Luis Suarez Apologizes to Giorgio Chiellini for Bite

Luis Suarez apologized to Giorgio Chiellini, sort of. The controversial Uruguayan striker issued a statement today. It reads like one from a man who has finally come to the realization he’s facing four months on the sideline from any soccer related activity, along with a nine-match international ban. (This is a bit of a hindrance when you’re trying to force a move to Barcelona from Liverpool.)

The key words from Suarez: “The truth is that my colleague Giorgio Chiellini suffered the physical result of a bite in the collision he suffered with me.”

Everyone in the world watched him deliberately try to sink his teeth into the Italian defender’s shoulder, but Suarez doesn’t quite say he bit him. (Admittedly something could be lost in translation.) At least his apology is better than the report from over the weekend where Suarez tried to claim to FIFA that he lost his balance.

Let’s hope Suarez is telling the truth when he says his third on-field biting incident will be his last.

Once we move away from the World Cup and into the European club season it will be interesting to watch if the FIFA four-month ban is upheld after what’s sure to be a complicated, lengthy appeals process. For whatever it’s worth UEFA’s transfer ban on Barcelona was overturned almost instantaneously.

For his part Chiellini (and his shoulder) appear to be over it.

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