Newcastle United and Nottingham Forest were both linked with Luis Suárez during the summer, and the Sporting striker is now enjoying a remarkable run of form.
The Colombian has scored in seven consecutive matches for the Portuguese club, something only 12 other players have managed in Sporting’s history.
His latest goal came against Braga on Friday, helping his side to a 3-1 victory. That alone would have been worth mentioning, but the circumstances make it even more impressive.
More than 7,000 kilometres and barely any rest
Suárez had barely returned from international duty with Colombia before making another decisive contribution. And A Bola’s print edition has revealed just how hectic those few days were.
Suárez was still playing for Colombia in Miami in the early hours of Wednesday morning, Portuguese time.
He featured for 61 minutes in their 2-0 victory over Peru, having already played 66 minutes against Mexico and 45 against Paraguay. That’s 172 minutes across three matches, all of which he started.
According to A Bola, Sporting had asked Colombia to manage his workload carefully. However, the national team are still looking to establish their first-choice striker and made full use of Suárez.
Then came the journey home. The 28-year-old travelled more than 6,600 kilometres from Florida to Lisbon, landing in Portugal at 6am on Thursday.
He went home, dropped off his suitcase, packed his training bag and headed straight to Sporting’s academy. No need to explain there was little time to recover.
That afternoon, Suárez travelled north with the rest of the squad, spending the night in Vila Nova de Gaia before Friday’s match in Braga.
Altogether, he covered more than 7,000 kilometres in three days while also dealing with the demands of international football. Rui Borges understandably decided to give him a breather.
Eight minutes were enough
Fotis Ioannidis started against Braga, with Suárez initially watching from the bench. The Colombian eventually came on in the 58th minute. And eight minutes later, he scored Sporting’s equaliser.
He then helped create the move which ended with Braga goalkeeper Bernardo Fontes scoring an own goal, putting Sporting 2-1 ahead.
The visitors eventually won 3-1, with Suárez once again making a difference despite his limited minutes.
That was his eighth goal of the season, with seven coming in the Portuguese league and another in the Champions League. It also extended his scoring streak to seven consecutive Sporting matches.
A Bola point out that this puts him alongside some of the biggest names in the club’s history. Fernando Peyroteo, Héctor Yazalde, Mário Jardel, Bas Dost and Viktor Gyökeres are among the 12 players who previously achieved the same feat.
And there’s another milestone worth mentioning. Suárez has now scored 46 goals for Sporting since joining from Almería in 2025, drawing level with Fredy Montero as the club’s highest-scoring Colombian player.
Luis Suárez at Sporting CP
All competitive first-team matches
| Season | Apps | Goals | Assists | Minutes | Mins per goal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025–26 | 53 | 38 | 8 | 4,370 | 115.0 |
| 2026–27* | 9 | 8 | 1 | 562 | 70.3 |
| Sporting total | 62 | 46 | 9 | 4,932 | 107.2 |
Includes Primeira Liga, Taça de Portugal, Taça da Liga,
Portuguese Super Cup and UEFA Champions League.
Excludes internationals and friendlies.
Minutes per goal = total minutes played divided by goals scored,
rounded to one decimal place.
Checked: 13 October 2026.
Sporting getting the best of him again
It’s quite a turnaround from the summer, when Suárez’s future became a major talking point in Portugal.
Newcastle had already made an approach, while Nottingham Forest were linked with a late move in August. Sporting resisted the speculation and kept the striker, who has an €80m (£69m) release clause.
His return from the World Cup was difficult, and he initially lost his starting place to Ioannidis. There were also questions about his commitment following the Fenerbahçe transfer controversy.
Those concerns now seem a long way away. Suárez has responded with goals, and his latest performance suggests even an exhausting international break isn’t enough to slow him down.
Next up is a Champions League trip to Lens on Tuesday. A Bola expect him to return to the starting XI, with Borges having already planned to rotate his strikers across the Braga and Lens fixtures.
In the end, Suárez is once again doing exactly what attracted Newcastle and Forest’s attention in the first place. And Sporting, having spent the summer dealing with questions about his future, are now getting plenty of reasons to be pleased they kept him.
