Is it time for Uruguay to drop Luis Suarez to the bench?

Portugal guardant Cristiano Ronaldo has intelligibly seen amended days, but though helium became the archetypal to scope the milestone of scoring successful 5 men's World Cups, with a highly dubious punishment successful the 3-2 triumph against Ghana, the grounds of the crippled was that determination are inactive moments erstwhile the 37-year-old offers a potent menace astatine this level.

But does the aforesaid use to the centre guardant that Portugal volition apt beryllium facing successful their 2nd group-stage crippled connected Monday? Luis Suarez is Uruguay's all-time apical extremity scorer, but his show successful the 0-0 gully against South Korea was not impressive. He touched the shot 18 times, losing it connected 9 of those occasions, and did not negociate a azygous changeable connected goal.

Approaching 36, it is hardly astonishing that Suarez is successful decline. True, helium was Uruguay's apical scorer successful qualification with 8 goals, but 5 of those came from penalties. Suarez was replaced aft an ineffective hr against South Korea and the clip whitethorn person travel to deliberation astir starting Monday's lucifer without him.

Ever since Russia 2018, Uruguay person sought the beatified grail of integrating their caller procreation of stars with the aged stagers. The equilibrium has truthful acold proved elusive -- hence the problems successful qualifying, erstwhile it took a alteration of manager and a precocious surge to transportation them implicit the line.

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There is simply a cardinal structural problem. The midfield, astatine slightest successful potential, is present the champion portion of the squad but it functions amended with 3 successful the centre -- Matias Vecino and Rodrigo Bentancur to support the defence, nexus the play and escaped Federico Valverde to usage his lung power, method and fantabulous long-range shooting. However, having a cardinal midfield trio makes it hard to play 2 up front, and this is simply a seismic alteration for a squad which for years has paired Suarez with Edinson Cavani successful a 4-4-2 formation. The representation is further analyzable by the emergence of Liverpool's Darwin Nunez arsenic different almighty centre guardant option.

Cavani, ever the squad man, appears to person accepted a spot connected the seat present helium is 35 years old, and abstraction has been recovered for Nunez, arsenic it was against South Korea erstwhile helium operated from the near flank successful a 4-3-3. But different options are available. But what if the young and dynamic Nunez were to play up beforehand connected his ain successful the centre guardant position? He would surely connection much mobility than Suarez, and helium mightiness clasp up the shot amended than the seasoned managed connected Thursday.

In turn, this would escaped up abstraction for different benignant of attacking talent. Playmaker Giorgian De Arrascaeta did not get connected the tract against South Korea and passim the 8 years of his planetary vocation to day determination has ever been a feeling that helium did not acceptable into a 4-4-2 enactment which sends him retired to the wings, wherever helium is not speedy capable to thrive. But centrally, down a lone striker? That mightiness enactment amended -- for him oregon for Facundo Torres, the latest playmaking endowment disconnected the block.

It would beryllium a immense telephone for manager Diego Alonso to permission Suarez retired of the starting lineup for Monday's game, but determination would beryllium immoderate logic successful the decision.

Portugal are a squad who determination the shot well; moving powerfulness and closing them down arsenic they play retired from the back, volition beryllium important. And determination is possibly a wider point. This tournament, and particularly Japan's thrilling 2-1 triumph implicit Germany, has made thing precise clear: Football is nary longer a athletics for 11, oregon adjacent 12 oregon 14 players. With 5 substitutions nary available, teams are made up of 16, and the quality to alteration the people of the lucifer by going to the seat is present important.

Joining Cavani connected the seat should beryllium nary humiliation for Suarez; helium could inactive person a cardinal relation to play. Imagine that Uruguay are down and chasing the game. In that scenario, circumstances would request that the squad propulsion precocious up the field, wherever Suarez's penalty-area nous and finishing skills could prevention the day.

Over the years Ronaldo has accepted that successful bid to enactment astatine the apical helium has to run successful reduced space. Perhaps successful the existent Uruguay broadside the 2022 mentation of Suarez needs to run successful reduced time.