Why Uruguay and Luis Suarez are still dark horses in Russia

Uruguay’s 1-0 over Saudi Arabia yesterday will have done nothing for their popularity amongst football purists, but it was enough to secure their place in the last 16.

Uruguay’s performances so far in Russia may not have been particularly eye-catching, but this team seems to have an unflappable winning mentality.

Through to the next round with a game to spare, the South Americans have got the job done swiftly up to this point and can afford to rest some players in their final group game against Russia.

Saudi Arabia might well feel aggrieved after their defeat on Wednesday, which condemned them to yet another early World Cup Exit. They enjoyed a much greater percentage of possession but couldn’t break down Oscar Tabarez’s stubborn and well-organised outfit.

Luis Suarez first-half strike was the difference between the two sides; he capitalised from a corner after a horrendous lapse of judgement by Saudi keeper Mohammed Al Owais and steered the ball home from close range.

The Barcelona striker was rightly criticised after his dis-interested display against Egypt in the opening game. But he was back to his clinical best yesterday as he opened his account in this year’s competition.

Tabarez spoke to reporters after the game:

"“Some people might think that winning these matches is easy. People were talking about Russia, Egypt and Saudi Arabia without really knowing,”I believe that in this World Cup we’ve seen so many surprises so far that we can’t take things for granted. Remember in the past when we saw scoreboards of 10-1 in a World Cup? You don’t see that very much anymore.”"

The La Celeste boss highlighted a key point that many people seem to have forgotten – There are no easy games during a World Cup.

Uruguay are winning games and efficiently plotting a course through the tournament, by any means necessary. They may not have clicked into gear as an attacking force yet, but they certainly haven’t looked vulnerable.

During their first two games, they have faced merely a handful of half chances, rather than an onslaught of goalscoring opportunities. Godin and Gimenez at centre back are perfectly in tune with one another and the two fullbacks either side of them are well disciplined.

Former Manchester United Centre back and pundit for the BBC Rio Ferdinand discussed the pairs quality when analysing the team:

"“These two are the best partnership in the tournament,”They play at club level together and know each other’s games inside out. You’ve got the senior member and young heir to the throne.They’re competitive, they’re aggressive, they’re athletic, they support each other and more importantly they play together, not as individuals.”"

Tabarez likes a simple 4-4-2 formation, which makes them compact and difficult to overrun, particularly with Vecino in midfield tending to drop a bit deeper and fill any space between the defence and the centre of the pitch.