Luis Suarez told Fifa’s disciplinary panel that he did not deliberately bite Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini at the World Cup. ‘In no way it happened how you have described, as a bite or intent to bite,’ the Uruguay striker wrote in Spanish in a letter dated June 25.
The player’s defense is in paragraph 6 of Fifa’s disciplinary committee ruling, which has been seen by the agency. ‘After the impact ... I lost my balance, making my body unstable and falling on top of my opponent,’ Suarez wrote in his submission to the panel which met Wednesday, one day after Uruguay beat 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,’ Suarez said. However, the seven-man panel which met on Wednesday evening dismissed the argument. The bite was ‘deliberate, intentional and without provocation,’ the ruling stated in paragraph No. 26 of the panel’s conclusions. Suarez was banned for nine Uruguay matches and four months from all football. He was also fined $112,000.
FIFA president Sepp Blatter believes Luis Suarez’s biting offense was ‘definitely not fair’ though he won’t say the player’s name. ‘It is not fair what he has done,’ Blatter said on Friday. In his only scheduled media commitment during the World Cup, Blatter said it was not for him to comment on the severity of Suarez’s punishment for biting Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini.
In the seven-minute interview, Blatter briefly touched on the biggest controversy of the tournament. ‘Obviously they have taken into consideration the antecedents of this player,’ Blatter said.
The player’s defense is in paragraph 6 of Fifa’s disciplinary committee ruling, which has been seen by the agency. ‘After the impact ... I lost my balance, making my body unstable and falling on top of my opponent,’ Suarez wrote in his submission to the panel which met Wednesday, one day after Uruguay beat 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,’ Suarez said. However, the seven-man panel which met on Wednesday evening dismissed the argument. The bite was ‘deliberate, intentional and without provocation,’ the ruling stated in paragraph No. 26 of the panel’s conclusions. Suarez was banned for nine Uruguay matches and four months from all football. He was also fined $112,000.
FIFA president Sepp Blatter believes Luis Suarez’s biting offense was ‘definitely not fair’ though he won’t say the player’s name. ‘It is not fair what he has done,’ Blatter said on Friday. In his only scheduled media commitment during the World Cup, Blatter said it was not for him to comment on the severity of Suarez’s punishment for biting Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini.
In the seven-minute interview, Blatter briefly touched on the biggest controversy of the tournament. ‘Obviously they have taken into consideration the antecedents of this player,’ Blatter said.