Luis Suárez doesn’t have to apologize to Ghana for his 2010 handball, as he wasn’t the one who missed the penalty. Those were the words of the Uruguayan striker at the press conference this Thursday morning (1). The two teams will meet on Friday (2), at 12:00, for a place in the round of 16 of the World Cup.
“‘To be honest, I don’t apologize for that. I handballed the ball, but the Ghana player missed the penalty, not me. Maybe I apologize if I hurt a player, but in this situation, I got a red card, the referee gave the penalty, it’s not my fault,” he replied.
In 2010, the move looked like a sure goal for Ghana. Suárez, on top of the line, had no doubts and defended the ball with his hand. He was expelled. Asamoah Gyan caught the ball and kicked the ball into the crossbar. Suarez, who was still on his way to the changing rooms, celebrated a lot. The Uruguayan trickery paid off and the team ranked 4th in the World Cup in South Africa.
Suárez even considered that moment “the defense of the Cup”, in his words.
“When I saw that [o pênalti] it was on the beam I felt enormous happiness. They came to hug me and said that it was thanks to me”, vibrated the player, after the match. “For me, it was the defense of the Cup. It served so that the team could win on penalties.”
The situation this year is once again delicate for Uruguay. Last in the group with only one point, the South American team needs to win the match and hope that South Korea does not beat Portugal to qualify for the round of 16. Ghana, on the other hand, can guarantee the classification with a draw, since it is vice-leader of the group, with three points, depending on the other match in the bracket.
The result is important for Brazil, as their opponents in the Round of 16 will drop out of this group.
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