The Uruguay forward collided with Italian defender Giorgio Chiellini during a FIFA World Cup match on Tuesday. What was to follow was horrific. 'El Pistolero' sunk his teeth into the shoulder of the opposing man - cue a third biting controversy and a 4 month worldwide ban from football.
What many find baffling is his motivation to do such an action. If aggravated, the most some players would react with is a kick or head butt - remember Zidane? But why the bite? We all know he would be arrested if this horrific action was performed on the street. In 1994, Rangers striker Duncan Ferguson was jailed for three months for an on-field head butt whilst playing Raith Rovers. Should the same not happen to Luis Suarez?Not only does he harm his own reputation, but the one of the teams, leagues and tournaments he plays in. Because of this infamous event, Suarez has taken the gloss off a brilliant World Cup for teams such as Algeria and Costa Rica. In twenty years time, will the 2014 World Cup be remembered as the one Miroslav Klose drew level with Ronaldo in the tournaments goal scoring charts? No, it will be remembered as one of the most controversial ones we have ever seen. Liverpool have suffered massively due to his actions. The fact he tried to cover up the incident is also embarrassing. Firstly, the dive as though Chiellini had elbowed him in the mouth, followed by the post match comments. "These things happen on the pitch" he said to the press afterwards... In the aftermath of the racism row, manager Kenny Dalglish stuck by the man, as did the supporters. The same goes after he bit Branislav Ivanovic in April 2013. Former Reds striker Robbie Fowler said that Suarez "has continually dragged the name of the club through the mud," and I couldn't agree more.
He has also damaged his club's chances of receiving a high price for him if he were to leave Liverpool. After he tore apart England, at only 75% fitness, many said Suarez wouldn't be at the Anfield side much longer - many saying he was worth more than £100 million. The Spanish giants awaited his signature. Now his price has probably halved and nobody will want him at all. If Liverpool were to sell him for the above price, then they would be able to bring in other quality players to replace him. But now that nobody will want him, and his suspension will see him out of most of Liverpool's Champions League group games, Liverpool will lack the funds to replace him with good, Champions League quality. Their dream of getting back into Europe's elite, may just have become a nightmare.
Luis Suarez has also been on the end of endless jokes about the bite. Big food companies such as Snickers and Nando's tweeted pictures telling him to try their products rather than humans. Scouse comedian John Bishop stated: "Why is everyone having a go at Suarez? We all love an Italian!" The Daily Mail tweeted a picture of altered World Cup stickers whilst crowds gathered to take a picture of themselves being bitten on Copacabana beach.Overall, I feel the punishment is not long enough. Biting somebody once is mindless but three times is ludicrous. Any ban longer than a year would have been acceptable, a possible jail sentence too. And the whole cover up, the dive followed by comments from himself and David Lugano put the sport we love to shame. A second World Cup overshadowed by a Suarez moment of madness. Remember - Luis Suarez is treated badly by the English media...
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