Uruguay Loss Shows Bad Signs for Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani Partnership

On a dreary Sunday evening at Wembley Stadium in London, the 88-year unbeaten record that Uruguay held in Olympic football was finally broken by a tireless Senegal.

The 2-0 loss came as a shock to a Uruguay team that boasts players that finished fourth in the 2010 World Cup, and won the 2011 Copa America. It signaled even worse signs for a striking partnership worth millions of dollars, but which has failed to score a single goal in two games.

Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani each had a miserable match as they were marked out of the game by Senegal's robust and busy defenders. The African representatives were even reduced to 10 men within half an hour after a critical foul by Abdoulaye Ba on the dramatic Suarez, but managed to comfortably maintain their lead after Moussa Konate headed home their second goal at 37 minutes.

Uruguay never gave up in the match. They attempted to get back in it by utilizing the bombastic and gritty style that has brought them fame, but even additional striker Abel Hernandez was unable to threaten Senegal with a goal after coming on in the second half.

Despite some dangerous play from both Suarez and Cavani, arguably two of the top strikers in Europe, neither were able to connect and it showed. The South Americans managed only six shots on goal—only one more than Senegal with 10 players.

Ousmane Mane saved a looping shot by Cavani in the first half. Suarez missed two clear opportunities in the 62nd minute when he headed one wide under no pressure, and lost another due to a good save by the Senegalese keeper in extra time. Aside from those chances, the Uruguayan heavy hitters struggled to read each other, and found themselves in isolated positions too often.

The Napoli striker found himself drifting wide right and not being in the box when his height could have aided Uruguay in crossing attempts, a strategy that brought little fruit at the 2010 World Cup. His counterpart, who failed to make the tricky runs that have made him a favorite in Liverpool, also showed obvious frustration, and was perhaps distracted by the negative reaction of fans who are still critical of the theatrical striker following accusations of racism earlier in the domestic season.

If Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez is not able to figure out a way for the two hit men to better interact on the pitch, or make the dramatic decision to pull one of them off in favor of a lesser known forward such as Palermo's Hernandez, it could make for a terrible final group match against a resurgent Great Britain.

In either case, one of these men must begin to score if Uruguay is to claim their first Olympic title since 1928. If neither do, they will be fortunate to not be eliminated at the hands of the host nation on Wednesday.