Uruguay preparation clouded by Suarez doubt

Forlan to play back up as side face Costa Rica in Group D.

FORTALEZA: Uruguay will give star striker Luis Suarez every chance to prove his fitness less than a month after having knee surgery ahead of their World Cup opener with Costa Rica in Fortaleza on Saturday.

The Premier League Player of the Year had an operation to repair damage to the meniscus in his left knee on May 22, but has remained steadfast in his determination to feature in Brazil.

“I want to tell everyone that the recovery is going very well and that the knee feels good,” said Suarez via his official Twitter account.

“Everything depends on how things go day-by-day, but it is going well.

“I want to thank you all for the messages of support I have received throughout the week and my mind is now focused on the World Cup.”

Should Suarez not start, then the Golden Ball winner from four years ago, Diego Forlan, will join Paris Saint-Germain’s Edison Cavani in attack.

Costa Rica, meanwhile, come into the competition as underdogs as they have been grouped alongside three previous World Cup winners.

The Central Americans’ task has been made even more difficult by injuries to key players as full-back Heiner Mora joined Real Salt Lake’s Alvaro Saborio and Everton’s Bryan Oviedo in missing out on the tournament.

But captain Bryan Ruiz insisted they won’t be overawed by their opponents.

“Everything is ready for Saturday,” he said. “We know what the team will be, the tactics we will use and also what we have to do during the game.”

In another fixture, containing Colombia’s potent attacking game – even without injured striker Radamel Falcao – will be key to defensive-minded Greece’s attempt to upset the World Cup Group C favourites on Saturday. Elsewhere, Ivory Coast will open their campaign against Japan.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 14^th, 2014.

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