"They accused me of being racist without any proof"

Guardian journalist Simon Hattenstone interviewed Luis Suárez in the process of the writing of a book, Crossing the line: My Story, which is to be published on November 6. The Guardian is to publish extracts from the forthcoming tome on Saturday, a book that will cover in depth Suárez’s bite on Giorgio Chiellini at the World Cup, which resulted in a four-month ban from competitive football, and other controversial moments during the Uruguay striker’s career, including his sanction for racially abusing Patrice Evra.

Personality on and off the pitch: “I have always said the same thing, sincerely. The Luis that steps onto the football pitch has nothing to do with the one off it. When I am not playing I am very quiet, a father and a husband. At times on the pitch I do things that are not correct but I don’t see myself in the same way that a lot of people do.”

Chiellini and the ban: “It was difficult to accept. But I am well aware that when you make a mistake you have to ask for forgiveness.”

Biting and other on-field acts of aggression: “People have different ways of standing up for themselves. In my case, my way of dealing with the tension and pressure was that. In other cases, there are other players who react by breaking someone’s leg or breaking someone’s nose. Those things are worse. But biting is frowned upon and I understand that.”

Racism and diving accusations: “They accused me of being racist without any proof. Without any proof they justified it because of what someone said, not because there was any evidence. That is what hurt me the most; that it was my word against theirs. I know that I made a mistake. As for diving, tell me how many cards I have received for faking a foul and how many have been given to other players.”

Stability at home: “A player’s stability isn’t based on the pitch but off it. Having to stay at home at night, not being able to drink, this requires stability and Sofía is very important to me in life.”

“Negro” in terms of geographic use: “ Every culture has its way of expressing itself, and people in Uruguay say that all the time, whether somebody's black or not. In Uruguay you can say ‘negro’ at any time and to anybody and at no point is it racist.”

Calling Evra “negro”: “All I said to him was “you’re negro.” It has nothing to do with racism. I’m not going to accuse him of anything for calling me South American. That’s why I wouldn’t report it if somebody said that to me, or insulted my mother. These are football things that happen in football millions of times.

The last word: “I’ve been asked 38,000 times about the biting, this was the last one of these interviews.”

from Últimas noticias | Diario AS http://ift.tt/1xi6U2r

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