Friday 31 October 2014

[LIGA BBVA] - Barcelona Shift Focus to Luis Suarez

in SPORTS by Anothergist on 17:40:00

Luis Suarez makes his home debut on Saturday against Celta.

All eyes on Luis Suarez with Barcelona now at full strength

Still smarting from defeat in the Santiago Bernabeu at the weekend, Barcelona were at least able to focus on a new competition on Wednesday night when they won the inaugural Catalonian Super
Cup on penalties after a 1-1 draw with city rivals Espanyol over 90 minutes.
While it will not count at the end of the season as an important title, the game at least allowed several players to get Saturday's loss out of their system and got the club to refocus after the Clasico setback.

Up next is the Celta Vigo side that Luis Enrique coached last season. They pay a visit to the Camp Nou on Saturday night where Barca must defend their slight lead over their rivals at the top of La Liga. To do that they need to get back to their winning ways and Luis Suarez may finally be well-positioned to help them do that.

On Wednesday night he was given 45 minutes of action along with teammates including Gerard Pique, Xavi Hernandez and Ivan Rakitic who were all also involved at some stage in the Bernabeu. Suarez started the game along with Pique and the two combined to open the scoring on the evening when the Uruguayan found the defender's head with a delicate chip inside the Espanyol area early on.

Afterwards Enrique talked up the forward in the hope that Barca can now start a new stage of the season. With the services of their big summer signing finally available to them, frightening opposition defences with his ability and goals certainly has to be the aim.

"Luis Suarez is getting most things right. He played tonight with a lot of movement and showed a good attitude; he was at the same level as all the other players in the first half," the coach told the press after Suarez's second consecutive start in a Barca shirt.

Whether or not it was the correct decision to play the Uruguayan from the start in the Bernabeu -- and you can argue about a number of Enrique's selections in that game -- what can't be denied is the former Liverpool player had an immediate effect with the assist for Neymar's goal and then a pass from which Lionel Messi came within an inch of doubling Barca's lead.

With the season still at such an early stage and Barca now able to display their full arsenal of attacking talent, the focus must be on taking as many league points between now and the winter break, while also confirming top spot in their Champions League qualifying group.

That involves 10 games between now and Christmas, including three key La Liga duels against Sevilla, away at Valencia and Espanyol and two critical Champions League fixtures: a visit to Amsterdam against Suarez's former employee Ajax next week, before the home tie with Paris Saint-Germain on Dec. 10.

The challenge is to repeat what Real Madrid have just done, a credible 10 straight victories since Los Blancos lost 2-1 to Atletico Madrid in the Santiago Bernabeu in mid-September. And that is a feat that should certainly not be beyond a Barca side with the talent at their disposal.

To achieve that they need a Suarez in the form of last season at Liverpool where he came into the side after another suspension and hit 33 goals in 39 matches in all competitions. So far this season Barca have relied heavily on the goals of Messi and Neymar who have accounted for 18 of their 28 goals. Expect that statistic to change if Suarez finally hits the ground running.

With so much still to play for, Enrique has been instilling the message that nothing was lost in Madrid last week.

"To lose in the Bernabeu is always tough for a Barcelona fan, but I don't think it has particularly affected me; if anything I am more motivated than ever," he said on Tuesday when called upon to dissect the aftermath of the game.

He will be using similar words to get his players up for Saturday against Celta and the challenges that come thick and fast afterwards. What is certain is that Suarez is the one player in the squad with the most to prove. Barcelona's ever-demanding fans and local press will be watching carefully.