This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/jun/28/luis-suarez-bite-balance-hit-face-chiellini

The article has changed 8 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 2 Version 3
Luis Suárez bite defence: I lost balance and hit my face against Chiellini Luis Suárez bite defence: I lost balance and hit my face against Chiellini
(35 minutes later)
Owen Gibson
Recife
Luis Suárez, the Uruguayan striker banned for four months for biting Giorgio Chiellini, claimed in his defence to Fifa that the shocking act was not deliberate and he simply lost his balance and fell on to the Italian player with his teeth.Luis Suárez, the Uruguayan striker banned for four months for biting Giorgio Chiellini, claimed in his defence to Fifa that the shocking act was not deliberate and he simply lost his balance and fell on to the Italian player with his teeth.
In a defence that makes the proverbial “dog ate my homework” look plausible, Suárez wrote in a letter to the Fifa disciplinary panel chaired by Claudio Sulser that the incident was an accident. In a defence that makes the “dog ate my homework” excuse look plausible, Suárez wrote to the Fifa disciplinary panel that the incident was an accident. “In no way it happened how you have described, as a bite or intent to bite,” the Liverpool striker, wrote in Spanish in a letter dated 25 June and revealed yesterday.
“In no way it happened how you have described, as a bite or intent to bite,” the Liverpool striker, dogged by controversy throughout his career, wrote in Spanish in a letter dated 25 June. “After the impact … I lost my balance, making my body unstable and falling on top of my opponent,” he said in his submission to the panel which met on Wednesday, a day after Uruguay had beaten Italy 1-0 in a decisive group-stage match. “At that moment I hit my face against the player leaving a small bruise on my cheek and a strong pain in my teeth,” Suárez said.
“After the impact ... I lost my balance, making my body unstable and falling on top of my opponent,” Suárez wrote in his submission to the panel which met on Wednesday, a day after Uruguay had beaten Italy 1-0 in a decisive group-stage match. The player could be seen holding his teeth following the incident with Chiellini but the seven-strong panel dismissed Suárez’s argument after studying the incident from 34 camera angles. The bite was “deliberate, intentional and without provocation,” the ruling stated. “He bit the player with the intention of wounding him or at least of destabilising him.”
“At that moment I hit my face against the player leaving a small bruise on my cheek and a strong pain in my teeth,” Suárez said. Suárez was banned for nine Uruguay matches and four months from all football, including domestic Premier League games for Liverpool. He was also fined £66,000. The Uruguay football federation yesterday said they will appeal against the ruling and will now have seven days to prepare the paperwork.
The player could be seen holding his teeth following the clash with Chiellini but the seven-strong panel dismissed Suárez’s argument after studying the incident from 34 camera angles. Fifa’s ruling confirmed that the referee, Marco Rodríguez of Mexico, acknowledged in his match report that he missed Suárez’s bite. So did his two assistants and the fourth official. “I haven’t seen the incident because the ball was in another sector of the pitch,” Rodríguez admitted in the 11-page document.
The bite was “deliberate, intentional and without provocation,” the ruling stated in paragraph 26 of the panel’s conclusions. The unprecedented ban was more severe because it was not the first time the player had been involved in a biting incident. Suarez has received bans for for biting opponents while playing for Ajax and Liverpool.
Suárez was banned for nine Uruguay matches and four months from all football, including domestic Premier League games for Liverpool. He was also fined £66,000. The Uruguay football federation have announced that they will appeal against the ruling and will now have a further seven days to prepare the paperwork for the appeal. Another reason was the Uruguayan showed no repentance for the incident and previous bans had not changed his behaviour, according to the Brazilian newspaper Estado de Sao Paulo. “At no time did the player show any kind of remorse or admit to any violation of Fifa rules and therefore showed no awareness of having committed any infraction,” the Fifa document said.
The panel, chaired by the former Switzerland international Sulser, included members from the Cook Islands, Hong Kong, Pakistan, Panama, South Africa and Singapore. The documents said a proposal for a six-game ban was considered but rejected as insufficient, it said. “The minimum punishment was not sufficient to have the necessary dissuasive effect,” Estado quoted the documents as saying. “Previous bans did not have an effect.”
Fifa’s ruling confirmed that the referee, Marco Rodríguez of Mexico, acknowledged in his match report that he missed Suárez’s bite. So did his two assistants and the fourth official. Suárez, who is now back in Uruguay where he met with country’s president and waved to supportive fans from his balcony, has received plenty of backing from within Latin America and tweeted on Saturday to acknowledge the support. “Hi all, I write this post to give thanks to the outpouring of support and love I am receiving. Both myself and my family really appreciate it. Thank you very much for being by my side and I want all my colleagues today we support selection for the match against Colombia.”
“I haven’t seen the incident because the ball was in another sector of the pitch,” Rodríguez wrote in paragraph four of witness submissions in the 11-page document.
The unprecedented ban was more severe because it was not the first time the player had been involved in a biting incident, Fifa confirmed on Friday.
Suárez, who is now back in Uruguay where he met with country’s president and waved to supportive fans from his balcony, was also banned for biting opponents while playing for Ajax and Liverpool.
The player has received backing from his coach, Oscar Tabáraz, who claimed that Suárez was being made a “scapegoat” and that the “excessive” ban had been motivated by a media driven campaign.
In a radio address, the Uruguayan president José Mujica said: “The disciplinary measures against Suárez were a monstrous aggression, not just against a man, but also against a country”.
But Fifa has insisted that the penalty was justified, partly because of Suárez’s previous record and partly because the incident set a bad example to those watching the World Cup around the world.
“I think he should find a way to stop doing it,” said the Fifa secretary general Jérôme Valcke. “He should go through a treatment. I don’t know if one exists but he should do something for himself because it is definitely wrong.”
Suárez’s Liverpool future remains up in the air, with Barcelona interested in offering him an escape route. The Anfield club, which has said it will study Fifa’s full findings before making its next move, is determined that he won’t be sold on the cheap. Suárez is believed to have a release clause of around £80m in his new contract.
Suárez has received plenty of backing from within Latin America and tweeted on Saturday to acknowledge the support. “Hi all, I write this post to give thanks to the outpouring of support and love I am receiving. Both myself and my family really appreciate it. Thank you very much for being by my side and I want all my colleagues today we support selection for the match against Colombia.”
Hola a todos, escribo este mensaje para dar las gracias a todas las muestras de apoyo y cariño que estoy (cont) http://t.co/2uo0LXaqs2Hola a todos, escribo este mensaje para dar las gracias a todas las muestras de apoyo y cariño que estoy (cont) http://t.co/2uo0LXaqs2
The former Argentina player Diego Maradona has likened the ban to sending the player to ‘Guantánamo’. Suárez’s former club manager, Kenny Dalglish, has called for Liverpool to help the striker to control his emotions. Uruguay were due to face Colombia in the World Cup’s first knockout round late yesterdayon Saturday.
“I think he should find a way to stop doing it,” said the Fifa secretary general Jérôme Valcke. “He should go through a treatment. I don’t know if one exists but he should do something for himself because it is definitely wrong.”
Suárez’s Liverpool future remains uncertain, with Barcelona interested in offering him an escape route. The Anfield club, which has said it will study Fifa’s full findings before making its next move, is determined that he will not be sold on the cheap. Suárez is believed to have a release clause of around £80m in his new contract.
, while The former Argentina player Diego Maradona has likened the ban to sending the player to ‘Guantánamo’. Suárez’s former club manager, Kenny Dalglish, has called for Liverpool to help the striker to control his emotions.