A stellar farewell in La Liga: Marcelo, Bale, Suárez, Isco and others play their last game for their club

The last round of La Liga is upon us and several star players will be saying goodbye to their clubs. Marcelo, Gareth Bale and Luis Suárez will wear the jersey of their current club for the last time.

Marcelo

The most touching and painful farewell. Marcelo has become an absolute icon of Real Madrid, remaining loyal to the white colours throughout his career, collecting 23 trophies in 16 years in the Spanish capital, making him the player with the most trophies in the club’s history.

In his prime, he was the best left-back in the world, some even consider him the best left-back in history. With his character and ever-smiling approach to the game, he had virtually no opponents, and was much loved by fans of other clubs.

however, the 34-year-old Brazilian’s contract expires in the summer and he won’t sign a new one. It is not yet certain whether he will return to Brazil or end his career, but he will not continue in Europe, according to his words he does not want to face Real Madrid.

Gareth Bale

A bitter farewell and a very different case from Marcelo. No one can question Bale’s legacy at Real Madrid, after all, he scored the winning goal in two Champions League finals (Atlético 2014, Liverpool 2018 – 2 goals). He won the Champions League four times with the club, the historic moment being his winning goal in the Copa del Rey final against Barcelona, when he ran off the pitch and scored anyway.

But he has done huge damage to his legacy with his behaviour in recent years. Tearful statements towards the club and Zinedine Zidane, disrespect for teammates and line-up selection, preference for golf, frequent ‘injuries’ that fade away during the national break and then reappear after it.

He was even booed at the Santiago Bernabéu and the fans would prefer never to see him in the white jersey again. He deserves to be thanked for his service, but don’t expect a heartfelt farewell like Marcel.

Luis Suárez

Suárez came to Atlético Madrid two years ago from Barcelona, so it’s not like he can be compared to the aforementioned players who have spent most of their careers at the club. Even so, Suárez has formed a strong relationship with the Colchoneros, especially after a painful end at Barcelona, he has found the love from the fans here that he deserves.

Last season, he netted 21 goals in La Liga and literally pushed the Rojiblancos to the title. This season, his role has been much smaller, with only an average of 50% of games in the starting lineup. Even so, he managed to score 11 goals in the league, adding one each in the Champions League and Copa del Rey.

At the age of 35, he is retiring from Madrid East, his next engagement is still unclear.

Isco

Another symbol of Real Madrid’s modern era. He arrived in the capital in the summer of 2013 as a huge talent from Málaga and immediately celebrated winning the Champions League in his first season. He eventually celebrated the league four times, even playing the final in the starting line-up in 2017 and 2018, displacing Bale. Zidane rebuilt the formation to a 4-4-2 because of him, that’s how crucial Isco was for Real back then.

In the 2018/19 season, his role was set to rise even further when coach Julen Lopetegui arrived, who was Isco’s ‘footballing father’ and built the game around him in the national team. But Lopetegui was soon sacked, Isco didn’t sit well with new coach Santiago Solari, and this heralded the decline of an incredibly technically gifted footballer.

After Zidane returned to the bench, he still regained his role for a while, but after the coronavirus break in 2020, he never returned to top form, thus spending the last two seasons rather paberking. He’s still only 30 years old though and can kickstart his career again elsewhere, his contract expires in June and he can go anywhere for free. There’s a lot of talk about going to Real Betis.

Another star farewell

But other star players are also coming to the end of their contracts. Midfielder Hector Herrera has already said goodbye to Atlético Madrid, and Ousmane Dembélé will quite likely end up at Barcelona.

Hector Bellerín has said a touching farewell to Betis, who is returning to Arsenal after his loan spell. Celta Vigo fans have already been told of the departure of 35-year-old Nolito, who has played for Sevilla or Manchester City. Villarreal will be waved off by 32-year-old goalkeeper Sergio Asenjo, who spent nine seasons at Estadio de la Céramica.

Source: La Liga, MARCA