I want to go to sleep and then maybe I'll wake up and find out it was all a nightmare,' Luis said.
Sandra and Rodolfo had expected that Luis would be the most upset about the news, but they had crossed their fingers that the anger would wear off after a few days. Luis had other ideas. He would only say 'Yes' or 'No' when his parents asked him questions and he stormed out of the room as soon as anyone started talking about the move. They knew it was getting out of control.
(Continues…)
Excerpted from "Luis Suarez: El Pistolero"
by .
Copyright © 2016 Tom and Matt Oldfield.
Excerpted by permission of John Blake Publishing Ltd.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
Title Page,
Dedication,
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS,
CHAPTER 1 – CHAMPION OF EUROPE,
CHAPTER 2 – LEARNING THE BASE-ICS,
CHAPTER 3 – THE 'EL CHANGO' EFFECT,
CHAPTER 4 – ON THE MOVE,
CHAPTER 5 – FINDING HIS FEET IN MONTEVIDEO,
CHAPTER 6 – URRETA FC,
CHAPTER 7 – HIGHS AND LOWS,
CHAPTER 8 – FINDING HIS WAY AT NACIONAL,
CHAPTER 9 – THE ULTIMATUM,
CHAPTER 10 – SOFI,
CHAPTER 11 – GOAL MACHINE,
CHAPTER 12 – HEARTBREAK,
CHAPTER 13 – OVERCOMING THE BOOS,
CHAPTER 14 – HEADING FOR EUROPE,
CHAPTER 15 – DIETS AND DIVING,
CHAPTER 16 – THE AJAX WAY,
CHAPTER 17 – CAPTAIN LUIS,
CHAPTER 18 – THE HAND OF SUÁREZ,
CHAPTER 19 – ANFIELD ARRIVAL,
CHAPTER 20 – COPA AMÉRICA CHAMPION,
CHAPTER 21 – MAKING A MARK,
CHAPTER 22 – CHASING THE TITLE,
CHAPTER 23 – WORLD CUP HIGHS AND LOWS,
CHAPTER 24 – BOUNCING BACK IN BARCELONA,
Also by Tom and Matt Oldfield,
Copyright,