Two-goal hero Suarez 'dreamed' of beating England

Uruguay's two-goal hero Luis Suarez said he had "dreamed" of beating England in the World Cup on Thursday and that the South Americans had been stung by criticism after they lost to Costa Rica.

Uruguay's two-goal hero Luis Suarez said he had "dreamed" of beating England in the World Cup on Thursday and that the South Americans had been stung by criticism after they lost to Costa Rica.

Uruguay-s-Luis-Suarez-celebrates-with-teammates-after-scoring-his-team-s-first-goal-during-their-World-Cup-Group-D-match-against-England-at-the-Corinthians-arena-in-Sao-Paulo-Reuters-Photo

"Yes, I dreamed of this," the striker said after the 2-1 Group D victory over England.

"It was something I imagined many times but I had to calm myself down," said Suarez who was player of the year in England for his club side Liverpool but who underwent a knee operation just four weeks ago .

But he stressed that the whole team had wanted to fight back after being criticised for their 3-1 defeat by Costa Rica in their opening group game.

The players "all wanted to pull this off because of the criticism we had after Costa Rica," Suarez said at a press conference.

Suarez scored a goal in each half to sink England in the crucial game that keeps Uruguay in the hunt for a second round place.

The winning goal came just five minutes before the end of the game.

"When the ball came, I closed my eyes and hit it with everything I had for those who supported me," he added.

Suarez thanked his family, friends and especially the physiotherapist who guided him back into action after the operation on a damaged meniscus.