Luis Suarez To Play In Barcelona Friendly On Monday, Says Luis Enrique

Barcelona manager Luis Enrique has confirmed that Luis Suarez will “get some minutes” during the club’s friendly at the Camp Nou on Monday. The Catalan club is scheduled to play Leon FC in the Joan Gamper Cup, which is held annually before the start of the La Liga season.

Programming note: For viewers in the United States, the match is being shown exclusively on beIN SPORTS, beIN SPORTS Espanol and DishWorld. The game kicks off at 2:35pm ET on Monday. 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.

Suarez had his ban upheld by the Court of Arbitrations for Sports (CAS) on Thursday. But the court felt that FIFA’s ban on all football-related activity was “excessive”, since it would have had an impact at the conclusion of the striker’s suspension.

The Uruguayan striker will continue to serve a nine-match international ban, but will be allowed to attend matches and train with his country. Suarez will also miss Barcelona’s first eight league matches of the season, plus their first three group stage games of the Champions League.

Speaking ahead of the friendly against Leon, Barcelona coach Luis Enrique had this to say regarding the former Liverpool striker: “In the two sessions that he’s been in you can see he’s a top level player. I know how we play and fits the profile, and I’d like to be able to give him some minutes tomorrow as a reward for the work he’s done on his own.”

The manager was also asked if Barcelona’s transfer business was done for the summer (since speculation is the club is still considering moves for Daley Blind and Juan Cuadrado).

Enrique’s response: “I’m not saying it’s closed. Not me, nor anyone at the club. You always look to strengthen and you always have to be the strongest.”