Luis Suarez will not be taking the pitch for Uruguay on Thursday against Venezuela. Coach Oscar Tabarez confirmed this Wednesday night at a Lincoln Financial Field press conference.
The star striker missed La Celeste's first match of Copa America Centenario versus Mexico, which ended as a 3-1 result in the loss department. Now, with the team in a must-win situation, Tabarez will have to manage at least once more without his main man at the front of the lineup.
"He still hasn’t finished his rehab and until that happens he won’t be used on the team," said 'Maestro' Tabarez. "We are not going to jeopardize [Luis Suarez]."
Suarez has been out with a hamstring injury since FC Barcelona's Copa del Rey final victory over Sevilla last month. After leading La Liga in goalscoring for the 2015-16 season, Suarez hoped to make a triumphant return to the major international stage this summer. If Uruguay can't manage to win it's last two games, he may have to wait.
Following a 1-0 win over Italy at the 2014 World Cup, Suarez was banned for nine international matches due to a third biting incident of his career. He took a bite out of Giorgio Chiellini and while the Italians protested during the game for Suarez not getting punished, Uruguay scored the only goal of the match.
Suarez, 29, also missed the Copa America in 2015, only returning to action with La Celeste in March for CONMEBOL World Cup Qualifying matches. He scored an equalizer against Brazil on March 25 to mark his return to action after over a year of absence.
Uruguay, holding the most Copa America titles of any team, has a prime chance to grab its sixteenth tournament title, the first since two Copas ago in Argentina in 2011. With Tabarez playing it conservatively and cautiously, La Celeste will hopefully have Suarez in the spotlight when it matters most in the knockout rounds.