Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers admitted he is now left with no choice but to play Luis Suarez at every opportunity, even if he would like to give the Uruguayan some rest, while adding he had not even considered bringing Andy Carroll back to Anfield yet.
Liverpool, after loaning Carroll to West Ham at the end of the transfer window, were facing a striker crisis, with only Suarez and Fabio Borini their recognized strikers. However, with Borini now ruled out for up to three months, that leaves Rodgers with just Suarez in his squad -- a far from ideal scenario if you are looking to challenge for a top-four place.
Rodgers admitted during his pre-match press conference, that he would be forced to use Suarez more than he would have liked. "I've rested him a couple of times knowing the squad we have and the games we have, looking to prioritise, but like most footballers he wants to play every minute of every game," Rodgers said.
"It is something I need to assess. The most important thing is winning games - that is what we need to do and in order to do that as often as we can I need the best players on the field.
"Luis will absolutely love playing three times a week but I need to try to nurture him because there are still many games to play between now and January.
"And even in January if we bring someone in it may not be January 1, so that is something which, over time, I need to assess and we'll look to manage the squad."
One option of decreasing the burden would be to call back Carroll from West Ham as soon as the January transfer window opens, with the England international looking in prime form for the Londoners and seemingly loving the fact that he is the focal point of their attacks - Sam Allardyce's style definitely suiting him well.
"It isn't something I have considered, to be honest," the manager added. "Andy has obviously gone out to get games. We have people watching when he plays and they report back on how he is doing.
"But with Fabio's injury just coming up we will assess it from there."
Suarez might not seem like the easiest of players to manage, especially having been constantly in the news for all the wrong reasons, but Rodgers feels his striker is being unfairly targeted. "It is constant for the guy," he said. "People jump on the bandwagon and I am sure they will continue to do so.
"I've had the chance to work with Luis every day and see what type of character he is. He's had a lot of bad press recently.
"There won't be too many players involved in as many incidents as him in the box. I understand the South American and European players' mentality in trying to win a penalty with skill.
"It was interesting to note in the last game against Stoke that we are happy in this country for someone to clearly stamp on a player's chest and all we talk about is him diving in the box, which I find incredible."