Luis Suarez allays Barcelona injury fears ahead of Espanyol derby and Juventus visit

Barcelona striker Luis Suarez has allayed fears he picked up a new injury on international duty after playing 90 minutes with 'no pain' during Uruguay's 2-1 victory over Paraguay on Tuesday night (5 September).

The news is a big boost for manager Ernesto Valverde ahead of a busy week which will see the Catalans facing Espanyol on Saturday (9 September) three days before receiving Juventus in their Champions League opener.

Suarez, 30, missed the first two La Liga victories over Real Betis and Alaves after suffering a knee injury during Barcelona's 2-0 defeat to Real Madrid in the second leg of the Spanish Super Cup on 16 August.

Barcelona then said that the former Liverpool forward was expected to be on the sidelines for around four weeks, missing Uruguay's World Cup qualifiers against Argentina and Paraguay and being also a major doubt for the Champions League opener against Juve.

But last week the club revealed that the recovery was been ahead of schedule and Suarez had been given the medical clearance to travel for the games against Argentina and Paraguay.

However, the Uruguayan set alarm bells ringing in Barcelona again after being forced off in the 82nd minute of the goalless draw with Argentina due to a new muscle problem. Suarez then took to social media to play down the concerns of the fans after claiming that the issue was only minor.

"An important point to continue to add and keep dreaming about the World Cup," the Barcelona star wrote on Instagram. "I'm fine, it was just cramp in my calf. Come on Uruguay."

There were still some concerns at Barcelona about whether the forward should be rested by Uruguay for the following encounter with Paraguay in order to avoid another setback. Suarez played 90 minutes on Tuesday night to help his national team to secure a 2-1 victory and after the game reassured the fans that he is completely fine.

"Today [against Paraguay] I was much better than against Argentina. I did not have any pain," Suarez said to the reporters as quoted by Mundo Deportivo. "The other day, the tiredness and the inactivity [following a time on the sidelines] bothered me a bit but the desire and the enthusiasm to defend the national team led me to play 82 minutes. Today [against Paraguay] I felt much better and without fear."

Suarez should therefore be ready to make his first La Liga appearance of the campaign when Espanyol visit the Nou Camp for the first Catalan derby of the season on Saturday [9 September]. Manager Valverde may however consider resting some players against Quique Sanchez Flores' side as the game will come just three days before the Champions League visit of Juventus.