Uruguay advanced to the knockout stage of the World Cup on Tuesday with an upset victory over Italy, but there is a dark cloud hanging over their victory. They can thank Luis Suarez and his biting problem for that.
Suarez appeared to bite Italian defender Giorgio Chiellini on the shoulder in the 80th minute. Unfortunately for Chiellini and the Italians, no official saw the incident. Chiellini immediately fell to the ground and showed a referee the bite marks Suarez left on his shoulder shortly after the exchange.
[WATCH: Luis Suarez bites Giorgio Chiellini]
This is the third biting incident involving Suarez in the last four years, and he has been suspended each of the previous times. He was given a seven-game ban for biting an opponent and 2010 and was suspended 10 games last year after biting Chelsea’s Branislav Ivanovic.
You hate to make excuses for a team, but there are plenty of people — including ESPN World Cup analyst and Everton manager Roberto Martinez — who feel that Suarez’s bite had to have distracted Chiellini and the other Italian players. Uruguay scored just a minute later, clinching a spot in the knockout stage and sending Italy, who needed a draw or win, home.
Photo: Twitter/Baxter Holmes
