Time for Uruguay to bench Luis Suarez at 2022 World Cup?

Portugal ahead Cristiano Ronaldo has clearly seen higher days, however although he turned the primary to achieve the milestone of scoring in 5 males’s World Cups, with a extremely doubtful penalty within the 3-2 win in opposition to Ghana, the proof of the sport was that there are nonetheless moments when the 37-year-old affords a potent risk at this degree.

However does the identical apply to the centre ahead that Portugal will seemingly be dealing with of their second group-stage sport on Monday? Luis Suarez is Uruguay’s all-time prime purpose scorer, however his efficiency within the 0-0 draw in opposition to South Korea was not spectacular. He touched the ball 18 instances, shedding it on 9 of these events, and didn’t handle a single shot on purpose.

Approaching 36, it’s hardly stunning that Suarez is in decline. True, he was Uruguay’s prime scorer in qualification with eight targets, however 5 of these got here from penalties. Suarez was changed after an ineffective hour in opposition to South Korea and the time could have come to consider beginning Monday’s match with out him.

Ever since Russia 2018, Uruguay have sought the holy grail of integrating their new era of stars with the previous stagers. The stability has to this point proved elusive — therefore the issues in qualifying, when it took a change of coach and a late surge to hold them over the road.

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There’s a key structural downside. The midfield, no less than in potential, is now the very best a part of the crew however it features higher with three within the centre — Matias Vecino and Rodrigo Bentancur to guard the defence, hyperlink the play and free Federico Valverde to make use of his lung energy, approach and glorious long-range taking pictures. Nevertheless, having a central midfield trio makes it exhausting to play two up entrance, and this can be a seismic change for a crew which for years has paired Suarez with Edinson Cavani in a 4-4-2 formation. The image is additional difficult by the rise of Liverpool’s Darwin Nunez as one other highly effective centre ahead possibility.

Cavani, ever the crew man, seems to have accepted a spot on the bench now he’s 35 years previous, and house has been discovered for Nunez, because it was in opposition to South Korea when he operated from the left flank in a 4-3-3. However different choices can be found. However what if the younger and dynamic Nunez had been to play up entrance on his personal within the centre ahead place? He would definitely provide extra mobility than Suarez, and he would possibly maintain up the ball higher than the veteran managed on Thursday.

In flip, this could unlock house for one more kind of attacking expertise. Playmaker Giorgian De Arrascaeta didn’t get on the sector in opposition to South Korea and all through the eight years of his worldwide profession to this point there has all the time been a sense that he didn’t match right into a 4-4-2 formation which sends him out to the wings, the place he’s not fast sufficient to thrive. However centrally, behind a lone striker? Which may work higher — for him or for Facundo Torres, the most recent playmaking expertise off the block.

It might be an enormous name for coach Diego Alonso to go away Suarez out of the beginning lineup for Monday’s sport, however there can be some logic within the choice.

Portugal are a crew who transfer the ball properly; operating energy and shutting them down as they play out from the again, might be necessary. And there’s maybe a wider level. This event, and particularly Japan’s thrilling 2-1 win over Germany, has made one thing very clear: Soccer is not a sport for 11, and even 12 or 14 gamers. With 5 substitutions no accessible, groups are made up of 16, and the power to vary the course of the match by going to the bench is now necessary.

Becoming a member of Cavani on the bench needs to be no humiliation for Suarez; he might nonetheless have a key function to play. Think about that Uruguay are behind and chasing the sport. In that state of affairs, circumstances would demand that the crew push excessive up the sector, the place Suarez’s penalty-area nous and ending expertise might save the day.

Over time Ronaldo has accepted that with the intention to keep on the prime he has to function in diminished house. Maybe within the present Uruguay facet the 2022 model of Suarez must function in diminished time.