‘I’m not sorry’: Luis Suárez back in eye of the storm for Ghana rematch

01-Dec-2022 16:06:22 | The Guardian

Uruguay’s ‘devil himself’ says he does not regret handball that broke a continent’s heart as he prepares for grudge match

Just in case Ghanaian memories were fading, Uruguay granted them an audience with a ghost. Luis Suárez was not obliged to be the player put up for pre-match media duty but in he walked, 15 minutes before his manager Diego Alonso, and held court on his own. It was less a red rag to a bull than an open invitation to set it charging but the unspoken message was clear: I am still here; I am still inside your heads.

He has resided in enough of them since the astonishing, dreamlike sequence in Johannesburg 12 years ago when his handball at the end of extra time broke a continent’s hearts. The story is well rehearsed: Dominic Adiyiah’s header would have sent Ghana to the semi-finals, making them the first African side to get that far, had Suárez not parried it on the line and taken a red card.