FIFA bans Suarez for one match JOHANNESBURG – Uruguay's Luis Suarez said his conscience was clear after being dismissed for a handball that denied Ghana a last-gasp winner in their World Cup quarterfinal Friday. Ghana's Asamoah Gyan missed the subsequent penalty to leave the match deadlocked at 1-1 after extra time and Uruguay went on to seal a place in the last four through a penalty shootout. “It was worth being sent off in this way for because at that moment there was no other choice,” Suarez told reporters. “I'm very calm.” His dismissal for the goalmouth block means he will miss the semifinal against the Netherlands and break up a strike partnership with Diego Forlan that has produced six goals in the tournament so far. Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez rejected assertions that his team had won by cheating. “Yes, he stuck his hand out but is that cheating?” he asked. “I think it was instinctive. He was thrown out (of the game), he can't play the next match. There are consequences. “When he handled, he didn't know Ghana would miss the penalty. Is Suarez to blame for Ghana missing the penalty in the shoot-out?” Forlan was named Man of the Match after an indefatigable performance up front, highlighted by his third goal of the tournament - a beautiful equalizer from a freekick 10 minutes into the second half. He said Suarez had saved the day for the South Americans. “We knew it was going to be difficult. The way it finished was incredible,” Forlan told a post-match news conference. “It was a pity Suarez was sent off. Instead of scoring, he saved one, he saved the game.” FIFA banned Uruguay forward Luis Suarez for one match for his deliberate handball to deny Ghana a winning goal in their World Cup quarterfinal match. FIFA's disciplinary committee has ruled that Suarez was guilty of “denying the opposite team a clear goal-scoring opportunity” and imposed just a one-match suspension. Suarez will serve the ban when Uruguay meets the Netherlands in the semifinals Tuesday, and would be available for the final if his team advances. FIFA spokesman Pekka Odriozola said earlier Saturday that as a matter of routine the disciplinary commission would review any offense that receives a straight red card to decide whether it merited a harsher punishment. “As is the case for any red card, any automatic red card in any match, there's an automatic one match suspension,” said Odriozola. “And also the disciplinary committee opens the case for any automatic red card in any match.
