Luis Suarez reveals how Steven Gerrard stopped him from joining Arsenal

Suarez has revealed that he wanted to force through a move to the Emirates in 2013 after two-and-a-half seasons with the Reds.

However, a discussion with Liverpool captain Gerrard was enough for him to change his mind and stay on Merseyside for a further season – his most prolific one to date, as 31 goals took Brendan Rodgers’ side agonisingly close to the Premier League title.

“We qualified for the UEFA Europa League but the season ended badly,” he told Otro.

“I’m about to go to Arsenal, forcing myself to go, and Steven tells me, ‘I promise that if you stay this year you’re going to take off and next year you’ll go to Bayern, Barcelona, Real Madrid or whichever one you want – but stay this year because you won’t be better off at Arsenal’.

“This was the last conversation I had with Gerrard at that moment and I told my agent that I'd made my decision and I was staying. His words convinced me in that moment.

"They came from a person who cared for me, who wanted my well-being, who saw me suffer during training and saw me sad.

“They were words from a true captain that had an impact in that moment and helped me a lot.”

Suarez joined Barcelona in 2014 and has gone on to score 173 goals in 237 goals for the Catalan club.