Luis Suarez: 'I was powerless to help Barcelona'

Luis Suarez has admitted that he is disappointed to have marked his Barcelona debut with a defeat after going down 3-1 to Real Madrid in tonight's El Clasico.

Suarez made his eagerly-anticipated return to football in the loss at the Santiago Bernabeu, after serving a four-month suspension.

Despite admitting that he was powerless to influence the result, the 27-year-old has drawn positives from the fact that the Catalans remain one point above Madrid in La Liga.

"We need to think about this match but we are still one point ahead of Real Madrid and we have to go on," he told reporters.

"For these late few weeks I have trained every day thinking about this match and I felt ready to play. The coach took the decision and I was available. I felt good and I tried to do everything in my power to help my team.

"You always want to mark your debut with a win and the result was not good for us considering the occasion, but I gave my all."

Neymar had fired Barcelona into third-minute lead but a Cristiano Ronaldo penalty on 35 minutes ensured parity at the break.

Pepe and Karim Benzema then netted second-half goals to ensure that Suarez's career with Barca got off to a losing start.