Barcelona Striker Reveals Luis Suarez's Important Advice About Playing With Lionel Messi

Before leaving Barcelona, Luis Suarez left Martin Braithwaite some important advice about how he could complement the playing style of Lionel Messi.

In February last year, Braithwaite arrived at Camp Nou as Barcelona’s “emergency signing” from Leganes. Prior to his Barca debut, the Danish striker did his homework and studied how the Messi-Suarez team-up works inside the pitch.

Eager to quiz Suarez, who was bound to leave Catalonia at the time, Braithwaite personally asked the Uruguayan striker about the key to becoming a good co-star for Messi. According to the 29-year-old, Suarez advised him to simply be aware that the Argentine scores and helps his teammates at the same time.

"[Lionel] Messi's so good at setting himself up, setting his teammates up," Braithwaite recently revealed to ESPN and “The Big Interview" podcast. "When I first arrived [at Barcelona] I studied him and [Luis] Suarez. They're amazing and even as a fan, I loved how they played together.”

"I was so delighted to get to play with Luis before he left,” he continued. “I studied their movement and tried to analyze the combination of running behind, playing the one-twos and everything. Eventually I did ask Luis for guidance on how they developed that bond. [He told me] ‘Messi's a big team player. OK, he scores goals, but he also provides a lot of assists for his team. It's not difficult playing with a guy like that’."

Scoring goals has been Braithwaite’s main attribute. This season, he has proven that he is a valuable addition to Barcelona’s attacking arsenal, having notched two important goals in 17 matches.

Studying Messi and Suarez’s game may have been essential in Braithwaite’s progress, but apparently, his goal scoring was honed by Henrik Larsson, a legendary striker who is now Barcelona’s assistant manager.

“I'm obsessed about improving and ask Henrik [Larsson] almost too many questions,” the former Leganes star admitted. “But I soak up everything he tells me. “As a striker, there's nothing better than picking the brains of someone with vast experience who's been where you are, but who's also been places you've never been and has had time, post-career, to reflect on what he might have done differently.”

“Henrik has taught me so many small details -- things I hadn't thought about,” he added. “Sometimes it doesn't even have to happen on the training pitch. It's just two guys who love the game, having a discussion about the small details -- because that's what makes the difference."