As commented by the players themselves and the Uruguayan press – and it has become a habit in the sports world after the documentary The Last Dance, about Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls team of the 90s – the World Cup in Qatar is the “Last Dance”. of the duo, who have been defending the celestial team for 15 years.

Born in the same city, Salto, 500 kilometers from Montevideo, Suárez and Cavani began playing together and representing Uruguay at the 2007 U-20 World Cup in Canada. Until their elimination by the United States in the round of 16, the young Uruguayans played four games and scored four goals, two by Cavani and two by Suárez.

The following year, 2008, the duo began meeting for the main team, then managed by Óscar Tabárez. Since then, there have been four World Cups, a fourth place in the world in 2010, a Copa de America title in 2011 and many goals.

In this trajectory, Suárez and Cavani became the two greatest scorers in the history of the Uruguayan professional national team. Or 68 for the first, including seven in the World Cup, and 58 goals for the second, including five scored in the World Cup. The two overtook – and easily – Diego Forlán, the third top scorer with 36 goals.

The pair are also among those who have worn the Uruguay shirt the most to date: Suárez has played 134 times and Cavani 133. Both are just behind defender Diego Godín, who entered the pitch 159 matches to represent Team Celeste. Everyone should increase those numbers in this World Cup

Even though they are not part of the starting lineup in Qatar, Suárez and Cavani have already played and won enough to earn the country’s respect and admiration and etch their names in the biography of Uruguayan football history.

Both forwards are treated as symbols of a generation led by former coach Óscar Tabárez, who helped restore the prestige of the two-time world champions side at international level. Godín, Martín Cáceres and goalkeeper Fernando Muslera, who are also due to leave the team after the Qatar Cup, are the others responsible for improving the international reputation of the Uruguayan team.

They occupied spaces for Forlán, Diego Lugano and Loco Abreu and other players from the previous generation. As the time to hand over to new players draws near, the Qatar Cup has been treated by players and the Uruguayan press as the “last ball” of the group before Celeste’s abandonment.

Regarding the legacy of Suárez and Cavani, Jorge Señorans, sports journalist for ESPN Uruguay, says that it is far beyond that the forwards are the two best scorers in the history of the selection and are among the five players who are the most entered the field for the team. .

“They are idols. Suárez returned to Uruguay to play for Nacional, and Cavani is also very popular. They will also leave a legacy to the professionals that they are, for their dedication, for their winning mentality and for having given everything to the jersey of the country, ”says the journalist.

“Both (Suárez and Cavani) are linked to the resurgence of the Uruguayan national team, a process that began with Tabárez in 2006 and ended in fourth place in the World Cup in South Africa and the title of the Copa América in 2011”, explains Jorge Señorans, sports journalist for ESPN Uruguay.

Óscar Tabárez left the team’s command at the end of last year and was replaced by Diego Alonso, who managed to qualify the team for the World Cup in Qatar. Which, for Pablo Benítez, journalist at Referi, the sports section of the Observer, does not erase the importance of the former commander for the country’s national team.

“Tabárez revolutionized the Uruguayan national team. He returned prestige, race, competitiveness and qualified for all worlds. The process he put in place, the structures, it was a refoundation of Uruguayan football” , said the journalist.

Although they are closer to other teammates off the pitch, Suárez and Cavani are teammates and respect each other. But on the pitch, they managed to create a harmony that makes the duo one of the most enduring and experienced in the Cup.

The journalists explain that both players, over the years, have gone through different changes in the way they play which has helped to keep the level of performance of both at a high level. At different times, the two have already occupied the wings, played in the center of the offensive line and also acted as a second striker.

In 2010, for example, in the first Duos Cup, in South Africa, Cavani and Suárez played wide open, with Forlán centralised. “Tabárez understood that he had three attackers and that one would have to be sacrificed to do more defensive work. Because of his physique, Cavani was chosen,” recalls ESPN’s Jorge Señorans. “So, for a long time, Cavani occupied the extremes of the field”.

After Forlán’s retirement from the national team, Suárez and Cavani teamed up and started playing as two strikers. “In his time playing for Liverpool, Suárez was a player who decided everything on his own. Thus, Tabárez relied heavily on this characteristic and left Cavani to do more defensive work, ”explains Pablo Benítez, reinforcing Señorans analysis.

The Observer journalist defines Cavani as a player who sacrifices a lot for the teams, whether for the Uruguayan national team or for the teams he plays for. A trait that Tabárez took advantage of to put Suárez in a more central position.

“However, in the 2018 Russian Cup qualifiers, Tabárez changed position because Suárez was showing himself to be a more complete player at Barcelona. So he put Cavani in the middle and with that determined he was the top scorer in Qualifiers (with 10 goals) for the 2018 Cup.”

Coincidence or not. Cavani and Suárez have never been knocked out when they played together in the world championships. And this curious fact is also linked to moments featuring the duo that have turned into must-see episodes when talking about the past of the cups’ history.

In 2010, Suárez was not used in the semi-finals against the Netherlands as he was sent off against Ghana in the quarter-finals. In extra time against the Africans, with the game tied at 1-1, the striker dodged a Ghanaian goal with his hand, jumping over the goal line.

The Uruguayan ended up being sent off, but left as the hero of the night. That’s because Asamoah Gyan took the penalty on the crossbar, keeping the scoreline unchanged until the end of extra time. On penalties, given the right to dig in by Loco Abreu, Uruguay won and progressed to the semi-finals, with Suárez suspended and only returning to contention for third place.

In 2014, the duo did not form in the match against Colombia, for the round of 16 of the Cup in Brazil, because Suárez was suspended from the World Cup for biting defender Chiellini’s shoulder during the match. last game of the group stage. Due to the punishment, the striker could not be selected for the knockout stage and was banned from playing in any sporting event for four months.

In the Cup held in Russia, Uruguay were eliminated by France, 2-0. This time who could not play was Cavani, who was injured in the 2-1 victory against Portugal, in the Round of 16, and was out of the squad in the next game. .

In the match against the Portuguese, the Uruguayan striker was the man of the match, signing both Uruguayan goals. In the second half, Cavani got injured and had to be carried off the field by Cristiano Ronaldo and did not recover in time for the decisive game against France.

Teamwork, experience and numbers, however, do not guarantee that the duo will be the holders of the world cup. But Suárez, who returned to Uruguay to play for Nacional, and Cavani, who currently plays for Valencia, Spain, are no longer at the peak of their careers or in the same physical condition they were years ago.

They will face competition from young Liverpool forwards Darwin Nuñez and Manchester United’s Facundo Pellistri. Both played alongside Suárez in friendlies against Iran and Canada. Cavani was out with an injury which jeopardized his call-up – he is not expected to arrive in Qatar in 100 per cent fitness.

In the 2-0 triumph against the Canadians, Nuñez teamed up with Suárez and scored one of the goals through the middle. The match ended with Iran winning 1-0.

For ESPN Uruguay’s Jorge Señorans, Celeste’s starting attack in the Cup is still “a big unknown”. “It seems to me that (Cavani and Suarez) are not going to play together. (Diego) Alonso only used them once in the Qualifiers, against Venezuela, in the Centenary”, he recalled.

The Observer’s Pablo Benítez believes the Uruguayan coach is more likely to start games with Darwin Núñez alongside Suárez. “Given the moment that Nuñez, a Liverpool player, is going through and since they also played the friendly match against Canada, I think that he and Suárez are starters,” explained the journalist.