On This Day in 2013: Luis Suarez charged with violent conduct by FA for biting

The Football Association charged Liverpool forward Luis Suarez with violent conduct for biting Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic on this day in 2013.

The incident, which was missed by officials at the time, occurred in the 74th minute of the previous day’s 2-2 draw at Anfield, with Suarez going on to score a last-gasp equaliser.

Suarez, who had been suspended for seven games for a similar attack on PSV Eindhoven’s Otman Bakkal during his time at Ajax, was immediately fined by Liverpool but the club stood by the striker.

The Uruguay international apologised in a post on his Twitter account, saying: “I’m sad for what happened this afternoon, I apologize Ivanovic and all football world for my inexcusable behaviour. I’m so sorry about it!!”

His apology and admission of the charge, however, cut little ice and two days later an independent regulatory commission, much to his club’s dismay, upheld an FA claim that a statutory three-game ban was not sufficient punishment for the offence and he was suspended for 10 matches.

Then manager Brendan Rodgers said at the time: “We had been given clear indications by the FA that there was going to be an independent – or so-called independent – case put together and then we would receive what that sanction would be.

“If you are an independent panel and yet the day beforehand the FA come out and say (Suarez) will serve more than three games, it is not independent because they are already putting pressure on the sanction.”

Suarez, who had also served a ban for racism while at Liverpool, did not play for the club again until September 25, returning in a 1-0 League Cup defeat at Manchester United, and left in a £75million move to Barcelona during the following summer after the Reds slipped up in the Premier League title race.

However, his debut for the Catalan giants was delayed after he was suspended from all football-related activity for four months, banned for nine international matches and fined almost £66,000 for another biting incident – this time sinking his teeth into Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini at the 2014 World Cup.

Suarez left Barcelona in 2020 and currently plays for Brazilian club Gremio.