Uruguay's Edinson Cavani (Photo : Reuters)
Uruguay captain Diego Godin ensures that his team will remain unfazed despite the absence of their international star and leading scorer Luis Suarez in this year's Copa America tournament, as per NDTV Sports.
"I'm not going to lie, the absence of Luis is important," Godin told reporters after a practice session. "He's a leader both on and off the field and he has been in spectacular form."
Godin continued that he and his teammates should forget about their superstar forward and just focus on the task at hand. He believes that the team's rich history of knocking down better-seeded opponents will again come to play here in Chile.
La Celeste is included in what many analysts believe is the toughest group in the tournament, Group B, together with top favorite Argentina, 2011 runner-up Paraguay, and Jamaica.
Suarez, also Barça's lead striker and part of the Spanish club's Big Three with Argentina's Lionel Messi and Brazil's Neymar, is currently serving a nine-game suspension from international play after biting the shoulder of Italian Giorgio Chiellini during last year's World Cup in Rio. He is considered as one of the best players in the world and perhaps the best striker in football right now.
So far, he had served only one game, so the remaining eight will not allow him to play in the Copa's 2015 edition even if La Garra Charrúa reaches the final.
Without Suarez, Óscar Tabárez's men will depend on striker Edinson Cavani to lead their offense, according to The National. Cavani is also a forward of the French club Paris Saint-Germain and is highly-touted as a versatile scorer.
Cavani said that they have to keep a low profile coming into this summer's tournament and take every team seriously for them to succeed and have a shot at the championship.
Together with Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and host nation Chile, Uruguay is predicted to reach the semifinals of this year's competitions.
Los Charrúas is scheduled to face Jamaica, a tourney-invited team, for their opener on Saturday, June 13.
