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#1 Luis Suarez caps off the year with an all-round display
It is not every time that Lionel Messi is outshone on the field by a teammate or opponent but that was exactly the case in Barcelona's victory over Alaves. Luis Suarez has proven himself as the standout striker of his generation but he has seen heavy criticisms hurled at him in recent years due to his dwindling returns in front of goal and struggles on the continent.
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Despite these, the Uruguayan international remains a world-class player of the highest proportion and he reminded everyone of his abilities with a man-of-the-match performance against the Basque side. He set Antoine Griezmann up for the opening goal and made it two assists for the day when he squared for Vidal to put Barcelona 2-0 up with a thumping finish.
There was a third assist registered for Messi's goal and it would have been a major travesty if he did not get his name on the scoresheet after such a fine display. As it happened, Messi's magnanimity ensured that was not the case and Suarez gave a perfect Christmas gift to the millions of Barcelona fans around the world.
