Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde has defended the poor goalscoring form of Luis Suarez.

September 2015 was the last time he scored away from home in the Champions League -- which is surprising for a goalscorer of his ilk.

"When Luis is on the pitch we know he's going to have chances," Valverde said ahead of their meeting with Lyon.

"And, more importantly, the opposition know that.

"The other day [against Real Valladolid] he came on for 30 minutes and could have scored a hat-trick. Luis is so important because of what he generates and what he generates around him."