France manager Didier Deschamps has hailed Liverpool striker Luis Suarez as the 'difference' in his side's 1-0 loss to Uruguay.
He has been in the headlines non-stop over the past couple of months for reasons that are not always positive, but Wednesday night saw him back to doing what he does best—scoring goals and winning games.
Les Bleus travelled to Montevideo for the friendly against the South American opponents but received no hospitality as Suarez scored the only goal of the game. France will be next up against football powerhouse, Brazil and the odds are not so kind for the French as football betting site, Unibet revealed.
And Deschamps said the second-half substitute introduction was the catalyst that turned the advantage to Uruguay's benefit.
After not playing a competitive match since being suspended for biting Branislav Ivanovic in late April, Suarez was left on the bench for the first half of the international friendly, with Diego Forlan and Edinson Cavani paired in attack. A low-key and uneventful first 45 minutes failed to yield a goal, and Suarez was introduced at the break in place of Forlan.
Suarez took only five minutes to score after coming on as a half-time substitute in place of former Manchester United man Diego Forlan. The goal was Suarez's 32nd for his country, which has put him one behind Forlan in the all-time Uruguayan scoring stakes.
Forlan has 33 in close to a century of caps, well ahead of Suarez's 64 appearances. The former Atletico Madrid striker is now 34 years old and is unlikely to add many more goals to that tally, although the Confederations Cup will give him another target to hit.
The 50th minute goal saw him cut in from right-hand side before superbly finishing from a tight angle with the outside of the boot.
Suarez's Liverpool team-mate Sebastian Coates and Southampton striker Gaston Ramirez played for the two-time World Cup winners, whilst Arsenal trio Bacary Sagna, Laurent Koscielny and Olivier Giroud turned out for the French.
It's back to the stands however for Suarez, as he will miss Uruguay's next game, a crucial World Cup qualifier against Venezuela next Tuesday, through suspension.