da bet esporte： The 37-year-old striker has proved at the club level he could be an impact player at Copa America, despite his age

da dobrowin： Luis Suarez can't stop scoring. Inter Miami's biggest off-season signing, and the completion of the former-Barcelona quartet in south Florida wasn't a guaranteed success before this season. His knees don't work, and there were questions about his stamina and ability to play for all 90 minutes.

And while those questions haven't entirely been answered, Suarez is finding the sort of form – albeit in a lesser league – that saw him tear up Europe for years. This is not a Ballon d'Or-contending striker anymore. Instead, he is MLS's best No.9, deadly in front of goal, and crucial to Miami's MLS Cup ambitions.

More broadly, the 37-year-old is making his case for Uruguay's Copa America squad this summer. La Celeste have options in forward areas, but Suarez is showing enough to suggest that he might have one more major tournament in him as Marcelo Bielsa's side dream of tournament glory in the United States.

Getty ImagesCould he make the squad?

After the 2022 World Cup, Suarez seemed to be out of the picture for the national team. La Celeste turned in a solid group stage in Qatar, but failed to advance to the knockouts after a late strike from South Korea against Portugal saw them go out on goals scored. Suarez, for his part, turned in a limited contribution, assisting once but failing to find the net across three games.

The arrival of the outspoken Bielsa at the helm saw the team undergo something of an evolution. He handed appearances to 14 uncapped players for friendlies at the start of 2023, and left both Suarez and Edinson Cavani at home.

Since then, La Celeste have been in fine form. Uruguay beat Brazil and Chile, while also snagging a draw against Colombia as they started their 2026 World Cup qualifying effort in impressive fashion. But after winning the Brazilian Serie A Player of the Year award for his 17-goal, 11-assist effort for Gremio in 2023, Bielsa recalled him to the squad. And although Suarez didn't feature in either fixture for his national team, his inclusion showed he might just have a role to play.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesA brief history of Suarez

You'd struggle to find a player in recent years who has been more impactful for La Celeste. Suarez, of course, burst onto the scene in the 2010 World Cup under controversial circumstances. The forgotten backdrop to Suarez's infamous handball on the line against Ghana in South Africa was that the then-Ajax striker was one of the players of the tournament. He scored twice in the round of 16, and made his case for a big transfer after finishing the campaign with three goals and two assists.

He was even better at the 2011 Copa America, scoring four and setting up two as Uruguay won their 15th title – earning Player of the Tournament honours in the process. Further controversy marred his legacy on the international stage, including when he infamously bit Giorgio Chiellini at the 2014 World Cup. Still, Suarez has found the net 68 times in 138 appearances for his national team – making him his nation's all-time top goalscorer.

Getty ImagesHis performances this season

This season, though, Suarez has made his case to return to the fold. Suarez scored six and assisted three in his first eight MLS games in Miami, keeping the Herons afloat as Lionel Messi struggled with knocks. He has since slowed down, but has reached double-digit goal contributions for the Eastern Conference leaders. Messi may be the one pulling the strings for the Herons, but Suarez's penchant for finding the net makes them a potentially elite team.

It marks a significant change from the aging forward who was forced into terminating his Gremio contract early just nine months ago. Back then, Suarez admitted that he was constantly playing in pain, and speculated that knee problems could end his career.

"The days before each game I take three pills and hours before playing I get an injection. If not, I can’t play. Hence the limp. I have to think that in maybe five years I won’t be able to play five-a-side football with my friends," he said in December 2023.

Knee pain notwithstanding, Suarez has made his mark for Miami. He hit the ground running, rekindled his fine connection with Messi, and has the Herons playing like MLS champions.

Getty ImagesDarwin Nunez, and who else?

But there is competition in the Uruguay side. La Celeste's Copa America hopes rest largely on the shoulders of Darwin Nunez. The mercurial striker was equal parts deadly and chaotic for Liverpool last season, but still managed a tidy return of 18 goals in all competitions – all while struggling to carve out minutes in a competitive front line.

Still, he seems to have the faith of Bielsa, who entrusted him to lead the line when La Celeste took on Brazil in a major World Cup qualifying fixture in October. Nunez followed that with the first of his side's two goals against Argentina, and a brace in a drubbing of Bolivia five days later. He missed the last window with an injury – and Uruguay admittedly struggled without him.

And there might be competition in the returning Edison Cavani. He, too, has rediscovered some form of old, impressing for a surging Boca Juniors side. But there are similar concerns with his fitness and level of competition. Outside of that, La Celeste are limited up front, with Liga MX's Federico Vinas the only other option in forward areas.