Luis Suarez, leader of the Uruguay locker room, which faces Panama in the Copa America on Sunday

A rejuvenated 37-year-old Luis Suarez showed he is still a lethal striker with 12 goals in 16 games for Inter Miami this season. Now the Uruguayan legend is determined to help his national team win a record 16^th Copa America title and return to the international stage after an early elimination from the World Cup in Qatar.

Although he is not expected to be part of a talent-rich group of youngsters, Suarez’s experience and leadership are a luxury for The Celeste (The Blue Sky).

Uruguay, tied with Argentina with 15 Copa crowns, will play its tournament opener against Panama on Sunday night at Hard Rock Stadium (9 p.m., FOX).

Morale is good in the Uruguayan camp, and for good reason. Under revered coach Marcelo Bielsa, who took over the team in May 2023 after four years at English club Leeds United, Uruguay beat Argentina and Brazil in World Cup qualifying and beat Mexico 4-0 in their last preparation match for the Copa America. a few weeks ago.

Bielsa, 68, is a mercurial manager nicknamed “El Loco” for his relentless pressing tactics and high-intensity training.

He was born and raised in Rosario, Argentina, the same hometown as Messi and Inter Miami coach Tata Martino. He is the second foreign manager in Uruguay’s history and the first Argentine, which is significant because the teams are neighbors and rivals. Bielsa brings experience from his national team stops with Chile and Argentina and European know-how from his time there.

Uruguay are in second place in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers and are among the favorites to lift the Copa America trophy on July 14 with a new generation of players after the withdrawals of Edinson Cavani and Diego Forlan and relegation of Suarez to the bench. The last time Uruguay won this tournament was in 2011.

Bielsa summoned more than a dozen players with no national team experience when he took over, and they integrated well with standout Uruguayan players such as Real Madrid’s Federico Valverde, Barcelona’s Ronald Araujo, Darwin Nunez from Liverpool, Rodrigo Betancur from Tottenham, and Manuel Ugarte from PSG.

The team was previously coached by Oscar Tabarez, who held the position for 15 years before being fired in November 2021. Former Inter Miami coach Diego Alonso replaced Tabarez and led Uruguay to ‘at the 2022 World Cup.

Bielsa left Suarez and Cavani out of the squad for the first two rounds of World Cup qualifying last fall, but Suarez, “El Pistolero”, has re-entered the coach’s plans in recent months . No one has played more matches or scored more goals for Uruguay than Suarez, who wore the national team jersey 138 times and scored 68 goals. This is his fifth Copa America.

“Luis is very important for us,” said Araujo, who is 12 years younger than Suarez. “We know what he means, not only for us, but for the world of futbol, ​​the level of player he is. He brings a lot inside the group and outside he coaches very well. We are happy that he is with us because he is the all-time top scorer for Uruguay, a leader and for all of us he is the best player in Uruguayan history.

Suarez said he was very motivated to do whatever he could to help the team.

“I had the regret of the 2022 World Cup where I felt very frustrated with the way we went,” Suárez said in an interview with the Uruguayan Football Federation. “Today, having a very excited generation, I wanted to participate, I had worked and I was looking forward to this first call.”

“What they have demonstrated in this new stage with Bielsa is having the personality to deal with the things and circumstances that the national team demands of you.”

They will face a Panamanian team that has only appeared in the Copa America once and has lost eight of its last nine matches against South American teams. Panama are rebuilding under coach Thomas Christiansen, who, coincidentally, also coached at Leeds. Panama finished fourth in the 2023 Gold Cup and fourth in the Nations League.

“Panama is an evolving team that has closed the distance between itself and its regional rivals, such as the United States, Mexico and Costa Rica,” Bielsa said. “They have players who are improving abroad and with a coach whose profile is very adaptable to the quality of his players.”

Panamanian captain Anibal Godoy is injured in the thigh. In his absence, Houston Dynamo midfielder Adalberto Carrasquilla will be the man to watch. He was voted the best player of the Gold Cup 2023. José Fajardo with 11 goals and Cecilio Waterman with 10 are their top scorers.

Canadian player Bombito targeted by racist messages

CONCACAF is investigating racist online messages directed at Canadian player Moise Bombito, who tackled Lionel Messi during Argentina’s 2-0 win over Canada in the Copa America opener in Atlanta on Thursday.

Bombito plays for MLS club Colorado Rapids.

“We stand with Canada Soccer in condemning the shameful social media posts targeting Moise Bombito,” CONCACAF said in a statement. “Racism has no place in our sport or in society.”

CONCACAF is working with South American federation CONMEBOL to determine which accounts are responsible for the racist messages.

The Canadian national team released a statement that read: “Canada Soccer is aware of and deeply troubled by the racist comments made online and directed towards one of our men’s national team players following (Thursday’s) match. We are in communication with CONCACAF and CONMEBOL on this matter.

Some Copa America pitch conditions criticized

Eleven of the 14 Copa America venues are NFL stadiums and six of them use artificial turf. FIFA does not allow synthetic surfaces for major tournaments, so artificial turf pitches are temporarily covered with turf for Copa matches.

Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni and several of his players complained about the conditions on the makeshift pitch at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium for their opening 2-0 victory over Canada. Goalie Emi Martinez called it a “disaster.”

Araujo weighed in on Saturday: “We all saw what happened in the opening match, the pitch conditions were not what we all expected to deliver attractive and free-flowing football. The field is essential to organize a spectacular tournament.

Hard Rock Stadium has a natural grass pitch and has always been praised by visiting international soccer teams.