• Atletico have won five of their first seven games and are the only unbeaten side in the top flight, while champions Real Madrid and Barca have already lost two games each.
• Suarez said the key to ensuring the 20-year-old continues to shine was to not hand him too much responsibility for the team’s fortunes.
Image: /REUTERS
Atletico Madrid striker Luis Suarez has talked up his side’s La Liga title chances ahead of next week’s showdown against former club Barcelona, saying his side’s strong start to the campaign could give them an edge.
Atletico have won five of their first seven games and are the only unbeaten side in the top flight, while champions Real Madrid and Barca have already lost two games each.
Real Sociedad are top of the standings with 20 points while Atletico are third on 17 but have two games in hand. Real Madrid are fourth, while Barca are eighth.
“It looks like being a very close league, and whoever makes the fewest mistakes from the start could win it,” Suarez said in an interview with Marca on Monday.
“From being at Barcelona I know if you start the season badly and drop points it’s very hard to catch up with the leaders. If you want to win the league you have to be solid and convincing from the start.
“Things haven’t gone well for Barca but we know they’ll be fighting until the end. If we keep believing in ourselves and keep up this exciting start, why can’t we dream of winning it?”
Suarez has helped lead Atletico’s early charge with five goals since switching from Barca on a free transfer in September. His Portuguese strike partner Joao Felix has also scored five times, hitting form after a difficult first season in Spain.
Suarez said the key to ensuring the 20-year-old continues to shine was to not hand him too much responsibility for the team’s fortunes.
“Great teams are formed when every player feels equal,” added Suarez. “He is growing so much right now and with the right level of confidence can achieve great things and make the difference for us. But we need to make sure all the responsibility doesn’t fall on him.”
Meanwhile, Athletic Bilbao forward Inaki Williams has welcomed the news that a Spanish prosecutor is investigating the racist taunting he was subjected to during a La Liga match at Espanyol in January as "a very important step".
The Spanish prosecutor's division for hate crimes in Barcelona said on Monday that it had opened an investigation into two Espanyol fans accused of the chanting.
The prosecutors described the monkey noises made by supporters as "disdainful cries against the player, with the clear intention of trying to humiliate and hurt his dignity due to racist motives".
Williams, who denounced the chants back in January in a post-match interview, issued a video statement on his official Twitter account after news broke of the investigation.
"I just wanted to say that I'm very happy that the prosecutor has opened a lawsuit against the individuals who used racist insults to offend me," said Williams, 26.
"I think this is a very important step, we live in a society that needs to make lots of changes and this is one of them. Regardless of the colour of our skin, race or ideology, we are all equal, and that's why we need to respect each other.
"Most of all I'm very happy and I wanted to thank everyone for their messages of support."
Born in Bilbao to parents from Ghana who met in a refugee camp, Williams has spent his entire career at Athletic Bilbao and was called up by Spain in 2016, making one substitute appearance against Bosnia & Herzegovina.
In 2015 he became the first Black player to score for the club, who only select players with ties to the Basque country.