Diego Simeone reveals ‘trick’ he adopted to try to bring Lionel Messi to Atletico Madrid

Diego Simeone admits he tried to convince Lionel Messi to join Atletico Madrid this summer.

Six-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi was expected to sign a new contract at Barcelona but the Catalan giants couldn’t afford to complete the deal.

Paris Saint-Germain quickly swooped in to sign the 34-year-old, but not before Atletico had a go.

Speaking to Ole in Argentina, Simeone revealed he had Messi’s close pal Luis Suarez give him a call to see if he would be interested in reuniting at the Wanda Metropolitano.

In quotes carried by Diario AS, the Atletico boss admitted: “I’ll tell you a detail.

“With what happened at Barcelona, we called Luis [Suarez].

“With all due respect, I didn’t call Leo, but I did call Luis to ask how Messi was doing and whether he’d be willing or if there was a small chance he’d come to Atletico.

“But it was something that only lasted three hours, because PSG were already obsessed with signing him.”

Luis Suarez thanks Erling Haaland over gift he sent to his son

Atletico Madrid star Luis Suarez has thanked Borussia Dortmund superstar Erling Haaland for the birthday gift he sent to the Liverpool legend’s son.

Suarez’s son Benjamin turned eight years old and received a surprise present from Haaland, who gave him a dedicated shirt of his that he signed with: “Happy Birthday Benjamin”.

The star striker shared a picture of his child smiling from ear to ear with the shirt on social media and thanked the Manchester United transfer target by calling him a “top player”.

Suarez posted on Instagram: “Top player… Very grateful for the dedicated shirt for my son for his birthday! A grand gesture…

“Keep working hard and many thanks once more!!”

Haaland has continued where he left off at Dortmund with a whopping 11 goals and four assists in eight matches across all competitions.

The Norway international is still monitored by some of Europe’s top hitters, such as United.

The Red Devils failed to sign the 21-year-old last summer but will try again next year when his £67million release clause becomes active.

Luis Suarez wants Barcelona to sign Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham

Barcelona striker Luis Suarez has stated that Tammy Abraham could be his long-term successor at the Catalan club.

The England international has emerged as one of the leading scorers in the Premier League this season so far, scoring ten goals for the Blues.

His prowess infront of goal has consigned Olivier Giroud to the bench at Chelsea, with the Frenchman featuring for against West Ham last Saturday because of Abraham’s injury.

Now, Suarez has taken notice of the youngster, stating that: “There are many excellent young strikers at the moment.”

“There are many players that I take an interest in, and watch when I have the chance to.”

“The No.9 at Chelsea, Abraham is one that I like.”

“He is a very good forward, with strong finishing skills, and good movement for his age.”

Suarez also stated his admiration for international team mate Moi Gomez, and Inter Milan front man Lautaro Martinez, who have both been linked with a move to the Camp Nou.