London: Uruguay’s volatile star Luis Suarez’s propensity for biting opponents stems from his under-privileged childhood, a leading sports psychologist told the BBC.
The 27-year-old Liverpool striker – who has been banned for lengthy periods for two previous biting incidents – is alleged to have bitten Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini in their World Cup Group D game on Tuesday.
Governing body FIFA are investigating the incident and if found guilty of biting he could face a ban of up to 24 matches.
“The formative years of people’s development do contribute to their personality. If you look at his history, Suarez had a fairly hard upbringing (he was one of seven children born into poverty), which would have been fighting for survival – he was streetwise,” Dr Tom Fawcett from Salford University told the BBC on Wednesday.
Fawcett claimed that nobody should be surprised at the incident which has yet to be proven and which was not seen by Mexican referee Marco Rodriguez. TV images showed Suarez bending his head down onto Chiellini’s shoulder and then immediately afterwards sitting on the ground fiddling with his teeth.
“If it’s happened before, it’ll happen again,” Fawcett said. “Despite all the help, he’s going to do it again.”
Fawcett said that Suarez required more help than just spending some time undergoing therapy with people such as him as the problem was so deeply etched in his psyche. (AFP)
