“They connect, they generate a telepathy that they have on the field,” remarked Inter Miami owner Jorge Mas on the soccer connection Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez have with each other. Heck, even beyond that, they are practically best friends forever. From the time they crossed paths with each other as teammates at FC Barcelona in 2014, the two clicked like no other. But does this also mean their impressive connection both on and off the pitch would also see them take similar decisions, say retirement? At least, the soccer world has more than to disagree.

At 38, it’s only natural for a soccer player to finally start thinking about their retirement. Even though Messi and Suarez have been enjoying their company on the pitch for old time’s sake, there’s no running from the truth that one day both will bid adieu to the beautiful game in some way or another. But what if we tell you they have already decided about their life after soccer and how they plan on doing it together?

At least, a recent admission from Suarez says so, who vocally shared his potential retirement plans, and on behalf of Messi as well. “I can tell you that I would love to retire with [Lionel Messi] because we’ve been talking about retiring together for years, and it could happen. It could happen, but it also depends on my renewal, his renewal, and well, each of us will make the right decision at the right time,” said Suarez as per ESPN.

Umm… friendship goals, maybe? It looks like Messi and Suarez have already mapped out their future together, with the possibility that they could even announce their retirements side by side. Then again, as the Uruguayan veteran mentioned, a potential contract renewal might see them take hold of this decision and kick around the ball for a while.

Notably, both of their contracts with Inter Miami are set to expire by the end of this year. So far, there have been rumors about a possible contract extension, but nothing concrete has surfaced from the Herons’ boardroom. Sure, some updates surfaced in the case of Messi, like renowned senior Athletic writer Felipe Cardenas gave a crucial update on the Argentinian’s contract situation.

He insisted that nothing has been concrete, but the talks are only positive from Messi’s camp. But as of today, we’re hearing about a potential retirement plan regarding the 8X Ballon d’Or winner and his best friend Suarez. No wonder the internet is upset, but for a reason that might surprise a few!

Lionel Messi can stay, but Luis Suarez can stray!

As this latest statement from Luis Suarez made the internet, it left ardent Lionel Messi fans fuming. They took to X and expressed their resentment towards this potential pact between the two. Well, the case that La Pulga supporters are putting in their favor is that El Pistolero is forcefully dragging his best friend into retirement, but the reality is that Messi can stick around for the long haul. “Suarez should retire alone, bro. Messi has many more years in his legs than he does,” wrote one.

We hope you recall that while there’s a little update about Messi’s contract situation, in the case of Suarez, there’s hardly an update, making everyone wonder whether Inter Miami is even keen to keep the former Liverpool striker. No wonder this fan had a very special theory that certainly puts the former Uruguayan international into negative limelight: “This guy is using Messi to get a new deal.”

Alright, let’s consider the “using Messi to get his way” theory for a moment. Even if it sounds bad, would you at least believe that Suárez simply wants to play alongside his best buddy whenever Miami — or Messi himself — calls it a day? If you ask us, that’s actually a good sign; it shows the true test of friendship — sticking together no matter what. But it seems ardent Inter Miami fans have already made up their minds about Suárez’s fate: “Someone tell this washed-out Suarez to keep the 25-year-old looking and sharp goat Messi out of his retirement.”

Another theory on why Messi fans don’t want their idol to retire alongside Luis Suárez comes down to a single moment. Picture this: all the attention and celebration would be split, making it hard for the soccer world to properly give either star their flowers. If not for Suárez, then at least Messi — in the eyes of these fans — deserves a special farewell of his own: “@LuisSuarez9 let Messi retire alone, he deserves that! You do it on your own,” wrote another netizen.

Shots fired! Despite making 21 appearances for Inter Miami — with six goals and ten assists to his name — fans seem far more captivated by Lionel Messi’s 19 goals and eight assists in just 19 matches. One netizen even argued that Suárez should have hung up his boots long ago, rather than dreaming of retiring from the beautiful game alongside the 2022 World Cup winner: “Suarez needs to retire yesterday…its hard to watch him, he looks like a player who’s been retired for years and is playing a charity game…”