Sunday 11 January 2015 07:17, UK
Adam Bate looks at Luis Suarez's battle to find his best form amid the unrest at Barcelona...
It might have been only Elche in the Copa del Rey, but the relief was obvious.
Luis Suarez's trademark goal, wriggling free of his marker before cutting inside and firing home, came soon after an ingenious pass to set up Neymar for the opener and while the 5-0 win couldn't ease the tension around the Camp Nou, it has lifted some of the pressure from the club's €81million man.
Much of the emphasis since Suarez’s exit from Liverpool has been on his former club’s struggles to replace their star striker. But there has been rather less focus in the English media on the problems facing the player himself to adapt to life after Liverpool.
So while Suarez’s four goals in all competitions for Barcelona might be more than either of his successors on Merseyside have managed, it’s the tally of 16 that Alexis Sanchez has notched for Arsenal that’s proving more apposite for those fretting in Catalonia.
Suarez’s didn’t even get off the mark until his eighth La Liga appearance just five days before Christmas. He was unfortunate to have a goal disallowed against Valencia in the sixth of those games but that didn't stop the Spanish press running with the idea.
Marca revealed that only three forward signings in the last 50 years took so long to score for Barcelona. Those men are Christophe Dugarry, Luis Garcia and Maxi Lopez – none were a success. In fact, the trio scored only five La Liga goals for the club between them before being moved on.
Suarez knew the challenge he was taking on with Sanchez’s inside-right role, but that hasn’t made things any easier. Pedro, for all his limitations, remains more naturally-suited to the wide role, making the runs that his long-time team-mates know well.
For Suarez, the support role to Lionel Messi and Neymar is a new experience. “I know I came to Barcelona to score goals but I'm not worried,” he told Catalunya Radio. “I feel important to the team beyond the goals. I hope to score but Barca have two phenomena, so there's no drama.”
Unfortunately, at a club like Barcelona with a huge fee on your head, there’s always drama. Last weekend's defeat at Real Sociedad saw Andoni Zubizaretta and Carles Puyol leave the club, while Lionel Messi reportedly flirts with a move away. Luis Enrique is not expected to last much longer. It’s crisis time for a team going into this weekend just one point off the league leaders.
Suarez’s trip to face old foe David Moyes in San Sebastien ought to have been his big moment. With Messi and Neymar rested, here was a chance to seize the limelight. Instead it was a new low with Catalan newspaper Sport awarding the Uruguayan a 3/10 rating for his performance.
As a result, it’s now one La Liga goal in 696 minutes of action for last season’s winner of the European Golden Shoe. There have been opportunities too. Suarez’s 22 shots have yielded just one goal at a conversion rate of below five per cent. Messi is nearer 20 per cent with Neymar up at 27 per cent.
Although there have been five assists – perhaps that should be passes that preceded a goal where Messi and Neymar are concerned – it’s all left the Camp Nou a little underwhelmed after a global ban that delayed his debut. It’s a tough crowd used to the best.
Suarez is averaging 2.3 unsuccessful touches per 90 minutes compared to Neymar’s 1.8 and Messi’s mere 1.0. That’s more acceptable if you’re making things happen but Suarez also has the worst dribble success despite attempting far fewer take-ons than his celebrated team-mates.
It’s about more than the numbers though. There was always a possibility those would be unflattering when compared to two of the game’s icons. More concerning is Suarez’s lack of conviction, as exemplified by his wasted one-on-one chance against old club Ajax in November. Even the man himself recognises the issue.
“What is happening to me is that instead of acting on instinct, as I usually do, I hesitate and so I missed some good chances,” said Suarez. “I will try to regain that instinct.”
That can be particularly tricky at Barcelona. For while the familiar issues of adapting to a new culture might be easier for a Spanish speaker off the pitch, on the pitch there’s a very different style of play for Suarez to master.
From the speedy Liverpool counters-attacks to the staccato rhythms of Barcelona is quite the transition. In interviews, Suarez has openly marvelled at Messi’s ability to play in confined spaces with three or four opponents around him. It’s a new challenge for him.
“In the Premier and at Liverpool teams rarely close up shop," he told the Barcelona club website. "You always have space to move in, in which to take on opponents. The defenders are big and strong… I was used to them. Here they are more skilful, they complement each other and play tighter together. They know how much danger Barca can cause and so it can be quite difficult sometimes”.
In that same interview, Suarez acknowledged that it is “always difficult to adapt” but that he’d been instructed just to keep doing what he’s doing. "A forward always has to help the team, either with assists or goals. I am obviously a striker who likes to score a lot of goals and have done that in every team I have been with. I’m not scoring much at the moment, but I’m sure that with help from my colleagues, the goals will come."
Sunday’s game against Atletico Madrid is the biggest so far for Suarez at the Camp Nou. With the club consumed by uncertainty off the field and playing without the same old purpose on it, it needs more than a cup win over bottom-club Elche. Pressure is building and a result is needed. It’s time for Luis Suarez to put a challenging 2014 behind him.
Watch Barcelona v Atletico Madrid live on Sky Sports 5 HD at 8pm on Sunday
