Luis Suarez Is A Ferocious Soccer Enigma, And Must Start For Barcelona In el Clasico

There are some players and some games that are no stranger to intense speculation and raucous hyperbole.

Players like Luis Suarez, who is line to make his first ever appearance for the Blaugrana this weekend. And games like Barcelona versus Real Madrid, el Clasico, a titanic spectacle that’ll be staged at the Santiago Bernabeu this weekend, one in which the effervescent Uruguayan will play a part in. His Barcelona manager, Luis Enrique, says “he will have some minutes for sure.”

The intense focus this game naturally demands has been sharpened further in recent years. No longer is the spotlight solely on the pair of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo—although they undisputedly remain the two finest players in world soccer—but now, the likes of Neymar, Gareth Bale, James Rodriguez and Suarez after big money moves to the La Liga juggernauts.

It’ll be the first Clasico as a manager for Luis Enrique too, and he has enjoyed a marvelous start to his tenure as Barcelona boss. The Catalan giants have won seven and drawn one of their opening eight domestic clashes, a run in which they have yet to concede a goal. But with the eyes of the world set to be engrossed by the spectacle at the Bernabeu on Saturday—a fixture that has incessantly been about scoring goals, not stopping them—the former midfielder has a big decision to make.

Programming note: For viewers in the United States, this Saturday’s el Clasico between Real Madrid and Barcelona will be shown live on beIN SPORTS, beIN SPORTS Espanol and DishWorld (with coverage beginning at 11am ET). Even if you don’t have a TV subscription to beIN SPORTS, you can access those channels via online streaming service DishWorld for $10/month. Read our review of DishWorld. And sign up for DishWorld via their website.

After being brought to the Nou Camp for a fee believed to be in the region of £75 million, this match has long been isolated as the one in which Suarez will make his Barca bow. With the odd friendly and behind-closed-door match under his belt, he’s reportedly in shape and raring to go, but naturally, there will be questions raised about just how match fit he is following the substantial ban served for that moment of madness at the World Cup finals.

It’s an enormous decision for Enrique. The world will want to see Suarez take his place within an enticing attacking triumvirate of Messi and Neymar of course, but should the new boss deviate from the players and the system that has served this team so well in the early stages of the season? A group that has married an attacking flair and defensive cohesion with distinction? It’d be a major gamble, but it’s one worth taking.

Admittedly, Suarez couldn’t be making his debut in a much more difficult environment. Real are in a magnificent vein of form and given the former Liverpool man’s recent conduct, he’ll be sure to receive plenty of stick from the Bernabeu crowd. But Barcelona’s new no. 9 isn’t a player that’d become a shrinking violet in that kind of volatile atmosphere, quite the opposite in fact.

His undesirable antics meant he was targeted by supporters up and down the land in the Premier League, but those detractors and abusers merely spurred him on to 31 goals; Suarez will be rubbing his hands together at the prospect of 90,000 Madridistas desperate for him to lose his cool amid the hotbed atmosphere, for he feeds off that kind of crowd energy.

There are players that have crumbled in the Clasico and to throw someone in for their debut such a significant clash would unsurprisingly be too much for some. But Suarez is not ordinary footballer, he’s a ferocious force of nature, match fit or not. Let’s not forget, this is a player who went from being wheelchair-bound to bagging a brace against England in the World Cup in the space of four weeks and a player who hauled Liverpool to within inches of a wholly unexpected Premier League title.

He’s a man who just loves to be out on the pitch, galvanizing teammates with moments of inspiration and—a facet of his game that is often understated—unshakeable industry. For a match like this, expect that kind of application to be even more apparent, setting an insatiable precedent that’s vital when it comes to these kinds of occasions. Although his career is littered with instances of ineptitude, more often than not, Suarez is a man who leads by example on the field.

It’s a calculated risk that the Catalans can afford to take too, for the pressure is undoubtedly on their fierce rivals going into this one. Carlo Ancelotti’s side cannot afford to lose this Clasico with Barca four points ahead of them in the race for the La Liga crown, and while a loss for the Catalans would be far from ideal, it would be a much more catastrophic blow for Los Blancos.

Although Barcelona have been magnificent on the domestic front this season, they have yet to tackle a foe that harbors quality that is in anyway comparable to the European champions. And while they boast the likes of Messi and Neymar, you just wonder if Enrique’s men will need that extra edge to get the better of a team that’s currently bristling with incision and vibrancy.

Suarez can give them that and although much of  the talk surrounding him as of late has been of a negative nature, it’d be no surprise to see this phenomenal footballer remind everyone just how special he is with a telling contribution, even on the biggest stage of all. Indeed, players like Suarez, regardless of the tangible detrimental circumstances, will always find a way of doing so.

Follow Matt on Twitter @MattJFootball