Ernesto Valverde has hinted that Luis Suarez could start for Barcelona’s Champions League opener against Borussia Dortmund tomorrow despite the Uruguayan only just returning from injury.
Suarez completed his return from injury this weekend, as he was brought on as a sub in Barca’s 5-2 win over Valencia, with the forward even managing to get name on the scoresheet twice during the clash as well.
This appearance came after Suarez returned to first team training towards the end of last week, as the forward looked to complete his return from an injury problem that has kept him out of action for most of this season.
And despite having played just 30 minutes since his return from injury, it seems like Suarez could be handed a start against Dortmund tomorrow if Valverde’s words are anything to go off.
As per the club’s official Twitter account, Valverde has stated that Suarez could be made to start against Lucien Favre’s side on Tuesday evening, with the Spaniard also noting that Lionel Messi could be made to play some part in his side’s CL opener should the club see fit.
? Valverde: "We'll decide tomorrow whether #Messi is going to play. We weren't sure a week ago, but there's been a lot of progress. As far as Suárez is concerned, he might be there from the outset." pic.twitter.com/p3YeSscPGi
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) September 16, 2019
Should Suarez end up starting tomorrow, we can probably expect him to take the place of Ansu Fati’s in the club’s starting XI, as the 16-year-old looks very tired after just 55 minutes against Valencia on Saturday, something that saw him taken off during the second half.
It’ll be interesting to see how Valverde uses Messi and Suarez against Dortmund, and whether the Spaniard thinks the rest of his squad are capable of beating their German opponents and starting their Champions League campaign on the right note.